Is There Anybody There?
26 Sep - 5 Nov 09
curated by Chiara Williams & Debra Wilson
The facade of this unassuming Victorian house hides a dark past. A former crack den turned art gallery, WW has a history of dilapidation, violence and paranormal activity. This once rat-infested East London squat was razed to the ground, not once, but twice, as if in an effort to purge itself. Despite being resurrected as a des res in 2003, the new owners were disturbed by strange goings-on and had it 'ghost-busted' before its reincarnation as WW Gallery.Taking inspiration from this turbulent history, curators Debra Wilson and Chiara Williams present 'Is There Anybody There?'. A seasonal and atmospheric exhibition about the unexplained and 'things that go bump in the night', the show takes in Halloween, Bonfire Night and the gallery's first anniversary.
The directors have transformed the fortunes of 30 Queensdown Rd, situated between trendy Dalston and the infamous Murder Mile, into a positive, thriving and ambitious new project space, which participated in this year's 53rd Venice Biennale, the most important and glamorous event in the art calendar.
The trick or treating artists include Deutsche Bank and Saatchi collected Liane Lang, Jerwood Prize selected Annabel Tilley and Venice Biennale exhibited Eva Lis, Jarik Jongman, Lorraine Clarke, Stephanie Wehowski, Enzo Marra and Natasha Bird, plus special guests.
"No. 30 Queensdown Road was the bane of my life, its boarded-up presence representing twenty years of council neglect, the focal point of disturbances, an elemental maelstrom reaping havoc upon the neighbours. Serious water damage overflowed from faulty guttering, seeping into adjoining kitchens, imprinting Rorschach stains upon the walls..."
(excerpt from 'Is There Anybody There?' a text to accompany the exhibition by Heather Tracy, click here to read)
curated by Chiara Williams & Debra Wilson
The facade of this unassuming Victorian house hides a dark past. A former crack den turned art gallery, WW has a history of dilapidation, violence and paranormal activity. This once rat-infested East London squat was razed to the ground, not once, but twice, as if in an effort to purge itself. Despite being resurrected as a des res in 2003, the new owners were disturbed by strange goings-on and had it 'ghost-busted' before its reincarnation as WW Gallery.Taking inspiration from this turbulent history, curators Debra Wilson and Chiara Williams present 'Is There Anybody There?'. A seasonal and atmospheric exhibition about the unexplained and 'things that go bump in the night', the show takes in Halloween, Bonfire Night and the gallery's first anniversary.
The directors have transformed the fortunes of 30 Queensdown Rd, situated between trendy Dalston and the infamous Murder Mile, into a positive, thriving and ambitious new project space, which participated in this year's 53rd Venice Biennale, the most important and glamorous event in the art calendar.
The trick or treating artists include Deutsche Bank and Saatchi collected Liane Lang, Jerwood Prize selected Annabel Tilley and Venice Biennale exhibited Eva Lis, Jarik Jongman, Lorraine Clarke, Stephanie Wehowski, Enzo Marra and Natasha Bird, plus special guests.
"No. 30 Queensdown Road was the bane of my life, its boarded-up presence representing twenty years of council neglect, the focal point of disturbances, an elemental maelstrom reaping havoc upon the neighbours. Serious water damage overflowed from faulty guttering, seeping into adjoining kitchens, imprinting Rorschach stains upon the walls..."
(excerpt from 'Is There Anybody There?' a text to accompany the exhibition by Heather Tracy, click here to read)
Eva Lis
Eva Lis's newly commissioned installation 'Fool's Paradise' is the first work that you encounter as you enter the exhibition. Drawing on the dark and ambigious past of the property, Lis, like Tracy, references the Rorschach inkblot test to provide a sensory, psychological and disorientating experience that speaks of our search for meaning but also our need for mystery, fantasy and creativity.
