re-title.com
28 July 2011
  Sculpture & Mixed Media  
CHRISTIAN FERREIRA, London
CATHERINE CLARK GALLERY, San Francisco
JERWOOD SPACE, London
I-20 GALLERY, New York
 

 
CHRISTIAN FERREIRA, London
 
 
James R Ford, Snake Pi (version 2), 2011
 
James R Ford, Snake Pi (version 2), 2011
A faux snakeskin effigy of the pi symbol, measuring 3.14 metres in height and 3.14 metres in width.
Plywood, polystyrene, vinyl, 3.14 x 3.14 m
Photograph © Shiraz Ksaiba
© the artist, courtesy of CHRISTIAN FERREIRA, London
 
 
JAMES R FORD
Air of the Irrational
 
Until 11 September 2011
 
CHRISTIAN FERREIRA is delighted to present new work by gallery artist, James R Ford in the Accumulator Tower of the Wapping Hydraulic Power Station.
 
In Air of the Irrational Ford presents new works from his Snake Pis series. These works explore properties of the universe and its random nature. The first Snake Pi was born from the idea of the Heisenberg uncertainty principle and quantum mechanics – the way that particles can pop in and out of existence, taking on unobservable random forms and assemblages of molecules. There is therefore just as much chance for a snake curled into the shape of pi (an icon of mathematical randomness) to occur as any other object. Snake Pi (version 1) was a hand-made, stuffed snake, exhibited flopped and twisted on the floor of the gallery. The irony in Ford presenting this as an art object cannot go unnoticed; the snake which should be a product of chaos is introduced as an art object sitting ambiguously between fields. The idea was developed into a series of works to explore properties of objects using the value and motif of pi, paired with variations of the snake.
 
Snake Pi (version 2) is a 3.14 x 3.14 metre sculptural manifestation of the pi symbol, clad in snakeskin. Strung up in the industrial setting of the Accumulator Tower like a prize catch, or a behemoth Gucci accessory in the waiting. There is a playful association with the ladder in close proximity, but also one of a sombre nature – the chains supporting the work and the bars and grills in the space conjure a dungeon or place where this monster is being caged.
 
The snaking, oscillating nature of sound waves was bound to form part of the Snake Pi series. Alongside the large Snake Pi (version 2) in the tower space is the unassuming Snake Pi Recital. The work is an audio recording: the number pi recited to 1000 decimal places in a snake dialect. The raspy voice and monasteric tone almost lull the listener into a snake charmer’s hypnotic state.
 
James R Ford was born in 1980 in England and now lives and works in Wellington (NZ). He graduated from Goldsmiths in 2005 and has exhibited internationally. Ford has work in the permanent collections at the Moderna Museet (Sweden) and The James Wallace Arts Trust (New Zealand) and has co-written and illustrated the book House Gymnastics.

 
CHRISTIAN FERREIRA
The Wapping Project
Wapping Hydraulic Power Station
Wapping Wall
London E1W 3SG
M: +44 07792531226
 
 
 
 

 
CATHERINE CLARK GALLERY, San Francisco
 
 
Lorraine Burrell, Plug, 2010
 
Lorraine Burrell, Plug, 2010
Single-channel video
© the artist, courtesy of Catherine Clark Gallery, San Francisco
 
 
this little bag of dreams...
A group exhibition of Contemporary Irish Art at Catharine Clark Gallery
 
July 23 – August 27, 2011
 
Catharine Clark Gallery announces this little bag of dreams..., a group exhibition of Contemporary Irish Art, co-curated by Nathan Larramendy (San Francisco) and Josephine Kelliher (Dublin). Works in painting, sculpture, installation, and videos are presented by seven contemporary Irish artists living and working in Ireland: Aideen Barry, Lorraine Burrell, Maud Cotter, Seamus Harahan, Niamh McCann, Tom Molloy, and Garrett Phelan. A literary reading will be presented at the closing of the exhibition, on Saturday, August 27 at 1pm, followed by a reception.The exhibition and series of events at Catharine Clark Gallery is part of Imagine Ireland, a year-long season of Irish arts in America in 2011.
 
