Three Manchester Metropolitan University students and exciting new talents Daniel Pickles, Andrew Brown and Patrick O’Sullivan will be exhibiting their works alongside jotta artists and anticipation mounts as the exhibition nears. jotta speculates on what we can expect from the site specific transformation of an empty shop space.
Rarely does a vacant shop cause us to ponder the philosophy of an empty space. However, this October jottaContemporary in collaboration with Jeff Coombs Projects and Manchester Metropolitan University will be posing such questions with 'Space Within', an exhibition which occurs inside an neglected shop in Manchester’s Triangle Shopping Centre.
Daniel Pickles’ work has a primary interest in mankind’s endless pursuit of happiness, but more specifically, a fascination with faith and how it compels people to exceed the limitations of the body. Pickles also has an interest on the affect of the invisible, of that which cannot be proved or asserted but is, nonetheless, followed devotedly. His work assesses the significance history, events and emotion have on items while his use of ‘found objects’ echoes the work of Marcel Duchamp as he finds a beauty, romance and significance in what is often discarded.
The artist’s instalment for ‘Space Within’ is a meandering collection of various ‘found’ objects including boots, bottles and plants. The snaking composition of everyday finds embodies the timeline of human existence and the objects also work as a comment on consumerism, specifically the notion that in order to be happy one must obtain endless possessions.
Andrew Brown’s work examines what he considers to be the myths that surround sub- cultures in modern society, from science fiction to rock music. Through his art Brown endeavours to explore the invisible flow of information that surrounds these various niches, believing that often exclusive areas become accessible to a more general audience because of the knowledge they share, which at the same time debunks the whole notion of sub-cultures cut off from the mainstream. His sculptures pose these questions in their reluctance to offer substantial meaning, suggesting the reliance culture has on ‘entry points’ into an object’s understanding, a theme that fits well with the dissection of meaning in the ethos of ‘Space Within.’
Patrick O’Sullivan’s work explores how the human mind understands its environment. His theory revolves around the idea that all human minds have a physical and visual affinity for natural images such a mountains, plants and even mud as they have forever been familiar to the viewer. O’Sullivan’s goal is to challenge these previously forged relationships, producing work that supplies the viewer with something that is non-specific, something that removes all prior natural attachments and makes the viewer ‘invent, suppose and exaggerate’ a new attachment to the work. In doing this, he fills in the space between the viewer and the work allowing a free and independent attachment to form based purely on the relation the object has to the space it is occupying. When viewing O’Sullivan’s work neither prior knowledge or understanding of it is needed, whatever feelings or thoughts occur when viewing the pieces are all correct and individual, there is no definitive understanding.
All these mind -boggling theories will be actualised at ‘Space Within’ and although these artists have their manifestos it is important to enjoy the art for what it is and what it brings to Manchester; filling in an empty space, giving it purpose again.
If you are in Manchester join us for the Private view of the show
Friday, 02 October 2009 |
16:00 - 18:00 |
Karen Millen unit, Triangle Shopping Centre |
Exchange Square |
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