Gilbert and George Archives

Love

17 February 2010 at 6.30pm

A visit to the curated group exhibition LOVE at the Sorcha Dallas Gallery. The exhibition celebrates artists working in partnership, from long-term collaborators such as Gilbert and George and local duo, Joanne Tatham and Tom O’Sullivan to Rita Donagh and Richard Hamilton – two independent artists whose marriage has forged a common concern over the years in their artistic subject matter. The exhibitions title is an ironic take on the idea of respect or ‘love’ in some way assisting in the formation of the work and a contradiction to the political subtext and criticality inherent in each of the artists practice.

For LOVE, Hamilton and Donagh exhibit works from their Northern Ireland conflict series. Gilbert and George exhibit two video works from 1972, A Portrait of the Artists as Young Men and In the Bush. Joanne Tatham and Tom O’Sullivan exhibit two sculptures alongside four new drawings made for their Artists Taking the Lead Olympic bid, titled An unsuccessful proposal for the 2012 Cultural Olympiad, The experience being an experience like an experience you just had.

We will be joined in discussion by gallerist and curator, Sorcha Dallas.

Sorcha Dallas graduated from the Painting Department at Glasgow School of Art in 1998. Between 1999-2004 she co-founded and curated the moving gallery Switchspace, which delivered a programme of exhibitions showcasing Glasgow-based artists, at varying stages in their careers, in ever-changing unused spaces throughout Glasgow. The support and interest Switchspace generated, evolved into the establishment of a permanent gallery space by Sorcha Dallas, to offer a sustainable support structure for a new generation of emerging artists based in the city. The gallery currently represents fourteen artists on a local, national and international level, in commissioning, exhibiting and purchasing opportunities.

During the five years since its inception, the gallery has shown new and innovative work from the very best emerging Glasgow based artists as well as showcasing the most exciting emerging and established international talent. The gallery is also committed to supporting artists books, having made ten publications over the last five years, with two retrospective monographs on the artists Kate Davis and Alan Michael planned for 2010.

Spin-off Trip to the Venice Biennale 2005

21-25 October 2005

For our first overseas trip, Spin members visited one of the most exciting, prestigious and significant contemporary art festivals in the world, the Venice Biennale.

The 51st International Art exhibition marked the 110th year of its existence, and surprisingly, the first time that two women had been at the directorial helm. Maria de Corral and Rosa Martinez, art historians, critics and independent curators from Spain, created two very different, but complementary shows that captured the spirit of the international, contemporary art scene. Universally and critically acclaimed, the 2005 Biennale was hailed as one of the most coherent, intelligent and imaginative shows in recent memory.

Held every two years, the Venice Biennale brings together over 70 nations, and among the countries exhibiting in 2005 for the first time, were Morocco, Albania, Afghanistan, China and Northern Ireland. The Giardini, house the official national pavilions (31 in total) which showcase the best of each country’s contemporary artists. In 2005, Britain was represented by the controversial duo, Gilbert and George.

One of the main highlights of the Spin trip, was a visit to the Italian Pavilion in the Giardini. Maria de Corral has curated an exhibition entitled The Experience of Art which presented the work of over 40 established and up-and-coming, international artists. Working in a variety of media, from installation and painting to sculpture and video, artists included Rachel Whiteread, Francis Bacon, Willie Doherty, William Kentridge, Barbara Kruger, Eija-Liisa Ahtila and Agnes Martin.

Members also visited Always a Little Further, curated by Rosa Martinez, housed in the Arsenale – the famous old dockyard of Venice. The work of over 40 international artists was beautifully presented in this unique environment, featuring videos, photography, painting, sculpture and installation. Louise Bourgeois, Mona Hatoum and the Guerrilla Girls feature in the line-up.

Of the 30 collateral exhibitions and events spreading across the city of Venice, Spin members visited Scotland’s second presentation at the Biennale, Selective Memory: Scotland & Venice, housed at the Scoletta, next door to the historical Scuola de San Rocco. Glasgow-based artists Cathy Wilkes, Alex Pollard and Joanne Tatham and Tom O’Sullivan created challenging new work in a visually powerful show. We also visited the Welsh and North Irish pavilions and the presentations from Lithuania, Estonia, Afghanistan, Turkey, Ukraine and Iran.