Take, if you must, this little bag of dreams;
Unloose the cord, and they will wrap you round.
(W.B. Yeats from the poem Fergus and the Druid)
 
In his retelling of the mythological story of Fergus and the Druid, William Butler Yeats could be speaking about the contemporary anxiety that drives us to dissect and decipher life; to seek detailed insight into our present and our future. King Fergus was a troubled Irish historical figure who consulted a Druid and was offered what; perhaps, we all both secretly yearn for and dread: the “bag of dreams” that contains all knowledge of what is past and what is to come. In the throes of a dilemma - an existential crisis - a BIG answer seems like the only solution. Indeed Fergus opens the bag, and by the poem’s end, he “know[s] all”. This knowledge, however does not quell his anxiety; by knowing all, he has robbed himself of the hope that comes with uncertainty. He is as sure as death and is futureless. So what particular bags of dreams does today’s world require, where are we to find it, and how deeply should we even seek it?
 
Artists routinely undertake a search of a different kind to that of Yeats’ Fergus. Their searches are for the possibility of ideas, for opening up visions of the future, and are, perhaps, less maddening than absolute truth. Artists inhabit the fertile and satisfying territory of mystery and imagination. There are, after all, no absolutes, and there is no comfort in clinging to the shifting sands of so-called “proven” truths. In their various ways the artists in this exhibition take facts and realities, disassemble them, and run permutations and combinations of “what if” scenarios. Their “bags of dreams” are visions of an infinite variety of truths and futures; and in this noisy global society, their work is more crucial than ever as they pause to interrogate, refocus, or review how things are, or how they might be different.
 
Artists often interact with materials, news, facts, and realities in a manner that is not in the least scientific; working with serendipity, curiosity, and a healthy skepticism of rules and regulations. In these days we need reminders of those facilities and faculties more than ever. The artists in this exhibition put such endeavors under the microscope of making, and of seeing, and in the results of their experimentation are to be found both hope and despair. W.B. Yeats, Fergus, and yes, the Druid too, would have been proud, and also highly intrigued.

 
CATHERINE CLARK GALLERY
150 Minna Street
Ground Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
T: +1 415 399 1439
 
 
 
 

 
JERWOOD SPACE, London
 
 
Keith Harrison 'Float' 2011
 
Keith Harrison 'Float' 2011
© the artist, courtesy of Jerwood Visual Arts
photograph Tomas Rydin
 
 
JERWOOD MAKERS OPEN
Four artists push boundaries of craft practice
 
Until 28 August 2011
 
Jerwood Visual Arts (JVA) launches the first Jerwood Makers Open, an exhibition of new commissions by four very different artists, at Jerwood Space.
 
With delicately balanced glass sculptures by Heike Brachlow, a sound and clay homage to the Werner Herzog’s Fitzcarraldo by Keith Harrison, jewellery that responds to movement by Farah Bandookwala and a celebration of ceramic glaze by Emmanuel Boos, this exhibition shows how these artists are pushing the boundaries of their practice and chosen materials.
 
Farah Bandookwala creates jewellery forms using high-tech processes such as rapid prototyping. Her works are reminiscent of exotic plants and creatures, and for Jerwood Makers Open she has created a collection of brightly-coloured, sculptural objects that will light up, vibrate or move in response to human interaction.
 
French-born artist Emmanuel Boos is fascinated by ceramic glaze – its texture and the possibility of exploring different colours and tones. He shows an installation of richly-coloured cobblestone forms and a series of flat wall pieces which chart his studies of glaze and the domesticity of objects.
 
Heike Brachlow has created a series of different-sized glass sculpture based on balancing toys, where form and the weight distribution allows objects to move freely on a single point of contact. While balancing toys are weighted, the challenge for attaining balance in these glass sculptures lies in the way they are formed. Although each work is be a single colour, their varying thickness creates different tones. Their colour will also be affected by the change of light through the course of each day.
 
Inspired by a scene in Werner Herzog‘s Fitzcarraldo, where the central character voyages up the Pachitea River playing Caruso records from a gramophone perched on a steamer, Keith Harrison has recreated this scene with a contemporary cultural shift. Using a reggae dub sound system in place of the gramophone, he has fused clay, sound and electricity to make a monumental wall of speakers for the gallery space. From this, he will play music from the film on ceramic records, creating a work that echoes his experience of the Jah Shaka sound system at St George’s Hall, Exeter, in 1994.
 
Jerwood Makers Open is a new open-submission initiative designed to support and showcase emerging artists working in the applied arts. This annual exhibition series offers significant bursaries to four makers to create new works, which are then exhibited as part of the JVA programme.
 
