WY. Work: Drawings from the USA. Tarka and Kate were both influenced by the enormity of the Wyoming landscape; its undulating curves, rocky mountains and snow-capped peaks. From this, they quite separately found themselves focusing on geometric forms and specific shapes.
Following their meeting on a residency in Wyoming last year, Tarka Kings and Kate Atkin are now delighted to present a two-person exhibition, Wy.Work, which will take place at 52 Hoxton Square from 24 November to 8 December.
Tarka and Kate were both influenced by the enormity of the Wyoming landscape; its undulating curves, rocky mountains and snow-capped peaks. From this, they quite separately found themselves focusing on geometric forms and specific shapes. The serpentine line that occurs throughout Tarka's new drawings invokes the long snaky curves of the rivers near the Ucross Foundation, Clearmont, USA. Kate on the other hand, found herself drawn to the oval which comes into play throughout her large-scale drawings and sculptural works.
Tarka is well known for her intricately made, colourful and acutely observed gouaches of the natural world. To see her delicate pencil drawings in this exhibition with their minimal use of line and hatching, shows an artist always eager to expand her visual vocabulary. Simple sketches of a girl's hair, shadows on a door, or grasses blowing in the wind, bring a fresh approach to a traditional method of working.
Kate's interest lies in the manipulation of ambiguous forms. She looks for the unnatural within the natural as a way of creating new readings and meanings for naturally occurring forms when isolated from their original surroundings. Kate works from photographs taken in the outdoor, but the slow pace of her work, its large scale, and attention to detail is in opposition to the instant capturing of the details in her photography. In addition to wall-based drawing, Kate is interested in the idea of propped or leaning structures, which rely on an existing structure for their own form. Like Tarka, Kate's attention to detail is paramount, but unlike Tarka her approach to drawing is derived from a more conceptual viewpoint.
Although these two artists look at the world in totally different ways, and remain conceptually at odds, their joining of minds and cross-fertilisation of ideas has resulted in a cohesive and thought-provoking exhibition.
Tarka Kings has recently exhibited at FAS, London, Pippy Houldsworth, London, and Maggie's Centre, Frank Gehry Building Dundee, and has works in the private collections of the Duke of Devonshire and Edward C Cohen. Kate Atkin has recently exhibited at Museum 52, Upstairs Berlin, Alan Cristea Gallery, London and Studio Guenzani, Milan. She has work in the collections of UBS, London, West Collection, Pennsylvania, British Council, London and Massey Foundation, New York.
For further information please contact Pippy Houldsworth or Hannah Dewar
on gallery@houldsworth.co.uk or +44 (0)20 8969 6166
Image: Kate Atkin
Private View Tuesday 24 November 6-9
52 Hoxton Square - London