Fragments of Icarus: Testbed1, Battersea

Following our exhibition on Store Street in August (see below), my collaborators Amelia Leeson, Ifigeneia Liangi and I were invited to install our inflatable at the Testbed1 gallery in Battersea. The Store Street exhibition had consisted of around 20 installations, each interpreting an excerpt from the myth of Icarus. In the large warehouse space of Testbed, we had the opportunity to disassemble, rearrange and recombine our works, reacting this time to Pieter Bruegel's painting, The Fall of Icarus (below).

Installations were grouped and amalgamated to represent key compositional elements from the painting. The construction process was highly collaborative, with all contributors proving willing and eager to adapt, reconsider and in some cases destroy their original works.

Yesterday evening was the private view, a chance to wander around the works and view snippets of footage from the Store Street installation projected onto frameworks, screens, and in one case, a slowly melting block of ice. It was a great evening, with lots of friends and newcomers (helped in no small way by the adjacent bar), but the exhibition will be open until the 12th of December if you want to take a look yourself. For more information, see www.iv-i.co.uk.

Rising Action/Falling Action

 

 As part of the Bloomsbury Festival, I was invited by the curators of SSE Space to create an installation interpreting a portion of the Greek myth of Daedalus and Icarus along with around 20 other teams of artists, architects and designers. Working together with Ifigeneia Liangi and Amelia Leeson, I created an inflated pair of wing-like forms, anchored to a timber framework which formed a doorway to an unoccupied shop on Store Street.

The project was a great opportunity to test out a new building technology. Much was learned about the manufacture and fragility of inflatable structures, which we'll certainly be putting to good use in the future. The day itself saw lots of amazing temporary structures, interactive games and performances in the street. For more information on the project, see SSE Space.