Visit to Leeds City Gallery

I went to the Leeds City Gallery today to see if I could gain more inspiration for my project, as I feel so far this term my work does not seem to have the same impetus and steady direction. I was really pleased with my afternoon as I came across three works which really caught my attention.

The first one was Naum Gabo's 'Construction in Space: Soaring', 1929-30, which was made out of brass, plexiglass and wood. This sculpture was part of his ongoing attempt to promote a utopian vision of the world which opposed the Surrealist outlook. His clear, metal and plastic sculptures have architectural overtones, which look like they could be pioneering buildings. Gabo belonged to the Soviet Constructivists and this work clearly displays their fascination with airports and flight, as both were archetypal symbols of modernity.

Edward Wadsworth's 'Composition on a Red Ground', 1931, made of tempera on wood is also mechanistic nature. The still life seems to be a play on mechanical drawing, which I also share an interest in. The description of the work in the gallery states that he was an avid subscriber to 'L'Espirit Nouveau', which was a magazine which promoted machinery and design. The influence of this in his work is pretty blatent.

'Dazzle Ship in Drydock' by Edward Wadsworth, 1919:

Susan Hiller's (b. 1931) 'Monument 1980-1: Colonial Version', mixed media, was also really interesting and emotive. The work was concerned with the fragmentation of contemporary culture. Hiller seemed to be attempting to return forgotten or lost remnants of history to mainstream attention, which parallels my idea. However she seems to take on an archaeologist role much more than I do. This is revealed in her belief that art should 'reveal, hidden, undisclosed and unarticulated codes within a culture', which is a viewpoint I have a lot of respect for but I do find it rather limited. The work was a massive series of photographs showing plaques that commemorated forgotten hereos of the last century who gave their own lives to save others. I found the work pretty impressive and I felt almost ashamed admitting to myself that had this work not been in a gallery environment, I may have walked on past it.

I was also really impressed with the gallery's bronze and copper & brass sculptures because they managed to look mechanic even when the artist's hand had obviously dented the surface. I like how the artwork combined a rusty metallic, machine-like appearance alongside a human touch.