23/4/2008
Ryan McClelland
Forster, London
The Sleep of Reason. Contemporary excesses are laid bare in McClelland's sick visual taxidermy of modern life. The artist presents everyday scenes of low-culture in his cool, stark images of the Zeitgeist.
Contemporary excesses are laid bare in Ryan McClelland’s sick
visual taxidermy of modern life. McClelland presents everyday scenes of
low-culture in his cool, stark images of the Zeitgeist. When confronted by
Ryan McClelland’s narrative prints, what initially strikes the viewer is
the pure physicality of the artwork. They occupy a scale more akin to
painting than precious printmaking, although use traditional, linoblock
techniques. A myriad of stylistic and ideological contradictions present
themselves, intending to deride the notion of the fine arts being the
exclusive purveyor of good taste. Ryan’s work exudes a punky nihilism and
he employs a consciously “primitive” approach to his practise.Modern
consumer references, appearing in powerful scenes of degradation, show
branded characters frolicking and fighting in retail parks and night clubs,
desperately trying to transgress the nightmare of their existence.
McClelland opts for what he describes as a “Zombified” means of production,
subverting the language of decorative arts into his own ridiculous,
Frankenstein creations. He uses equal amounts of irony and sincerity to
paint his own romantically bleak pictures of society.The living dead return
to a shopping mall, the sun sets upon its tarmac, as wide-eyed kidults come
out to play. Frolicking in the shadows of neon lights, they act out their
own ersatz rock ‘n’ roll fantasies, where reality and fiction collide in
chemically fuelled narratives of faux decadence. McClelland’s ceramic
sculptures and installations are monuments to the vulgarity of the western
consumer society.
The flotsam and jetsam of our urban experiences are piled
high in complex sculptures, objects of decadence and ephemera are
incongruously juxtaposed, creating tensions between these trash and
treasures.His unique brand of bastardized craft stands apart from the
current state of sculpture. McClelland’s work is slick craftwork injected
with ironic wit. You are seduced by its luster and glaze, but soon
recognise the detritus used to create these totemic trophies to low-brow
culture.Ryan McClelland graduated from Goldsmiths College in 2002 and
gained an MA in Fine Art Printmaking from the Royal College of Art in 2007.
He has exhibited internationally since 2002. Recent exhibiions include The
New Radicals, Galleri Sigma, Sweden (2002), Co[]ect, The Victoria & Albert
Museum (2005), New News From Nowhere, William Morris Museum (2006),
Pinocchio Related, Academia de Venica Venice (2006) and Urban Monsters,
Boston USA (2007).
Private View 24 April, 6-8.30pm
Forster
1 Chapel Place, Rivington Street - London
Free admission