‘‘Hidden Kingdoms’’, Andi Regan
(Hullabaloo Art Space, Cromwell)
ALTHOUGH a serious message underlies Andi Regan’s work, it invariably contains a sense of fun as well. Walking into her exhibitions is a bit like entering a dream world, the eponymous ‘‘Hidden Kingdoms’’. She has the knack of sharing with her audience the transformative imagination that comes easily in childhood and is often drowned out by responsibility and stress in later life. Her latest collection focuses on fungi, and turns a fairly unromantic subject into something delightful and thoughtprovoking.
Each piece in the exhibition is intricately made, but creates an impression of simplicity. Regan’s signature style utilises plastic cable ties, a manmade utilitarian object, a small but necessary cog in the wheel of progress and technology, and turns them into striking sculptures of natural, living things. That deliberate conjunction of the organic and the manufactured encourages reflection on the human impact on the environment.
Our priorities and perceptions of what is beautiful and significant can become clouded by the modern drive to constantly have more and be better, to have everything instantly and easily, without stopping to think of the consequences and what the world might lose as a result. And we often forget what treasures and moments of wonder and happiness can be found in the natural world around us, if we just take a moment to stop, look, and search.