Helen Sear has been selected to represent Wales in Venice at the 56 International Art Exhibition, which takes place from 9 May to 22 November 2015.
Sear will be presenting a solo exhibition of new works rooted in the local and familiar landscapes of Wales, and also responding to the wider context of the Venice Biennale. Her presentation, the first time Wales has shown a solo exhibition by a female artist, will be produced by Ffotogallery, the national development agency for photography and lens-based media in Wales, working closely with curator Stuart Cameron.
One the country’s leading contemporary artists, Sear’s practice is born out of a fine-art background in performance, film and installation work in the 1980s. Her area of interest relates to the collisions and co-existence of the human, animal and natural world, producing works that often deal with notions of sight, touch and the senses, whilst dismantling accepted ideas of photography as a faithful documentary tool. Her work is particularly celebrated for its conceptual rigour and effortless fusion with other mediums, such as drawing and new digital technologies.
Sear said: “Having lived and worked in Wales since 1984, the opportunity to be part of Wales in Venice has been an ambition of mine for several years. The photographic image in art practice has never been so diverse or contested, and, with the acceleration of new digital technologies, the material presence of the image is now more than ever at stake.”
David Drake, director of Ffotogallery, added: “We are delighted with the news… Ffotogallery has championed Helen Sear’s work over a number of years and witnessed many exciting developments in her practice.”
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Wales in Venice: staring at the stars with Bedwyr Williams
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