Pictures detailed in the blog as well as additional pictures from the show, can be viewed at this link; https://www.victoriaburch.co.uk/disfigure
Each of the students contributed the following pieces of work, from the Mixed Media unit entitled Disfigure:
A mixed media response to the artist Mark Bradford
Several drawings from life
An abstract fabric piece from chosen sections of the drawings
Corrugated cardboard collages from life
Wire models created from abstract drawings taken from life
A 6ft painting from life on an unconventional surface
Curating the show
The open walkway along the Mezzanine gallery provided the perfect space for the 1 x 1mtr collages created in response to Mark Bradford. I decided to curate these in a frieze format having grouped them into colour ways and groups of three and four initially. The spacing proved tricky and in the end, spacing them equally in the traditional frieze format provided a more engaging sight for the viewer who was then free to view them individually, or as a whole.
The black, white and grey abstract fabric pieces were collectively hung in two groups; one group of six and one group of eight. These were hung in a patchwork format and positioned close to the entrance, either side of an adjacent doorway. This made for an eye-catching feature to the end of the gallery and complimented the large circular display at the opposite end of the gallery, which also featured painted work in black, white and greyscale.
The wire models were arranged on a central plinth and some were suspended above the display. This made for an interesting centre piece at the entrance to the gallery. With a shortage of bulbs in the gallery space (due to cuts) additional clip on lighting to the plinths picked out the more fragile of the pieces that would have otherwise been lost.
Some of the students had chosen to create their models from card, I grouped these together with a display of the original drawings behind to show the process involved in developing the work. The models were displayed at a range of different heights to provide engaging angles from which to view the work.
The collaged corrugated card pieces were also grouped together to provide a smooth transition into the next space, where the 6ft paintings were displayed in a circle – recreating the atmosphere of the original life painting session. These large paintings created on unconventional surfaces of layered newsprint, provided a spectacular finale to the exhibition. With the added touch of the model’s chair, each painting reflected the exact position of the pose in the actual session, this created the illusion that the viewer was taking part in the session whilst walking around.
I asked each student to review the curation of the exhibition, before and after the private view and the feedback was very good with all students please at how their work had been displayed. Some were a little disappointed at the fact that the silver foil model test pieces were excluded, but in the final analysis I decided it was best to be more selective and not over do the content.
The Private View
The private view was a success and well attended despite the weather, please see link supplied at the beginning of the post for more info.
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