Lorraine Clarke's 'OOPArt – out of place artefact' (a term coined by Ivan T. Sanderson) is a new work made in collaboration with Kate Sullivan (animation) and Nigel Kellaway (sound). It references the human soul – the creature within that animates the body, as explained by the 19C anthropologist James Frazer in his classic work ‘The Golden Bough'. The suggestion of ancient rites and folkloric anecdote relating to paranormal phenomena are woven into this work. Her other work 'Disembodied Hand – organ of touch” is reminiscent of a reliquary or a sacred votive object, and draws inspiration from the 19C anatomical model or specimen found in medical museums, whilst hinting at the phantasmic horror and the humour surrounding a decarnate body part.
One of the enduring tales surrounding 30 Queensdown Road is of a pregnant cook employed in the house in the Victorian era, who died in mysterious and lonely circumstances, her earthbound spirit trapped in the damp cellar for over a century with only an airbrick to the outside world.
Liane Lang's haunting timelapse animation draws on the myth of the imprisoned Danaë being visited by Zeus in the form of golden rain and conceiving their son Perseus. A highly erotic subject for artists throughout history, Lang's Danaë makes reference to Rembrandt's version, but breaks compositional convention by showing Danaë from behind so that we see what she herself is looking at. From rain and thunder, snow and sunshine, daylight to darkness, she watches the weather change at speed. Her pose is rigid, barely moving, releasing the viewer's attention. The eye adheres to small details outside, the melting snow, patches of sunlight travelling across the field. The weather itself thus becomes the central protagonist, just as Zeus was in classical mythology.
Natasha Bird works mainly with machine-based installation to explore ideas around energy and affecting forces. For 'Is There Anybody There?' she has produced a sound installation that can be read as a conversation between the moans and groans of the house and its dwellers. 'Stairs (displaced)' is a kinetic work that can only function as a dialogue; both house and visitor must participate for the piece to come alive.
Jarik Jongman's 'Phenomena' is a series that includes oil paintings, mixed media work on paper and artist books. It shows empty motel rooms where clouds, bright lights and flame-like wave forms seem to materialize out of nowhere. The motel rooms allude to the transient nature of life, the phenomena that can be observed there relate also to the ephemeral and are both grandiose and uncanny. In these works the visible world reveals itself in metaphors that have a direct impact on the senses of the viewer and are open to interpretation. To paraphrase Werner Heisenberg: "What we observe is not reality itself but reality exposed to our method of questioning."
Lorraine Clarke's 'OOPArt – out of place artefact' (a term coined by Ivan T. Sanderson) is a new work made in collaboration with Kate Sullivan (animation) and Nigel Kellaway (sound). It references the human soul – the creature within that animates the body, as explained by the 19C anthropologist James Frazer in his classic work ‘The Golden Bough'. The suggestion of ancient rites and folkloric anecdote relating to paranormal phenomena are woven into this work. Her other work 'Disembodied Hand – organ of touch” is reminiscent of a reliquary or a sacred votive object, and draws inspiration from the 19C anatomical model or specimen found in medical museums, whilst hinting at the phantasmic horror and the humour surrounding a decarnate body part.
One of the enduring tales surrounding 30 Queensdown Road is of a pregnant cook employed in the house in the Victorian era, who died in mysterious and lonely circumstances, her earthbound spirit trapped in the damp cellar for over a century with only an airbrick to the outside world.
Liane Lang's haunting timelapse animation draws on the myth of the imprisoned Danaë being visited by Zeus in the form of golden rain and conceiving their son Perseus. A highly erotic subject for artists throughout history, Lang's Danaë makes reference to Rembrandt's version, but breaks compositional convention by showing Danaë from behind so that we see what she herself is looking at. From rain and thunder, snow and sunshine, daylight to darkness, she watches the weather change at speed. Her pose is rigid, barely moving, releasing the viewer's attention. The eye adheres to small details outside, the melting snow, patches of sunlight travelling across the field. The weather itself thus becomes the central protagonist, just as Zeus was in classical mythology.
