ART NOTES
Entwined
“Entwined”, a mixed-media sculpture exhibition took place in the
Basement Gallery in Dundalk from the 8th October 1999 – 30th
October 1999. There are no permanent exhibitions in the gallery. Instead, it is given over to featuring
specific artists or groups of artists for a short period of time.
It was an exhibition of sculpture, charcoal and ink
drawings, photographs and wall hangings inspired by the time which the artist,
Breda Marron, has spent working with seriously ill children at the
‘Barrettstown Gang Camp’ in Co. Kildare.
Through this exhibition, the artist wished to express both the strength
and the weakness of human frailty.
The Basement Gallery is located in the Town Hall in
Dundalk. As it is underground, there is
no natural light. This is provided by
spotlighting hung from the ceiling.
This exhibition also featured sculptures with internal lighting that
further illuminated the exhibition.
The Gallery consists of two small, narrow rooms
forming a T-shape. The walls are
natural stonework painted white and the ceilings are low. This exhibition was divided so that the
first room contained sculpture, drawings and photographs, their central focus
being tone of form.
The second room contained wall hangings, and
sculpture with colour as its central focus.
This room is the narrower of the two.
As a result, the pieces were placed closely along the walls to allow people
to walk easily around the room. At the
well opposite the entrance stands the wish tree, on which the Barrettstown
children had hung clay leaves onto which they had written their wishes. Its positioning makes it most eye-catching
and this is helped by the white twinkling fairy lights which gave it a magical
appearance. This room is more brightly
lit than the other – adding to its cheerful atmosphere in contrast with the
sombre atmosphere of the other room. The
work is labelled using numbers that refer to a catalogue. This difficulty in finding the title of the
works is the only hindrance to a room that is otherwise accessible and
cheerful.
‘Walkin’ a Fine Line’, a mixed media wall hanging,
was one of the pieces which featured in this room. It depicts the coloured wire outline of a figure in the pose of
walking a tightrope. The background is
constructed with handmade, textured papers and willow twigs. The bright red, yellow, blue and orange of
the figure draws attention while the lilac and white of the paper background is
more muted. The lines are important to
the overall interpretation of the piece.
The lines of the wire figure suggest movement and vivaciousness while
the strong horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines of the background hive the
figure a strong support. This is the
idea of self-preservation in the artist’s theme while the fragility of the
texture of the paper suggests human frailty.
‘Bolt 4’, a charcoal and ink drawing is positioned
in the main room. It is a sketch of a peacock feather. The line is strong and flowing while the
colour is dark and dramatic. This
contrasts both with the subject matter and the texture that is soft and
diffused. This play on contrasts recurs
throughout the exhibition, as does the small clay star that could be a visual
link to the wish tree, as it is made of the same material as the leaves.
The Basement Gallery is very effective in
developing the interest in visual art among young Irish people, as it is local
and accessible. The opening hours are
also favourable as it opens during lunchtime and on Saturdays. It shows exhibitions by contemporary artists
which awaken young people to the idea that art can be something modern and
exciting not authoritative and dissuasive as it is sometimes portrayed in
larger galleries. Also, mixed media
exhibitions such as ‘Entwined’ can inspire young people to become aware of the many
different possibilities in art and that art is something more than painting in
oils. The layout of this exhibition
lent itself well to the work being easily interpreted which would awaken an
interest in the meaning of art.
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