The four artists in the first Jerwood Makers Open were selected by Emmanuel Cooper, potter, writer, educator and critic, Siobhan Davies, choreographer and artistic director and Jonathan Watkins, curator, writer and Director of Ikon Gallery from over 200 entries. Each artist has been awarded a bursary of £7,500 to create new work for this exhibition.
 
Jerwood Visual Arts, developed and managed by the Jerwood Charitable Foundation, is committed to supporting and promoting contemporary applied arts practice. The Jerwood Applied Arts Prize ran for 11 years (1999 – 2007) in partnership with the Crafts Council. This was followed from 2008 to 2010 by Jerwood Contemporary Makers, a nominated exhibition series which provided a platform to show new and emergent work in the field of making.
 
The Jerwood Makers Open exhibition will be at JVA at Jerwood Space, London, until 28 August 2011 before touring within the UK.

 
JVA at Jerwood Space
171 Union Street
London, SE1 0LN
T: 020 7654 0171
E: jva @ jerwoodspace.co.uk
 
Mon - Fri 10am – 5pm
Sat & Sun 10am – 3pm
Admission: Free
Nearest tube: Southwark, London Bridge or Borough
 
 
 
 

 
I-20 GALLERY, New York
 
 
MAKE Skateboards Installation View
 
MAKE Skateboards Installation View
Courtesy of I-20 Gallery
photograph Cary Whittier
 
 
 
MAKE SKATEBOARDS
 
July 21 – September 17, 2011
 
I-20 Gallery is pleased to announce MAKE SKATEBOARDS, a group exhibition and pop-up skate shop conceived as a throwback to the days when art took precedence over branding and a welcoming vibe met you at the door. The show will be a playful take on running a skateboard shop, transforming I-20 into a functional retail space offering a custom line of artist-designed skateboards, skate-related ephemera and accessories, original artwork, vintage objects, custom furniture and clothing by up-and-coming New York designers.
 
A true working skate shop, MAKE SKATEBOARDS will offer decks that are fully skate-able yet designed to an artistic standard. Two types of boards will be available: affordable, limited-edition silk-screened skateboards; and one-of-a-kind decks altered and embellished by hand, including several conceptual takes on the idea of skateboarding itself.
 
While contemporary art, skateboarding and other forms of street culture are at the forefront of current popular tastes, these worlds remain surprisingly inaccessible to much of the public. The creative interaction and welcoming feel of MAKE SKATEBOARDS will attempt to bridge this divide from a convenient location in the heart of the Chelsea art district, just a few short blocks from the Pier 62 Skate Park.
 
MAKE SKATEBOARDS’ inventory will change and grow throughout its two-month run, offering ever-changing aesthetics and variety to art patrons and skaters alike. Some of the pieces exhibited will result from collaborations with community groups such as the Brooklyn-based League Education & Treatment Center’s L.A.N.D. Gallery, a creative-outreach program for artists with disabilities. The shop will also join forces with KCDC, one of New York’s most established and respected skate shops.
 
A string of weekly parties will celebrate new shop arrivals, book signings, album launches, and secret band nights. While most galleries close their doors for much of August, the MAKE SKATEBOARDS shop will stay open, serving as a refuge from the hot summer weather.
 
MAKE SKATEBOARDS was conceived by artist and filmmaker Scott Ogden and organized in conjunction with Jonathan Lavoie, Director of I-20 Gallery. This summer’s event will be the first of many pop-up incarnations of the shop.
 
Participants:
Michael Alan, Michael Anderson, Hawkins Bolden, Tony Bones, Slater Bradley, Carlton DeWoody, Chris Dorland, David Ellis, Orly Genger, Debra Hampton, Drew Heitzler, Horse Cycles, Grant Huang, Andrew Huston, Timothy Hutchings Junk Prints, Jacob Kassay, Marina Kappos, KCDC, Sarah Kurz, Curtis Kulig, Wes Lang, L.A.N.D., Robert Lazzarini, Cameron Martin, Moris (Israel Meza Moreno), Scott Ogden, Olek, Erik Parker, Parts + Labor Workshop, Joyce Pensato, Portia & Manny, RePOP, Prophet Royal Robertson, Jenn Ruff, Tom Sanford, Eduardo Sarabia, Peter Saul, Bill Saylor, Kenny Scharf, Ivory Serra, Shelter Serra, MiYoung Sohn, Vincent Szarek, WHIT Clothing, Wood & Faulk, Michael Zahn

 
I-20 GALLERY
557 West 23rd Street
New York, NY10011
T: + 1 (212) 645-1100
 
 
 
 
 

 
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