Text by Angela Darby
Below the gilded King Edward VII chandeliers and between the Italian travertine engraved marble walkway the exhibition Contemporary Art in Northern Ireland is situated in The Great Hall of Parliament Buildings at Stormont. The exhibition鈥檚 curator Dr Suzanne Lyle, Head of Arts and Acquisitions at the , states: 鈥淭he invitation from the Speaker to bring this exhibition to Parliament Buildings is an important opportunity to champion our artists… business leaders will cite the strength of a society鈥檚 arts and culture as a key factor influencing any decision to invest…鈥 Staging the exhibition in Stormont is a positive step to improving public access and additionally the political decision makers who allocate cultural funds can view firsthand the quality of the works on display. The 24 selected artists are drawn from emerging and established artists. Miguel Martin (b.1985), a talented young artist pays homage to an established artist with an intricate, detailed line drawing entitled Neil Shawcross鈥檚 Studio Space whilst internationally recognised artist Colin Darke (b.1957) raises questions concerning intellectual copyright and appropriation in his painting Mannish Boy V 鈥 Policeman. This breadth of practice is well represented throughout the exhibition.
Brendan Jamison鈥檚 (b.1979) large impressive sculpture Yellow Helicopter shares an eyeline with the bronze statue of Sir James Craig, the first Prime Minister of Northern Ireland. The striking work grabs the viewers鈥 attention with its skeletal composition and bright woolly draped flesh. The piece sits in The Hall as an ironic testament to the military occupation of Northern Ireland鈥檚 past. Artists such as Christopher McCambridge and Jennifer Trouton seem to relate metaphorically to the environment. In Re-interpretation: Falling for Grandeur, McCambridge meticulously stitches his canvas with royal blue, blossom pink and turquoise threads. The chinoiserie wallpaper referenced is rendered by the artist鈥檚 physical action into a luxurious tapestry, an historical artefact echoing the affluence of the architectural environment within which it hangs. Trouton鈥檚 oil on linen painting Harrow captures a similar sensibility. An intricate photo-realist painting of a textured blanket draped over a chair suggests a story of comfort and tranquillity. But the fragments of broken crockery strewn and discarded beside the chair disturb the picture鈥檚 equilibrium. As the painting鈥檚 title suggests there is no room for harmony.
Simon McWilliams鈥 oil on canvas, Stairwell captures a fragment of Belfast鈥檚 prolific re-development that spread throughout the city like a raging virus. Resembling invasive weeds on a riverbank, green fluorescent netting and scaffolding provide a stagnant 鈥榮till鈥 from an emergent tower block鈥檚 metamorphic growth. Caught in a frozen moment the image reveals the city鈥檚 faltering regeneration. The artists Terry McAllister, Gareth Reid, Gail Ritchie and Robert Peters poignantly capture aspects of rural landscapes and woodlands. Ritchie鈥檚 Dead Tree, a fine graphite pencil drawing on paper, hauntingly commemorates the traditional 12th of July Orange March to the field in Edenderry Village, Belfast. The faces of menacing sprites and gargoyles emerge from the gnarled bark and twisted knots on the tree鈥檚 decaying surface. The tree鈥檚 totemic symbolism seems to point to a time before the transformation of the province鈥檚 political situation and a time when one community had a monopoly over the other. Robert Peters鈥 digital print, entitled Uccello of the Potato Field I and II, portrays a traditional children鈥檚 game played in the potato fields on his family farm during the 1970s. This is not a game of childish innocence however but one of brutal combat as the sport鈥檚 object is to target and hurt one鈥檚 opponent by hurling potatoes propelled from the sticks. Peters has arranged the composition of his improvised weaponry to correspond with the upright lances in The Battle of San Romano (1438-1440) by the Florentine painter Paolo Uccello.
In the works by Zoe Murdoch, Maria McKinney, Shaleen Temple and Carrie McKee there is a polar presence of escapism and capture. Murdoch鈥檚 sensitive and melancholic sculpture Oh Muse Be Near Me Now and Make a Strange Song is dedicated to a long distanced correspondence. The anatomical objects and printed text contained within the small wooden box form clues to the artists鈥 reflection on the frustrations of a relationship spent apart. Maria McKinney examines the pursuit of leisure time and the activities devised to combat monotony in an appropriated jigsaw composition The Earl of Leicester. The photographic portraits by Temple and McKee poignantly narrate the condition of each of their subject鈥檚 entrapment. From the series entitled Boys and Girls, Temple鈥檚 documentation of South African servants exposes a world of subordination and subservience. The artist鈥檚 subject, Jerita stands tentatively in the interior of her employer鈥檚 home in Johannesburg. The red wall鈥檚 arch and dark wooden furniture frames and engulfs Jerita, the very objects that define her occupation seem to imprison her. Temple draws attention to these domestic servants who would otherwise be overlooked and in so doing she credits them with the recognition that they deserve. McKee chooses the backdrop of derelict Belfast cityscapes for her stunning depictions of young dancers. In Orlaigh (2011), a girl poses defensively with her arms folded; she is dressed in a bright orange and fuchsia coloured costume, a large pink blossom frames her face. This beautiful, 鈥榯iger lily鈥 sprouts with strength and determination from the desolate wasteland, waiting for her hopes and aspirations to be fulfilled.
One can easily imagine how Stormont鈥檚 opulent surroundings and ornate architectural features might overshadow the exhibiting works, rendering them undistinguished and lacking in impact. Surprisingly this is not the case; Dr Lyle鈥檚 strong curatorial vision corresponds with the context of this stately environment.
Contemporary Art in Northern Ireland, 21/11/2011 – 04/01/2012, Parliament Buildings, Stormont.
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Caption:
Gilded Youth – Orlaigh Burns 2011
Courtesy the artist
