Lali Chetwynd
dal 24/8/2005 al 3/9/2005
Segnalato da
24/8/2005
Lali Chetwynd
Studio Voltaire, London
The Walk to Dover
The Walk to Dover
The Walk to Dover is a new off-site commission for Studio Voltaire by artist Lali Chetwynd. The project will involve a seven-day expedition from London to Dover by a group of walkers in full costume, as well as a sculptural installation on the White Cliffs of Dover. The Walk to Dover will be Studio Voltaire’s third artists’ commissions following Liam Gillick (2004) and Joanne Tatham and Tom O’Sullivan (2005).
Emulating the narrative from Charles Dickens' semi-autobiographical novel, David Copperfield, Chetwynd will lead a group of walkers from London to Dover. The group will retrace the young Copperfield’s journey from a Blacking Warehouse in London, where many impoverished children worked, to Dover where he found sanctuary with his Aunt, Betsy Trotwood. Copperfield’s journey also tracks his shifting social status, exploring class structures in Victorian England. The project will involve the creation of a makeshift structure on the White Cliffs of Dover, representing Betsy Trotwood’s House.
Chetwynd’s practice as an artist often explores expressions and representations of ugliness, humour and the creation of cultural icons. Recent work has investigated concepts of debt, with a specific interest in the policies of Alvin Hall, the television financial guru. Working in collage, painting and performance, the artist recreates iconic moments from histories of art, literature, music and cinema, re-enacting them in a deliberately improvised and amateurish style. Previous works have taken narratives from popular films such as Star Wars and The Incredible Hulk as well as referring to art house classics such as Fassbinder and Ken Russell. Many projects iconoclastically use a multitude of layered references, for example Chetwynd’s recent performance for Becks Futures at the ICA presented debt-counsellors and heavy metal musicians set against the backdrop of stage-sets based on details from Giotto’s frescoes. Other scenarios included versions of The Garden of Earthly Delights and The Temptation of St. Anthony.
Lali Chetwynd was nominated for Beck’s Futures in 2005 and has previously staged performances at Gasworks, London (2004) and Tate Britain, London (2003). The artist has participated in various group exhibitions including Herald St, London (2005) and White Columns, New York (2005) and the forthcoming summer show, Bridge Freezes Before Road, at Barbara Gladstone Gallery, New York (2005). Chetwynd is represented by Herald St, London
Studio Voltaire, 1a Nelson’s Row, London SW4 7JR