Chord. A giant, site specific, mechanical installation in the Kingsway Tram Subway, Holborn in October. This vast underground tunnel is a remarkable and fascinating survivor of London's tramway heritage which has been closed for public use since 1952. The artist has built two identical rope machines that will weave a thick hawser from 324 spools of coloured string. Like two huge spiders, the machines gradually move away from each other slowly down the subway following the old tram tracks.
British artist Conrad Shawcross will construct a giant, site specific,
mechanical installation in the Kingsway Tram Subway, Holborn in October.
This vast underground tunnel is a remarkable and fascinating survivor of
London’s tramway heritage which has been closed for public use since 1952.
Chord is Conrad Shawcross most ambitious and complex work to date.
Conceived specifically for the long subway, the artist has built two identical rope
machines that will weave a thick hawser from 324 spools of coloured string.
The machines will begin back to back in the centre of the space and then
gradually move away from each other slowly down the subway following the old
tram tracks. Like two huge spiders, they will slowly weave their rope behind
them as they slowly travel through the space over the course of the exhibition.
Returning to the themes of previous rope production works The Nervous
Systems, (2003 - Saatchi collection) and Yarn (2001) Chord is concerned with
the human perception of time, as both a linear and cyclical notion. The rope
becomes a strong structural metaphor, as it is a clear linear entity made up
and formed by a cyclical process. Each point on the rope can be traced back to
a certain moment during the show and duration becomes interchangeable with
length; time with space, an hour being around 20cm, a day around six meters.
Shawcross continues to challenge and develop his practice in September
becoming Artist-in-Residence at the Science Museum in September where he
will be given access to the Science Museum’s peerless collections and expert
curators as part of its ongoing centenary programme.
Chord is a Measure commission produced in partnership with Camden Council,
Victoria Miro Gallery, inholborn and London Transport Museum.
Funded by Arts Council England, Bloomberg, Victoria Miro Gallery
and The Henry Moore Foundation.
Artist information
Embued with an appearance of scientific rationality, Conrad Shawcross’s
sculptures explore subjects that lie on the borders of geometry and philosophy,
physics and metaphysics. Attracted by failed quests for knowledge in the
past, he often appropriates redundant theories and methodologies to create
ambitious structural and mechanical montages, using a wide variety of
materials and media, and working on an epic scale. Different technologies -
nautical and audio-visual - and different natural forces inspire his forms, but his
mysterious machines and structures remain enigmatic, filled with paradox and
wonder. Some have an absurdist melancholy feel, while others tend to
the sublime.
More recently, with another group of works, Conrad Shawcross has begun
to experiment with ideal geometries and topologies; these constructions are
conceived as systems, sometimes modular, sometimes mechanical, which could
be theoretically extended infinitely into space. In these and other sculptures,
Shawcross pays tribute to some of the great pioneers and analysts, and
considers a specific moment or figure from the past. Paradigm (Ode to the
Difference Engine) (2006) references the life of Charles Babbage, Space Trumpet
(2007) is inspired by the history of early acoustic mapping, while Slow Arc
Inside a Cube (2008) takes its inspiration from the scientist Dorothy Hodgkin’s
discovery of the structure of pig insulin.
About Measure
Measure is a not-for-profit arts organisation that aims to inspire a passion
for art, architecture and history. Through our collaborative commissions we
encourage artists to challenge their own practice and evolve new ways
of working.
A short history of the Kingsway Tram Subway
In 1895, the newly elected London County Council (LCC) began carrying out the
first major urban improvement scheme in central London. By 1898, thousands
of people had been re-housed and a tree-lined avenue named Kingsway in
honor of Edward VII had replaced the slum. On February 24 1906 and inspired
by public transport in Boston and New York, King Edward VII opened the first
section of the tram subway. Over the next few decades, 200,000 Londoners were
commuting through the subway each week; it’s maximum capacity. The demand
for more apt transport rose rapidly, as did the competition from bus and tube
services. Finally, in February 1930, the LCC decided to raise the roof and
deepen the tunnel as appropriate to accommodate double-deck trams. London
Transport was formed in 1933 and took over LCC’s tram operations and decided
to replace trams with modern trolleybuses. This continued until 1940 by which
time the subway tram services were the only ones in North London and were
finally withdrawn in April 1952.
Exhibition information
Tours run from 11am to 6pm every hour on the hour. Visitors will have approx
half an hour in the Subway to view the artwork and space. Visitors must arrive
10mins before their booked time and congregate at the meeting point outside
Central St Martins College before being taken to the Subway by tour guides.
A program of talks and educational events accompany Chord.
For further information please visit http://www.measure.org.uk
Chord, Kingsway Tram Subway, Southampton Row, Holborn, WC1B 4AP
Open Wednesday – Sunday, 11am – 7pm.
Tickets must be pre-booked for entry at measure.org.uk or in person
at the venue. Tickets will be available to book from Monday 28th September
from the Measure website.