David Burrows
Brian Catling
Tracy Chevalier
Phil Coy
Polly Gould
Andy Harper
Tim Heath
Jon Newman
Michael Phillips
Manuela Ribadeneira
Annie Whiles
Sarah Woodfine
Danielle Arnaud
Jordan Kaplan
Philip Norman
William Blake in Lambeth. William and Catherine Blake lived at number 13 Hercules Buildings, Lambeth, during the most creative and productive period of his life. Eight artists and four writers have been commissioned to develop new works in response to his images and texts produced between 1790 and 1800. Each of them will approach Blake through their own practice and interests.
William Blake in Lambeth
presented by Parabola at the Museum of Garden History, Lambeth Palace Road, London SE1
open daily 10:30am to 5pm
David Burrows, Brian Catling, Tracy Chevalier, Phil Coy, Polly Gould, Andy Harper,
Tim Heath, Jon Newman, Michael Phillips, Manuela Ribadeneira, Annie Whiles and Sarah
Woodfine
Parabola continues its series of summer exhibitions at the Museum of Garden History
with Cloud & Vision, an exploration of William Blake's ten years in Lambeth. Eight
artists and four writers have been commissioned to develop new works in response to
Blake's images and texts produced between 1790 and 1800.
William and Catherine Blake lived at number 13 Hercules Buildings, Lambeth, during
the most creative and productive period of Blake's life. Moving from smaller
premises in Soho in 1790, it was here that Blake produced Songs of Experience, The
Marriage of Heaven and Hell, Visions of the Daughters of Albion, America a Prophecy
and The French Revolution.
Each of the eight artists participating in Cloud & Vision will approach Blake
through their own practice and interests: David Burrows' comic and Sarah Woodfine's
three dimensional drawing will both investigate Blake as an iconic individual -
asking what Blake would make of contemporary Lambeth or considering his garden as a
metaphor for personal freedom. Annie Whiles' proposed work will question whether
she, as a 21st century artist aware of the problematic legacy of postmodernism, can
move beyond self-referential irony toward an earnest and direct interaction with her
audience. Polly Gould's work with the Blake Society will focus on the physical and
intellectual realities of a printing press - part installation, part performance,
this work will recall accusations made against Blake for the production and
distribution of 'seditious' texts. Manuela Ribadeneira's interventions outside the
Museum space will explore Blake's use of the ampersand as a unifying force for
contraries, while Phil Coy's sculpture invites viewers to 'perform' Blake's
'Jerusalem' through the act of reading from an auto-cue. Andy Harper's paintings
will consider Blake's approach to nature and politics, forensically searching for
evidence of Blake's 'spirit'. Brian Catling will merge performance and poetry
through an 'illustrated' poetry reading. Catling will be accompanied by
performances from Phil Coy, Polly Gould and Manuela Ribadeneira.
A catalogue to accompany the exhibition, performances and events of Cloud & Vision
will feature new writing from Tracy Chevalier, novelist, who is currently
researching a novel based around Blake's garden and Tim Heath, Chairman of the Blake
Society, whose text will explore the divine in the digital age. Jon Newman, Lambeth
Archives, will develop a narrative text examining the physical location of Blake's
home and the artist's intellectual distance from his neighbours. Finally, Michael
Phillips, author of 'Blake's Songs', will represent an edited form of his essay
'William Blake in Lambeth'.
Curated by Danielle Arnaud, Jordan Kaplan and Philip Norman
For further information, contact Danielle Arnaud on 020 7735 8292 or danielle@parabolatrust.org
Private View: Tuesday 5 July 6 – 9pm
Image: David Burrows The Sick Rose 2005 Polyethylene foam
Museum of Garden History Lambeth
Palace Road
London