Natasha Bird works mainly with machine-based installation to explore ideas around energy and affecting forces. For 'Is There Anybody There?' she has produced a sound installation that can be read as a conversation between the moans and groans of the house and its dwellers. 'Stairs (displaced)' is a kinetic work that can only function as a dialogue; both house and visitor must participate for the piece to come alive.
Jarik Jongman's 'Phenomena' is a series that includes oil paintings, mixed media work on paper and artist books. It shows empty motel rooms where clouds, bright lights and flame-like wave forms seem to materialize out of nowhere. The motel rooms allude to the transient nature of life, the phenomena that can be observed there relate also to the ephemeral and are both grandiose and uncanny. In these works the visible world reveals itself in metaphors that have a direct impact on the senses of the viewer and are open to interpretation. To paraphrase Werner Heisenberg: "What we observe is not reality itself but reality exposed to our method of questioning."
Enzo Marra
Enzo Marra's paintings inspire quiet contemplation. From the beautifully painted period chairs that sit empty, in silent conversation, to the sepia-tinted impasto narrative of 'Innocent Times' and the inky star-gazing of 'From a Distance', Marra's work relates both to the darkness of the past and the uncertainty of the future.
Steph Wehowski draws from many philosophical disciplines to look at the processes involved in transformation, how it occurs and how much of a 'death' or 'leaving behind' it requires. This site specific installation creates a new 'scape' within the gallery walls and an experiential and physical encounter for the audience, who is invited to react and interact with it. Perhaps suggesting gestation, incubation, or the otherworldly, in 'The Totality of Yourself (part 1)' the artist is interested in whether the audience will be repelled or drawn in to the environment she has created.
'The Murder Drawings' is a new work by artist, Annabel Tilley. The 120 miniature drawings trace the coverage of murder and abduction stories by the British media between 2006-08. Murder victims like Baby P, Rhys Jones and Meredith Kercher, are featured alongside convicted murderers like Peter Tobin and Neil Entwistle, and those still awaiting trial, like Amanda Knox in Italy. Each drawing [5x7 & 9x7cms] reveals a rich layer of physicality produced through many hours of observation, and copious correction with pencil and rubber, correction fluid and ink. After two years in the making, this will be its first public showing.
"Mummy Mummy
Daddy Daddy –
There are monsters under my bed
Creatures in the shadows
Just waiting to find me..."
(excerpt from 'The Meal' by Sarah Reilly, performed at the private view on Fri 25 Sep and on 5th November for First Thursdays and closing party)
Steph Wehowski draws from many philosophical disciplines to look at the processes involved in transformation, how it occurs and how much of a 'death' or 'leaving behind' it requires. This site specific installation creates a new 'scape' within the gallery walls and an experiential and physical encounter for the audience, who is invited to react and interact with it. Perhaps suggesting gestation, incubation, or the otherworldly, in 'The Totality of Yourself (part 1)' the artist is interested in whether the audience will be repelled or drawn in to the environment she has created.
'The Murder Drawings' is a new work by artist, Annabel Tilley. The 120 miniature drawings trace the coverage of murder and abduction stories by the British media between 2006-08. Murder victims like Baby P, Rhys Jones and Meredith Kercher, are featured alongside convicted murderers like Peter Tobin and Neil Entwistle, and those still awaiting trial, like Amanda Knox in Italy. Each drawing [5x7 & 9x7cms] reveals a rich layer of physicality produced through many hours of observation, and copious correction with pencil and rubber, correction fluid and ink. After two years in the making, this will be its first public showing.
"Mummy Mummy
Daddy Daddy –
There are monsters under my bed
Creatures in the shadows
Just waiting to find me..."
(excerpt from 'The Meal' by Sarah Reilly, performed at the private view on Fri 25 Sep and on 5th November for First Thursdays and closing party)
Private View
Event
