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'spaces/places/senses/places/senses/spaces'

The work in this exhibition evolved through my on-going collaboration with Henrietta Simson, as Simson&Volley. The exhibition provided an opportunity for international exchange and ran concurrently with an exhibition by American sculptor Elizabeth Mead, with whom I had collaborated on a series of prints and objects shown at Casa das Artes de Tavira, Portugal (2004). Located in the historic town of Portsmouth, Virginia, the Visual Arts Center’s multiple galleries form an integral part of TCC’s Studio Arts Programme and public programming.

Our aim was to locate ways of importing the light, sounds and imagery of Portsmouth, England to Portsmouth, Virginia in order to question how distinct geographic locations, artistic practices and techniques can entwine through associations and metaphors, and through space and time. Exploring the intersections of memory, place and senses, the work also considers the haptic nature of perception, demonstrating how object and image are embedded within the histories of each city. The combination of traditional materials (gold, graphite, iron gall ink and plaster) and contemporary techniques (photography, image transfer and computer generated imagery and sound) prompted new configurations of work that draws on this line of inquiry. Considering the poetic possibilities of the sea, we sought to capture the ethereal nature of experience by creating a projected gilded image to a reconstruction and interpretation of Debussy’s La Mer through a computer sound file. These works were in dialogue with Elizabeth Mead’s drawings and sculpture that explore her physical and metaphysical place in the world.

This has directly led to a forthcoming show at La Grua Centre Stonington CT, USA where Elizabeth Mead and I will collaborate on a series of handmade ink drawings and objects.

Simson&Volley show regularly most recently in 'Brittle Crazie Glasse', Islington Mill Studios, Manchester in conjunction with Manchester Contemporary 2012.