September 12 - October 11, 2008 Reception: Friday, September 12, 6-8 pm
In All Things Solid, Chris Gilmour plays magician as he forms something out of nothing, using everyday materials to craft clever, meticulous sculptures, often in their life-size state. The consumer detritus of everyday living become objects de art, a kind of highbrow ‘greening’ of artistic materials.
Gilmour incorporates a sly humor to his work, investigating the thin line that divides fiction from reality. His use of items in their natural state – logos, tape and labels are left clearly visible – preserve a sense of authenticity. Simultaneously, these remnants function as evidence of artistic intervention. Glue and cardboard brave gravity and the sculptures come alive without any structural supports.
For his second exhibition at Freight + Volume, Gilmour transforms the space into a cabinet of curiosities, the results of the artist’s ‘laboratory’ of recycled materials and glue. A discarded food wrapper gives life to a new breed of insect, shipping boxes construct far off continents on a trio of antique globes, and an excess of molded, scavenged cardboard resurrect the infamous leader Julius Caesar. Additionally a microscope, musical instruments, and a grandfather clock all transport the viewer back to Victorian times.
These formal objects evoke an era of great imperial grandeur, however the medium with which they are produced is nothing more than ordinary, emphasizing the dialogue between the ephemeral and eternal. Caesar was a celebrated man, yet Gilmour fashions his armor from disposed scraps. The insects – colorful, detailed creatures - overwhelm the space with their presence adding a disturbing element overall. These poignant juxtapositions are revealed within the exhibition as Gilmour reflects on the contemporary diffusion of culture and its transient nature.
Chris Gilmour was born in Stockport, Great Britain and lives and works in Udine, Italy. His works has been exhibited in museum and gallery exhibitions internationally and domestically including at Perugi Artecontemporanea, Padova; Musée national de l'automobile, Mulhouse; Fluxum Fondation, Geneva. His work has been featured in Artnet Magazine, Flash Art International, Freight + Volume magazine, GQ.com, and Marie Claire among others.
