16/04/19 huddersfield art gallery

HUDDERSFIELD ART GALLERY VISIT

permutation of five - stainless steel and 

painted wood on formica - mary martin - 1967

Mary Martin was a british sculptor and painter, known for her abstract paintings and constructions. originally exhibiting still life and landscape paintings, martin painted her first abstract picture in 1950,  made her first relief work in 1951 and her first free-standing construction in 1956. Permutation of five is part of a series of works made in the mid to late 1960's in which the artist created and arranges half-cubes, cut diagonally, on a square base. in this piece there are five rows, five columns and each shape has five faces. Blocks have been arranged so that the station of each shape is not repeated on any column or row. The angled mirrors in the work reflect the lines of the inner sculptural surfaces, and the shape and light within the gallery space, creating a complex, painterly effect. This piece exhibits a multitude of angles, reflecting the light to produce abstract perspectives on the steel. Applying this to my own work in perspective, this allows the eye to experience something new, regardless of the section of the piece you're looking at. It's angled shapes bring interest and an abstract sense to the piece. 

pot - 

- earthenware

jill bennett - 1984 -

falling warrior - bronze -

henry moore -

1956/7 -

"The idea for 'the warrior' came to me at the end of 1952 or very early in 1953. It was evolved from a pebble i found on the seashore in the summer of 1952, and which reminded men of the stump of a leg, amputated at the hip. just as leonardo says somewhere in his notebooks that a painter can find a battle scene in the lichen marks on a wall, so this gave me the start of 'the warrior' idea". Whilst Henry Moore is one of the best loved and most respected british artists of the twentieth century, the purchase in 1958 of this sculpture by the huddersfield art gallery in 1958 provoked controversy. One letter to the local press stated: "When this ugly distorted depiction of the human body is installed in the art gallery, sited so that the monstrous form may be viewed from all angles, may i suggest that the plaque be removed and a new one bearing the words 'huddersfield rate-payer' be attached?" Personally, its distorted depiction is one of the biggest aspects about this piece the inspires and intrigues me greatly. Its imperfections create a sense of relatability that allows the viewer to form its own personal narrative that they can connect to this piece. the perception of this piece is that of a 'monstrous' nature, however if we warp the perspective/s of an object / image, it can release a hoard of emotions that are connected to both the piece and audience. 

einstein and the jealous monk - oil on canvas - chris gollon - 2004

Chris Gallon's initial interest in painting einstein as an icon of the 20th century began in a tangential way. this painting was partially inspired by these lyrics from bob dylan's 1964 ballad desolation row:

"einstein dressed as robin hood
with his memories in a trunk, 
passed this way an hour ago, 
with his friend the jealous monk...

...you would not think to look at him, 
but he was famous long ago,
for playing the electric violin
on the desolation row..."

This brightly coloured painting also depicts gallon's sense of a place: that of desolation row. as the critic and visual arts writer laura gascoigne noted: "... A quote from 'desolation row', used by Gollon as a random imaginative trigger in the same way as actors use free-association in improvisation...his influences are as eclectic as his sources. Stylistic references to El Greco, Ribera,Goya and Backmann mix on equal terms with a range of pictorial devices from early renaissance gold grounds to comtempary speech bubbles or animation backdrops: the distant mountain ranges in his new pictures owe more to looney tunes than to mantegna. As a painter he wants his work to be readable, and as a voracious consumer of visual ideas he has acquired the vocabulary to make it."

The image in my opinion refers to religion vs science. the perspective of religious backgrounds may add to the emotion and facial expressions that are present on the monk's face. The contrast between modern and traditional views are present and can express varied impressions/portrayals through this painting, depending on the viewer's personal beliefs and possible bias views.