This was my first time visiting the Biennial, there was so much work to see at the goods yard venue. However the first thing I was struck by was the incredible architecture, beautiful brickwork worn and softened with time, I was very taken with it and it did take me a little while to focus back down from the ceilings onto the work itself.
Curved brick ceiling in the goods yard venue.
Worn brick wall inside the goods yard venue.
A cleaner part of the stunning brick ceiling at the goods yard.
The first artists work we were greeted with were these pieces by Vicky Lindo and William Brookes, the smoothness of the forms is striking, they are smooth and soft, in a juxtaposition with the intricate, dark and visually complicated sgraffitoed illustrations adorning them. The textures coming out from the white areas that have been scraped away to create the images gave them extra resonance particularly on the one featuring the owl. The fact that they stood on feet, raised, created a figurative aspect to them. They very much reminded me of the animation from the beginning of the original Watership Down film which was nostalgic.
Vicky Lindo and William Brookes
The one featuring the tiger seemed to almost stand on its own, perhaps because it was such a bright vibrant colour with black set against it, it did feel like it visually differed from the rest of the set. There were also similar qualities to lino prints within the images maybe because they are derived from similar, carving processes and working in relief.
We then progressed onto ‘The Residue of Tools’ by artist Tamsin van Essen, the fact that there were very etching-esque looking images on the wall immediately drew me in, that and the plethora of objects all laid out en mass, multiplicity is something I am drawn to and that features heavily in my own work as it has such a profound affect on me as a viewer, there is an overwhelm and an inquisitiveness that it provokes within me. Why are there so many, what are they for? Surely the amount of them which equates to a collection means they are important, if not to society at least to an individual and if that is indeed the case then what is the importance?
What from a distance had seemed like etchings was in fact paper which held the drawing memory of the lines carved and cut to form may of the objects so carefully laid out before us. The residue of every line and mark of the forms was almost more interesting than the finished products. There were areas where you could see the weight that had been applied in pressure by the artist in certain parts, it brought a part of the process of making to life, a further reflection on the thematic tools.
‘The Residue of Tools’ Tamsin van Essen
The objects were pleasing and left me intrigued, wanting to find out more. I also found it interesting that while the artist was investigating the idea of tools, what first struck me was the visual links to symbolism and how they forms could easily have been perceived, as I had, as text from some lost language.
‘Transient: The Ship of Dreams and Nightmares’ Stephen Dixon
Another poignant work was this rather contemporary, sculptural piece by Stephen Dixon. My first impressions of this work were of trying to navigate the narrative within the objects, there were a lot of things I could pick out that made me think of seafaring, the lifejacket, propeller, oar and nautical tools. There are many industrial elements but also ones that are almost misplaced. The bird soaring overhead speaks of freedom whilst the cage says the opposite. The stove of warmth and home and the rocking horse of childhood innocence and family but then the cross slightly askew felt like misplaced faith. Once I saw the noose, subtly hanging at the bottom I felt a sense of mortality, of persecution, a death sentence, the cross then felt more like martyrdom. The shapes of the objects hanging seemed to begin to make sense in the form of a boat too, once I read the artist statement describing the plight of asylum seekers everything fell into place and this stood out to me as a very successful and emotive of contemporary artwork.
‘Leeches’ Dorcas Casey 2019
The work ‘Leeches’ by Dorcas Casey immediately drew me in and though nowhere near the biggest or most eye catching piece on show it was by far the most exciting for me. The idea of her working with the symbolism of animals whilst exploring topics of dreams and memory was exciting enough. The group of leeches she has created feel alive, the glossy glaze on them makes them look realistically wet, the twists and turns of each individual body, moving seemingly around each other drew me closer, I could almost feel the energy of movement within the installation. There is something exciting that happens when multiple objects are employed in one space.
This is still something I am trying to work out myself and within my own practice, where the effects of ‘the many’ can be used to change the meaning, the feeling and the emphasis of certain ideas visually. As I was taking this in I was trying to unpick exactly what it was about the collection of bodies that made this more effective a mechanism of engagement for me than one or even a set of three of five would have. I find it time and time again within many works such as Gerhardt Richters ‘Atlas’ and Marlene Dumas’s ‘The Image as a Burden’. These are the works that stay with me, they resound for some reason and for my practice I think it is so very important that I find out, and work out why. It feels like a key I need to unlock the door of progression within the understanding of how to create works that really speak visually what I am trying to say. Like trying to uncover a hidden language that I have forgotten but once I stumble across it again I will be able to use like riding a bike for the first time in decades.
I am eagerly awaiting the arrival of the next biennial for more ceramic treasures and to discover more incredible established and emerging ceramic artists.