Light Industrial Magic
Henry Coleman, Elizabeth Kent, Rupert Norfolk, Christopher Warmington
Curated by Rupert Norfolk
18.11.00–10.12.00
Private View: November 17 2000, 7.00-9.00 pm
“The uncanny aura of the craft item is linked to time. Crafts are the literal embodiment of the puritan work ethic. They seem to announce that the work is its own reward. This is spoken through the long labour-intensive hours it takes to construct them by hand. They speak the language of the wage-earner in which there is a direct one-to-one relationship between time spent and worth. The equation is not between time and money, it is a more obscure relationship drawn between time and commitment, one that results in a kind of emotional usury.”
Mike Kelly, In the Image of Man
Henry Coleman has worked with a skilled craftsman to produce an intricately worked marquetry panel. The image is taken from a found photograph which he redrew, codifying different areas to correspond with different wood veneers. The finished, French-polished panel has been cut into further and inlayed with mother-of-pearl.
Elizabeth Kent will show a variety of precisely modelled chameleons. Each one individually painted, they appear convincing and naturalistic. However, by selecting and applying colours according to a system of her own, she’s managed to make room for invention without loosing a sense of realism.
A freeze-frame from a section of video that uses a computer graphic to represent the appearance of time, is rendered in the pair of pencil drawings by Rupert Norfolk. While the techniques employed seem purposeful, the identity of the image remains elusive. In this position of uncertainty the viewer is encouraged to use each drawing as a reference for the other.
Christopher Warmington’s All I Could do consists of pieces of paper with times and dates in the corners. The time and date on the top left corner of each one, indicate when the work was begun, the time and date in the bottom right corner indicate when the work was completed. For the duration between these times, the pieces of paper are kept on his person. The time between the dates can be anything from a few months to a year. The finished pieces are worn, marked and unfolded.
For more information please contact Sheila Lawson on 0171 375 2973.
The gallery hours are Saturday and Sunday 12-6pm, or by appointment.
