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29/3/2011

Shahryar Nashat / Laura Aldridge

Studio Voltaire, London

Shahryar Nashat
WorkBench

Studio Voltaire is pleased to announce a new commission by the Swiss artist Shahryar Nashat. The exhibition will be his first-ever solo presentation in the United Kingdom and will present a series of sculptural, photographic and video works in the gallery.

Shahryar Nashat's previous work has investigated his interest in art collections, reproductions of works of art, as well as questions relating to appropriation and artistic reuse, display issues and apparatus. Lighting, plinths, pedestals, and the mode of positing and projecting all play pivotal roles in Nashat’s video installations, sculptures and photographs and highlights how display and reproduction affect meaning.

Many film and photographic works employ representations of the body, often positioned on plinths and pedestals that act as an extension of the body and the ground of sculptured feet. In a new video work The Rehearsal of Adam Linder, 2011, a dancer is filmed during and straight after a rehearsal, alternating between the body being overtly physical and in rest. Through the presentation of the video, the displaced body can be understood as acting as a stand-in as both a viewer and performer. This is idea of a stand-in or proxy is mirrored in a series of bench-like sculptures that suggest the viewer might sit down and through that action become a part of the artwork. The entire installation works as a constellation of works that constantly shifts between what is to be looked at by the viewer, what is to be performed by the artwork in its concept and form, and what is to be performed by the viewer in looking at the works.

Shahryar Nashat (b.1975) is a Swiss artist based in Berlin. Recent solo shows and projects include ‘Line up’, Kunstverein Nurnberg (2010); ‘Remains to be seen’, Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen and ‘Plaque’, Kunstverein Potsdam (both 2009); and ‘Because the Ultimate Foundation is Not Founded’, Elisabeth Kaufmann, Zurich (2008). Group shows include: ‘Silberkuppe: Old Ideas’, Museum für Gegenwartskunst, Basel and ‘Silberkuppe: Under One Umbrella’, Kunsthal Bergen (both 2010); ‘Shifting Identities’, Kunsthaus Zurich and ‘Scorpio’s Garden’, Kunsthalle Temporäre, Berlin (both 2009); ‘H Box’, Tate Modern, London and ‘Art Unlimited’, Art Basel (both 2008); and ‘Swiss Pavilion’, Venice Biennial (2005). The artist will participate in Bice Curiger’s ILLUMInations at this year’s International Pavilion at the Venice Biennale.

Supported by Pro Helvetia and Fatima Maleki

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Laura Aldridge

For her first solo exhibition in a London gallery, Laura Aldridge will present a new installation made of tied knot sculptures and screen printed cut outs of cats being cradled and petted.

Laura Aldridge’s work employs a combination of materials and imagery that carries certain psychological overtones and evokes particular responses. A number of monochrome screen prints on shaped Perspex depicts pairs of disembodied arms holding different domestic cats. The fragmented imagery of the act of stroking and cradling emphasizes the act of touching, rather than the animal being touched. This focus on the sensation of touch and feeling is echoed in the plaster knots that surround each image and fill the gallery walls. Tubes of fabric have been filled with wet plaster and casually knotted together in bow like forms to take form. This process draws attention to the action of the hand and sensuality of making. Aldridge’s visual and sculptural language engages with femininity with its use of homely and sometime folksy constructions and use of pastel colours. The work can be understood as following a tradition of a number of artists engaging with the decorative and seemingly sentimental work, particularly Ree Morton and Lily van der Stokker.

Aldridge lives and works in Glasgow. Previous solo exhibitions include ‘Cat’s are not important’, Transmission Gallery, Glasgow (2010); ‘The workshop survived because we love each other’, Glasgow Sculpture Studio, Glasgow (2007) and ‘Social Dynamism’, Calarts, Los Angeles (2005).

Image: Laura Aldridge, Cats Are Not Important, 2010, installation view, Transmission Gallery, Glasgow

Preview 30 March 2011, 7 – 9pm

Studio Voltaire
1A Nelson's Row - London
Hours: Wednesday – Saturday, 12 – 6pm
Admission free

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