At some point I ceased to believe that using objects as symbols to pass ideas to an audience was a valid endeavour as I found that objects were far too slippery to be trusted to act as dumb middle and thus saw that any attempt to foist such a task upon them would be futile. At the same time I realised that I found the objects I used to be far more compelling when left to their own devices than anything that I had to say with them.
At some point I ceased to believe that using objects as symbols to pass ideas to an audience was a valid endeavour as I found that objects were far too slippery to be trusted to act as dumb middle and thus saw that any attempt to foist such a task upon them would be futile. At the same time I realised that I found the objects I used to be far more compelling when left to their own devices than anything that I had to say with them.
I do not consider the objects I now make to be different from any others in the world in so much as they are made for one purpose or another. With the objects I produce the reasons for their existence are only ever intended to act as Macguffins (a la Hitchcock) to drive forward their production. From this start various decisions are made and actions performed until something is brought into being with these decisions and actions varying from being as dumb and obvious as a bad joke to as opaque and obscure as an archaic and esoteric text carved upon a tablet in cuneiform.
The only desire I have for how an audience engages with my work is that they approach it as an archaeologist would, treating the objects on display as artefacts from the practice that bore them and attempting to simultaneously piece together an understanding of both using what they know to be incomplete information (the objects I present are only a glimpse into the totality of something - as representative of my practice as a whole as the fossil record is of all life on earth). It doesn't matter whether or not an audience 'gets' the work as such - in fact ideally the act of viewing one of my works would be like experiencing a magic trick so that the possibility of the work being understood draws the viewer in endlessly without them ever having to face the dissatisfaction of fully comprehending it. Furthermore it would be a mistake to take anything I give away about the work at face value, rather anything I say should be treated like a magicians patter that can be used to misdirect as well as to inform or as a historical document who’s author may be as likely to be furthering their own agenda as providing an accurate record.
Qualifications and training
2016 - MA Fine Art (Distinction), Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield
2006 - BA (hons) Fine Art (2:1), University of Lincoln, Lincoln
Exhibitions
2016 - The Kippenberger Challenge, Pierre Kamp Lab, Jan van Eyck Academie, Maastricht
2016 - The Kippenberger Challenge, Rijksakademie, Amsterdam
2016 - Nature Here and Now, WIrksworth Festival, Wirksworth
2016 - The Kippenberger Challenge, De Appel, Amsterdam
2015 - Connected, Online Exhibition – http://connectedonline.tumblr.com/archive
2015 - Sheffield Artists Book Prize, Bank Street Arts, Sheffield
2015 - Prism 17, Millennium Galleries, Sheffield
2015 - Showdown, Bloc Projects, Sheffield
2015 - The Imaginary Museum: Monuments and Landmarks, University of Leeds, Leeds
2015 - The Imaginary Museum: Art Library as Archive, Leeds College of Art Library, Leeds
2015 - The Editions,The Tetley, Leeds
2015 - Lorem Ipsum,The Tetley, Leeds
2015 - The Kippenberger Challenge,The Tetley, Leeds
2014 - Looking at the Reflection of Reality, Mark Deveraux Projects, Manchester
2014 - Bundle of Sticks, Spode Works, Stoke on Trent
2014 - Members Show, Mexico, Leeds
2013 - Beyond Merely Assesmbling, Mark Devereux Projects, Manchester
2013 - Bankley Open, Bankley Gallery, Manchester
2013 - Hot One Hundred, Schwartz Gallery, Hackney Wick, London
2013 - Narrative, Point A to Point B, Fresh Meat Gallery @ LCB Depot, Leicester
2013 - Void Open 2013, Void Art Gallery, Hoxton Arches, Hoxton, London
2013 - Worcester Open 2013 (Special Commendation Awarded), Worcester Museum and Art Gallery, Worcester
2012 - International Open Show 2012, Surface Gallery, Nottingham
2012 - MICROCOSM, Departure Foundation, Ellington Building, Leeds Valley Park,, Leeds
2012 - Museum of [ ] Objects - Phase 3, Plot 6, Allotment, Midlands Arts Centre, Birmingham
2012 - Nottingham Castle Annual Open 2012, Nottingham Castle Museum and Art Gallery, Nottingham
2011 - Piecers and Scavangers, Backlit Gallery, Nottingham
2011 - Agency of Unrealised Projects, Kopfbau, Art Basel,Switzerland
2008 - Making Marks, Hand and Heart Gallery, Nottingham
2008 - Surface Gallery Open Exhibition, Surface Gallery, Nottingham
2008 - Pop Hauntology, Southwell Art Space, Southwell, Nottinghamshire (Solo)
2007 - Lakeside Open Auction, Lakeside Gallery, Nottingham
2007 - Nottinghm Castle Open Exhibtion, Angel Row Gallery, Nottingham
2006 - Pick and Mix, Sam Scorer Gallery, Lincoln
Publications, Review and Interviews
2014 - Derek Horton on Art & Curation - This is Central Station
http://thisiscentralstation.com/featured-blog/derek-horton-on-art-curation/
2014 - The Forward Slash - Charlie Levine and Lauren Cookson
http://www.charlielevine.org/the-forward-slash.html
2014 - Mexico Members Show Catalogue
2013 - Peripheral Arteries Special Issue - July
http://issuu.com/artpress/docs/peripheral_arteries_art_review_-__j_425b53057d6fc3/4&lang=en
2013 - Worcester Open 2013 Catalogue
2008 - Artist Profile, Left Lion, Issue 26
2008 - An Art Commentary, leftlion.co.uk, 20/10/2008
http://www.leftlion.co.uk/articles.cfm/title/an-art-commentary/id/2316#.Ul4ybFB1_Ak
Awards
Best in Show for Sheffield Hallam University Fine Art MA Degree Show
Completed The Kippenberber Challenge (7.45 Books) - 7th OCtober 2014 to 7th October 2015
Shortlisted for the Bankley Gallery Open Exhibition Award 2013, Bankley Gallery, Manchester
Special Commendation for the Worcester Open 2013, Worcester Museum and Art Gallery, Worcester
