So this week we've gone a bit cultural again and we've been checking out what the Ikon Gallery has served up in the form of 3 exhibitions that it's running at the moment.
First off, a quick overview. For those of you who haven't checked out this beautiful little private gallery situated in the always beautiful area of Brindley Place (think Canary Wharf but cheaper), Ikon's start was as small as they come. Beginning as a kiosk in the Bullring, and that would be the OLD Bullring (think covent gardens but waaaaay more rubbish), this company has quickly gained a reputation for innovation and independence.
Housed in a neo-gothic school, the artistic programme is second to none. Bringing you some of the broadest and most interesting range of artistic tastes, from the traditional to the Tate. Currently displaying three exhibitions and with free entry (YES FREE ENTRY!) Ikon is a must for anyone pretending, aspiring and being an arty farty.
KITAGAWA UTAMARO
Ikon is hosting a survey of woodblock prints by the very very very late Japanese artist, Kitagawa Utamaro. Utamaro's work focuses on the short, hedonistic lives of bijinga (beautiful people) against the backdrop of Tokyo's regulated brothel district in the late 18th Century. His work often serves as an advertisement to a hidden world of sensual pleasure and contains images that are not suitable for children or men with penis envy. Some beautiful work on display in a beautiful space worth checking out.
DONALD JUDD - A GOOD CHAIR IS A GOOD CHAIR
Donald Judd is widely regarded as one of the most important artists of the 20th Century. A major player in minimalism and a widely skilled artist who's work transcended several disciplines, this exhibition concerns itself solely with chairs. Yes that's right...chairs. An interesting exhibit composed within a complimentary space which serves to highlight Judd's obsession with melding form & function into simplicity, and therefore functionality. Worth a visit, if only to piss off the curators by attempting to sit down on the myriad of seats.
ANTHONY GOICOLEA - NAIL BITER
By far the most trippy and contemporary exhibit, Nail Biter is a film that serves to interact with the viewer and provide them with a disturbing voyeurism which develops into a guilty conscious. The short film begins with a boy sat in bed in a darkened cabin. As the boy nervously bites his nails, the frantic motions quicken. The more he bites the faster his nails regrow until he is surrounded by hundreds and hundreds of nail shards! The piece is accompanied by a soundtrack that heightens the atmosphere of nerves with an amplified heartbeat, woodland noises and the everlasting "snicking" of nail biting. The piece leaves the viewer uncomfortable, as if we have been afforded a glimpse into an otherwise unseen world and now must carry the boy's embarrassing secret with us. Scary shit.
Check out the links for more details.
AUDIO-FREq
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