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| SCULPTURE OPEN
'23 |
| 19/1/23 - 28/1/23 |
Please
note: This exhibition takes place at the Bridewell Studios &
Gallery, which is situated at 101 Prescot St, Liverpool L7 8UL - just
opposite the old Royal Hospital - while our Seel St. site is closed for
a bit of a facelift. The Bridewell is closed Monday to Wednesday.
Opening hours Thursday - Sunday are 12pm - 4pm.
Continuing
OUTPUT’s survey of creativity in the region, this month we return to
Bridewell Studios & Gallery for the 2023 Sculpture Open
exhibition,
this time featuring the work of
Ami Zanders, Craig Sinclair, Rory Larbalestier, Katie McGuire,
Christopher Pollock and Ellie Towers.
The
artists selected for this exhibition bring a variety of unique
approaches ranging from assemblages of found objects to hand-shaped
clay items and every combination in-between. Their work is deeply
reflective of the world they find themselves in, and the paths that
have led the way.
Please join us for an exhibition launch 6-9pm on Thursday 9th February.
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| | | | MEET THE ARTISTS... | | | |
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AMI ZANDERS
Ami
Zanders’ textural assemblages, masks and shamanistic figures recall the
Gombey dancers of Bermuda, where the artist grew up. The exuberant,
colourful performances of the Gombey dancers include masquerade,
drumming and music; a folk tradition which reflects the island’s blend
of African, Caribbean and British cultures. The performances also
recall the island’s history of colonial oppression, as slave masters
banned Gombey performances for many years, allowing them to only take
place once a year - in this context, masks were used to protest this
injustice without fear of identification and subsequent retribution.
Zanders use of this iconography, combined with a visual language shaped
by her own childhood and the brightly-coloured early-morning cartoons
of the 1980s and 90s, shows an artist using spiritual exploration and
folk traditions to curate an identity free of the strictures of certain
religious upbringings and other forms of social oppression. The work is
deeply felt and rich in symbolism; ancient spirits in modern dress.
Instagram: @amizanders |
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ELLIE TOWERS
The
work of recent LJMU graduate Ellie Towers, currently based at The Royal
Standard studios, combines traditional sculptural methods with 3D
rendering, animation and set design, using a variety of tools to build
a personalised world rich in atmosphere and narrative potential. Ellie
is interested in unpacking the forms that create an environment through
reflections, memories and anecdote, reworking them into new artworks
informed by connections to fictional, digital or real spaces. The
eventual artwork exists between these, infusing digital spaces with
real-world texture, and solid sculpture with the shifting possibilities
of the digital age.
Instagram: @ellie__towers |
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CHRISTOPHER POLLOCK
Christopher
Pollock’s abstracted sculptural forms are intended to be interacted
with through touch as well as vision, the artist having lost his sight
in early adulthood. His practice creates opportunities to recall sense
memories familiar to many from the Liverpool region, taking inspiration
from the objects and textures of Liverpool’s waterfront and ferry
terminals. Interacting with Christopher’s work can provide a potent
glimpse at how others may operate within the world, and probe at the
peculiar functions of human memory. |
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CRAIG SINCLAIR
Craig
Sinclair is a multimedia artist, film-maker, actor and musician,
currently studying at Hope University in Liverpool. While highly varied
in terms of media and approach, his work is bound by a strong sense of
the absurd, an immersion in folk-horror and nostalgia for the seamier
side of 20th Century UK culture, and a Lynchian sense of a dream
curdling into a nightmare. He is also prodigiously productive, recent
years having included the self-published comic book Sprout, directing /
starring in countless short films and music videos, exhibiting collage
and video works, and releasing music with stalwart pop mavericks
Lovecraft.
Instagram: @mistercraigsinclair |
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RORY LARBALESTIER
Rory
Larbalestier is an artist and teacher based in Liverpool since
graduating from LJMU’s Fine Art course in 2017. His work shows a deep
investment in the craft of making, with an ambitious level of scale and
/ or detail in many of his pieces. The investment of time these works
require provides space to meditate on themes that bleed back into the
work - such as the behaviour of ants or moths, and other biological
phenomena; and whether the act of art-making is comparable to
hive-building or the irresistable pull of a lightbulb. Alongside his
sculptural practice Rory works with paint, video and animation (which
often repurpose his sculptural work), he also has a rigorous sketchbook
practice underpinning his work.
Instagram: @roarlarbs
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KATIE MCGUIRE
Katie
McGuire is a contemporary sculptor interested in materiality and
industrialism, predominantly creating works using backer rod; a
polyethylene material used as an insulator on building sites. Her work
responds to thoughts and sensory reactions prompted by explorations of
different environments, and creates a conversation with that context by
exploring the form, weight and tension of non-traditional materials
primarily associated with the construction industry, while the
sculptures’ hand-made nature connects them to lineages of manual labour
and working class history. The variety of textures and forms that
McGuire has coaxed the backer rod into speaks to her resourcefulness
and imagination, and her recent commission on Dot Art’s Liverpool
Plinth is testament to the works’ emotive power.
Instagram: @katiemcguire_art |
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