I dropped
into Camden Arts Centre having received a note about their steel sculpture and
thought it might be interesting. At the
desk I was given details about two exhibitions upstairs and knowing the way
climbed up. Laura guided me round the
current exhibitions. There is a curated
show by Simon Martin titled UR Feeling (http://www.camdenartscentre.org/whats-on/view/exh-24)
and another show of Eric Bainbridge’s work titled Steel Sculptures (http://www.camdenartscentre.org/whats-on/view/exh-23)
In the Martin
show, I admired a drawing by Stephen Shore titled Twenty-first Street and
Spruce Street, Philadelphia Pennsylvania, June 21, 1974. I mentioned to Laura that many of the streets
in the city are named after trees. For
some reason, I had been to Walnut Street in the past. There is a piece of furniture art by Ettore Scotsass
which could resemble a fitment popular in some houses in the 1960s in
Scotland. I wondered if this was Arte
Povera. There is a fascinating chair by
Richard Artschwager (Chair 1965-2000) which is made up of mounted photographs
of a chair and is itself mounted on a plinth.
Room view of Simon Martin exhibition
Richard Artschwager's Chair is at the back, on the left
Credit: Camden Arts Centre
Richard Artschwager's Chair
Installation by Ettore Scotsass
Steel Sculptures by Eric Bainbridge
I thought
back to my teenage days when we would clamber on rooftops in Edinburgh, taking
care to avoid stacks of TV aerials which proliferated on the rooftops. Each household, as it acquired a new TV
channel or set or even colour, seemed to have a different aerial and this
reflected the apparent wealth or choice (BBC or ITV) available in the
region. The TV aerial has given way to
the either cable or satellite and, like the weather-vane, is now a curiosity.
Bainbridge
uses metal ‘found’ within an art college and these pieces have been welded, I
think, and possibly assembled before the show (from the notes which were read
to me, some of these pieces have been welded by David Aldridge, who used to
work in Sunderland’s shipyards).
Laura read
out the labels and we moved to the final piece which resembles a clothes line
with sheets hanging from clothes pegs, which is what it is. There is a gap at the right hand side and it
is possible to duck under the wire and go back stage.
Credit: Camden Arts Centre
The picture below shows a view of the room with several of Bainbridge's sculptures.
Room view of Eric Bainbridge exhibition
Credit: Camden Arts Centre
A sighted
friend has been able to identify the following in this picture:
On the far
right, in the front is a piece titled The Mind of the Artist (Exposed), 2011,
steel on blanket
Behind the
above, on the right is a piece called Booble/Bubble 2011, Steel, cotton
On the left,
in the middle, is a piece with a fine spiral pattern which can only be seen
when viewed front on. It took me by
surprise as Laura guided me to it. This
was probably the piece I liked the most as I walked round it. It reminded me of a weather-vane, which one
can only view from the right direction.
Various coloured steel sculpture by Eric Bainbridge
I told Linda,
at the desk, how much I had enjoyed the visit and asked if any images were
available. They were and Linda kindly sent
me some for the room views and which I have included in this post. Photographs can be taken of the sculptures,
though touching is not appropriate as there are edges and the pieces are
rusty. In many ways I thought of David
Nash and his wooden sculptures hewn with a chain saw. These are not cast metal such as bronze but
steel, which is not long lasting but more durable than wood, possibly.
Tip:
Attractive file notes are available on the artists on show and there is a flat
screen display with interviews placed on the left hand side of the entrance to
the café. Speaking of the café, I had a
pot of tea and a slice of Victoria Sponge!
Free posters are also available on a roll your own basis with elastic bands
supplied.
Many thanks
to Laura and Linda for such a kind welcome.
Details on how to get to Camden Arts Centre can be found on: http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/camden-arts-centre-finchley-road.html
Prof Whitestick has also done a post about 'found' wood which has been used by David Nash in forming sculpture: http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06/kew-gardens-david-nash-sculpture.html
