The Human Condition
Art is not about art. Art is about life and that about sums it up
What is it to be human in the 21st century? The human condition might describe how we respond to both traumatic and joyous events that befall us as we mark our passage of time. Art and artists such as these may not provide the answers to this question, but perhaps more importantly, they will share their personal life experiences and empathise with you on a universal level.
To engage with the work in this exhibition is to experience the realities of death, pain, loss, grief, horror, beauty, love, wonder and humour. Some of what is here may not make comfortable viewing, but then art is not necessarily about comfort; art has the capacity to question, confront and speak of what is necessary and real.
To be confronted by the Vanitas of Julia Rowland’s meat covered china, Amanda Green’s grotesque forms or the brutal, affectionate and humorous portrayal of middle aged femininity and society’s attitude to it by Susan Morris, is to feel the stab of pathos.
To be subsumed into Calwyn Glastonbury’s sublime landscape paintings and Laura Bennett’s installation of canvas constructions is to be reminded of just how insignificant we are in the face of our environment and that Nature is a power far greater than ourselves.
Whereas the imagined environments of Natasha Waddon and Natalie Thomas speak of the fabrication of other worlds; as virtual and alternative spaces for us to enter both physically and mentally. Technology offers us this limitless potential and Kristian Hayes reminds us of the limitations and possible redundancy of the human, a body stretched to its extent of its usefulness and purpose.
The body where traditional definitions of gender and sexuality can no longer be applied is questioned by Tiffany Oben and Shaun Price in their intensely personal inquiries of the self.
It is interesting to note that of the 15 artists here, 10 are directly engaged with the representation of the figure and the body. Every artist brings a unique aesthetic and approach to their practice. Craft skills are juxtaposed with cutting edge technology; there is painting, collage, printmaking, ceramics, sculpture and installation.
The artist is no longer reliant on the object or the painting as a vehicle to create art and communicate ideas. Many of the works in this show are temporal and will simply cease to exist once the exhibition is finished.
This diversity of practice demonstrates that art, in order to reflect the world that we live in today, can and must be made from anything that is relevant to the idea.
Louise Bourgeois, interview with Louise Bourgeois in ‘Bourgeois’ by Donald Kuspit, New York 1988. p81
With Thanks to ......
The Tutors: Visiting Tutors:
Brendan
Daniel Allen Stuart Burns
David Cushway Michael Cousins
Carol Hiles Hyo Sun Kim
Heather Parnell Philippa Lawrence
Chris Nurse Nathan Prouty
Frances Woodley Prof. Mike Tooby
Geng Xue
Technicians: Photographers:
Wayne Hunt Mike Davies
Matt Jones Gary Greene
Neil Price Rob Hudson
Graham Talbot
Admin: Also:
Claire Hooper Kim Fielding
Kay Marsh Neil Jeffries
Ceri Thomas
Last but by no means least a well deserved thank you to Agnes Corbett for her fundraising efforts. A special thanks to our long suffering loved ones who have
endured our shitty moods during our pursuit of aesthetic excellence and of course to yourselves for attending and bothering to read this bit.