British Land Competition: Initial Thoughts and Research

Following the introduction of a spatial art competition for British Land, I've been spending time at the site at Regent's Place in Euston.  It's difficult not to be struck by the apparent contrast, in wealth and lifestyle, of those who work on site and the inhabitants of the nearby residential area.  The site developers want local residents to use Regent's Place, but to an extent this seems unrealistic.

There are definite formal connections in the architecture: Both the site and adjacent housing estate have a strong vertical presence.  It is interesting, though, that the context of their height gives them very different connotations - The 'skyscrapers' of modern materialsemanating notions of professionalism and wealth, the 'high rise flats' signifying associations with lower class poverty.

Following research at Camden Local History Library in Holborn, I've found that throughout the 19^th and 20^th centuries Regent’s Place was occupied by a mixture of working class dwellings and sites of industry and manufacture.  There has long since been a confluence of classes in the area, however, with the site having been only streets away from the intended ‘well-to-do’ crescents and squares closer to Regent’s Park.  

Lost Streets: The above image is courtesy of Camden Local History Library.

Image Manipulation: Preserve/Destroy

Exploring the notion of fragility, I successfully burnt one of the cardigans slowly, with the wax both fuelling and slowing the process like the wax of a candle.  I then layered images of the cardigan at various stages, juxtaposing the varying states to suggest their co-existence in memory.

Object and Shadow, experiments with photography

I am pleased with the way this photo captures the materiality of the wax at this somewhat distorted angle.  The shadow reveals the identity of the object through its shape and texture.  As the shadow blurs out of focus towards the camera it also seems to suggest movement, in contrast to the stillness of the object itself.

Shadow Catchers

Floris Neususs: Be Right Back (1984)

"Shadow Catchers" at The V&A exhibits a variety of amazing camera-less photographic art works and techniques, but I was completely captivated by this photogram/installation by Floris Neususs.

Neususs creates images by exposing photographic paper without the use of a camera.  The method produces life sized shadow-like prints which require direct contact with the paper to produce the image.  These factors enhance the memorial aspect of the work – the viewer gets a definite sense that someone was there. 

In “Be Right Back”, the original chair shown on the image has been placed on the paper where it was when the photogram was taken, accentuating the absence of the sitter – who has not.

The title of this particular work draws our attention to the time elapsed since the event.  It becomes spooky that, as a viewer, you are looking at the exact positioning of a person who sat there over 10 years ago.  

V&A exhibition web page 

Preservation with wax

Wax immersed cardigans in the studio.  The wire hangers have been removed, leaving their impression on the set fabric.

Taking the focus back to personal objects, I experimented with immersing second hand children's cardigans in plaster, and also wax.  The knitted texture invites us to wonder whether they are handmade for a child or grandchild, giving them an added sense of personal history.  I feel the wax alludes to the attempted preservation of childhood items and memories.  It also reflects the fragility of the memories we try to preserve, as the wax can be melted again easily.

Close up digital photograph: Laying the object flat accentuates its rigid materiality.

The weave of the fabric creates shadows with a sense of depth.  Positioning the cardigan appearing to drip into the shadow links the two images and invites the viewer to question their relationship.

Ghost Tables

Plaster immersed table cloths, suspended in the studio with light.

Following a tutorial with Pete, I took the petrifying process to a larger scale and experimented with laying sheets of plaster immersed fabric over things and removing the original objects.  Above are 2 table cloths with the tables removed.  They are rigid enough to stand alone, though I suspended the patterned cloth just above the studio floor and lit it from beneath to accentuate the absence of the original table.

Creases in the fabric are intentional and exist to suggest a former human presence, as frozen impressions of their interaction with the object.

Subconscious of a Monument

Cornelia Parker: Subconscious of a Monument

In this amazing installation Parker suspends fragments of earth, excavated from beneath the Tower of Pisa, at waist height.  She creates a scene of dazzling stillness, and a memorial to these once buried and forgotten objects.

Frith Street Gallery website