- Venue
- Southampton Solent University
- Location
- South East England
humans are a strange species. utterly fascinating and endlessly dissatisfied. we presently entertain a concept of ‘success’- the meaning of which differs within each of us. i am going to spend the next five to ten minutes projecting success onto “Insolent”, southampton solents fine art degree show 2013. there are no trophys to hold aloft, no cheques awarded, no titles bestowed or red carpets to walk- indeed, as i write, the show has been taken down and so any success derived from it exists purely in memory.
let us not, however, underestimate that existence.
i spiraled my way up the stairs to the show and decided to view the work in the same spiraling manner to avoid the failure and disappointment of missing anything. my journey began with Rachel Shrive (arreton) and Laura Green’s (process) stunning micro/ macro observation of the organic mechanics of medium and light. this became an overview of the subsistence inherent throughout “Insolent”. as i wandered with intent around the main space, spending time with each piece, subtle introductions of humanity showed themselves to me. the work utilised the language of two- dimensional visual language brilliantly, relationships subtly emerged and formed unlikely pairings, of which Alice Dummons unfathomable need for organisation set opposite Thomas Murrays strange (but true) floor paintings are the most unlikely. Abby Strong (pippas rear steals the show again)…was a particular point of interest in that her photograph of an empty shop unit called ‘beauty’ was presented on the outside of an essentially empty studio unit in which Eleonore Pearsons (vertical stare) resided. Grace Travis’ video piece (king minos and the minotaur), provided a timely breakpoint, in that it heralded a new direction within the show. my favoured coffee and nicotine infused within as i reflected and i decided the work i’d seen thus far was thoughtful, provoking, interesting and entirely engaging.
part two was more of a challenge, spiraling further into the vortex of the space, was a journey into the more surreal aspects of being. stuffed animals, plants and earth, as well as ‘found’ objects, became vessels embodying life, death and beyond. echoes and whispers of Chloe Alexis’(a moment in time) drawings were a constant. Alessia Bernardis (my brother) paint-drip drawings were acutely engaging (whether this was despite or because of suggestions of asphyxiation I have yet to equate!!), the only live elements in the tree of life were the batteries in the ipods and Lavinia Ewan (a new hunt) and Sam prosser- higdon (new forest series) were involved in an interesting standoff regarding what to hang on a wall. This was [serendipitously] a show of two halves. the second exploring the darker elements of ‘being’ in all its entropic, mathematical, destructive and disturbing glory culminating in a “church” of egomania and self deprecation in equal measures that was, strangely, a comfortable space to experience.
this wasn’t a degree show containing ‘look at me, this is what i did’ work. it was, for me, about ‘look at us, success and failure is inevitable- they co-exist- and that’s ok’ work. There really were highlights around every corner of this odd-shaped space which housed a show of significant studentship. the highlights of the highlights are more than worthy of mention; Matthew Wardell (a shock out of time) offered work on his struggles with epilepsy which was executed with a special quality, Amber Hodge (time machine) showed me my existence without the spoils of imagery, Louise Bradley’s (system) was so relevant along my descension i had to rethink thoughts the show had previously conjoured. i was indeed on a journey. not very long after, i had reached my end. my end was Ashleigh Hodges (dirty church). an alternative take on the world which dissected notions of “normal”, relocated concepts of “right and wrong” and allowed this viewer to see the damages of fame and infamy side by side.
all in all, I thoroughly enjoyed my four hours with ‘insolent’. touching, moving, upsetting and life affirming. thankyou. if the ‘success’of a show is measured by how many galleries want to show it then I call upon any gallerists reading this to contact either myself ([email protected]), “ Insolent Art” on facebook or course leader Nicola Chamberlain ([email protected]). success has many faces, thankfully.
i left the building via the lift.
stefan bianco 24/6/13
