Exhibition casts light on life in a material world
ELYSIUM Gallery hosts its latest exhibition, Material Matters, bringing together the work of four contemporary British sculptors – Sokari Douglas Camp, Lee Grandjean, Marie-therese Ross and Andrew Sabin.
Assisted by a Henry Moore Foundation grant, Elysium Gallery has been able to bring sculpture to Swansea from Sussex, Norfolk, London and Wiltshire.
The exhibition is curated by artist Sarah Tombs, who wanted to explore the relationship between process and materiality, how through experimentation and manipulation the sculptor is able to generate objects whose content and motivations are accessible to an audience. Material Matters investigates ways in which these sculptors combine traditional and non-traditional materials and techniques, and how they deal with elements of construction, surface and colour.
The exhibiting sculptors have established practices over several decades and this exhibition draws upon connections between their approaches. Their coming together represents a unique opportunity to examine this core sculptural premise.
Sokari Douglas Camp transforms oil drums and fabricates steel into figurative sculpture that is often rooted in the African culture where she was born.
Her highly coloured work uses pattern, textile and decorative elements. Rather than designing and laser-cutting, Camp “draws” patterns by hand using a blowtorch cutting into the steel sheet.
She describes her work as “the joy of making”. However, her work is also political and rooted in African culture – her use of oil drums to create beauty is a conscious and poignant statement about oil production in the Niger Delta, one of the most polluted places in the world.
Lee Grandjean’s work deals with form and pictorial elements. At the heart of his practice is wood-carving, which is deconstructed and then reworked, creating amalgamations of forms made from concrete, mesh and plastics. Colour is applied to the surface, which consolidates the sculptures.
He says: “For me, materials have to be pushed beyond their literal characteristics. Beauty is not the goal, but an authentic and believable sculptural energy and presence in which form and content are one.”
His new body of work, Heroes, is a response to Elysium’s former life as a nightclub. Grandjean has created a series “revellers” that interact with the architecture of the gallery.
Marie-therese Ross’ sculptures are made from a combination of laminated wood parts. Using found objects which are integrated and sublimated into the works with carved and painted wood, colour adds another layer of expression and meaning to the whole. The mass of wood echoes the drawn and cut-out lines found in her drawings and collages, lending itself well to her process of working.
For this exhibition, Ross has focused on Dylan Thomas’ poetry and life. In particular, A Winter’s Tale and Lie Still, Sleep Becalmed have inspired the artist, discovering shared experiences with the poet and exploring these in her new works. The installation will explore mortality and incorporate accompanying music.
Andrew Sabin uses a vast range of materials, including ephemeral edible substances usually found in the kitchen, such as margarine, to create specific sculptural forms which are transformed into highly coloured and shiny plastic permanent objects.
He uses industrial processes of welding and construction in his freestanding object-based sculptures which are constructed from cement, steel, polyurethane and expanding foam.
He says: “I believe it is a sculptor’s job to test materials. It doesn’t come without obstacles, but I like a good sculptural struggle.”
As part of Material Matters, Elysium will also be hosting the work of three Swansea College of Art Fine Art students – Branwen Jones, Luke Cotter and Amelie Warner to exhibit alongside the other four artists in its new Testbed Space.
This is a part of the gallery set aside for emerging artists to experiment with new work and become part of the gallery’s exhibitions programme.
Material Matters is on show now until Saturday, May 11.