Category Archives: Forthcoming Exhibitions

Exhibitions: July 2015

Delta: Oona Grimes, Mark Jackson, James Lowne, Clare Mitten, Mia Taylor.

Worlds collide, meet, touch, overlap and become absorbed. Worlds become world; expanded, inconsistent and multi faceted. Some don’t stop, don’t crash, they keep moving, a sign in space, until they are singular and alone. No matter, we are only concerned with what remains. We built this world top down and outside-in, we chose the planets and engineered the collision; a shared universe intended to be used by many authors.

Things are still shifting, unconsolidated, swirling in the flow; positions and values change as properties are reorganized into new relativities. Life forms emerge, languages form and something like culture becomes apparent. ‘Happyville’, perhaps. It needs detail; it needs cloudbusting; it needs sustainability. We rule from the top down, the alien amoeba revolt, we continue to rearrange.

There is no foundation, just lumps of rock etched with the imprints of geological murmurs; a moving mass of tectonic plates awash in the ether. It is a matter of communication; the alluvial urges manipulate the bodies that levitate above. The hand comes first, its touch electric. It stretches out revealing the lifelines on its palm; an index finger reaches down and draws a line in the sediment. It leads to the eye, or is it a heart? Let me check the folder. Help us to understand our world! We crave order, a calendar, and a system. Where is the hardware, where is the brain?

The cog turns, a circuit is complete and a connection is made. Time slows and smooth’s, no lag, no freeze just flow. A long tendril of living matter unfurls exposing its luscious surface, trying to give meaning to the amorphous jelly.

For further information, please visit Five Years website.

Exhibitions: August 2014 and February 2015

In the popular imagination, the image of the seaside town has an enduring relationship with sex. It plays host to secret liaisons, illicit trysts and dirty weekends, frequently conducted against a scenic, yet simultaneously shabby and dilapidated backdrop. The ‘sex shop’ is also a staple of the seaside town, often selling genuine sex aids flanked by an assortment of humorous trinkets and throwaway paraphernalia. Before the advent of the Internet, it was also the place where many children got their first glimpse into the hidden world of blue movies, adult toys and playthings.

As part of the 2014 Folkestone Fringe, we are opening a temporary Sex Shop. We have invited 40 people – primarily artists and designers, but also creative people from other professional fields – to design and develop a prototype version of their own sex or fetish object.

The prototypes that have been created embody a wide range of different approaches to the curatorial framework. Some artists have chosen to reference the vast cornucopia of contemporary and historic sexual implements and erotic merchandise, while others have taken a more abstract or personal approach, drawing inspiration from deep within the id of their own arts practice. Meanwhile, participants from other professional backgrounds have drawn upon their own professional discipline, combined with their unique psychology and experience, to structure and inform their response.

Featuring works in various media – from 2D visualisations and 3D maquettes, to sound and video based responses – the Sex Shop will be situated in one of the vacant commercial properties in Folkestone’s Creative Quarter. It playfully references rather than mimics an actual sex shop, and utilises the tropes of a design showroom in contrast to the more dilapidated aspect of the high street shop interior.

All the pieces on display in Sex Shop will be for sale, and presented within a context of critical engagement. After its debut run as part of the Folkestone Fringe, the Sex Shop will tour to Transition Gallery, London, in January 2015 (16/01/15 – 15/02/15) to coincide with a special sex themed edition of Garageland magazine.

The Sex Shop project is conceived and curated by three London based artists: Sarah Gillham, Jack Stokoe & Darren Nairn.

Launch Party Drinks Saturday 30th August 2014, 4:00pm – 6:30pm Programme of Talks Sunday 31st August 2014 from 2.00pm (speakers TBC) Exhibition runs Saturday 30th August – Saturday 4th October (Sat & Sun 11 – 5 only) (Friday by appointment)

5 Rendezvous Street, Folkestone, Kent CT20 1EY

For further information please contact Darren@darrennairn.co.uk

Please visit Transition Gallery website for further information and images.

Exhibitions: May 2014

The Nunnery Gallery presents Behold, a multi-discipline arts event at the Club at the Ivy showcasing innovative and challenging work beyond the confines of a traditional arts setting.

On May 12th 2014 Behold features showcase performances and installation art from a radically diverse group of individuals for a unique experimental exhibition specially curated for the Club at the Ivy, transforming the historic venue with unexpected adventures in sight and sound.
In accordance with the heritage of the Ivy as a premiere destination for practitioners of all forms of art and entertainment Behold spans the spectrum of creative exploration. Established names join forces with emerging talent to present their work in a way that is intimate, immediate and unprecedented in this kind of space.
Behold features video and installation work by Gordon Cheung, Tessa Garland, Jon Monaghan, Ulu Braun, James Howard, Joey Holder, Clare Mitten and Alana Lake. Avant-garde theatre pioneers the Theo Adams Company will present live music and spontaneous moments of glamour and visual excitement throughout the space for the duration of the evening. Sound artists completely re-imagine the sonic environment with Archos Neu transforming the terrace and Bjørn Hatleskog’s otherworldly live sound/light sculpture invading the luxurious setting. Live performance art by Julia Haynes and an exclusive multimedia assualt by Ze Æs (the new project fronted by Martin Tomlinson, formerly of cult group Selfish c**t) ensure this evening will be like nothing else in your diary.
RSVP ESSENTIAL: behold@bowarts.com
For further information on the participants and evolving content visit:

bowarts.org/behold.

Exhibitions: September 2013