DIRTY WORK: An exhibition of contemporary ceramic practice in two parts | Part ONE
Caroline Achaintre / Salvatore Arancio / William Cobbing / Ryan Gander / Markus Karstieß / Gereon Krebber / Nicholas Pope / Linda Sormin / Urara Tsuchiya / Anne Wenzel
DIRTY WORK Part ONE is curated by William Cobbing and presents a diverse range of ceramic works, from sculpture to video, which push the boundaries of the medium in a subversive way. The visceral characteristics of the clay catch the work in a state of flux, or in a state of shed or metamorphosis. The ambiguous nature of the work allows the viewer to decipher forms that seem part alien, animal or vegetable. The artists play with the base materiality of clay in a direct, sensual and often humorous way.
Where: The Art Station, Saxmundham, IP17 1AB
When: Friday 26th August – Sunday 9th October (open Wednesday – Saturday from 12 – 4pm*)
Launch: Thursday 25th August (6 – 9pm) – featuring live performances by William Cobbing.
*or otherwise by appointment, please contact [email protected] to request
Starting from a sculptural sensibility, William Cobbing’s art practice encompasses a diverse range of media, including video, photography and installation. Performative encounters are devised with material, such as clay, in which the protagonists’ are engaged in a repetitive and absurd cycle of manipulating formless surfaces. The works allude to concepts of entropy, underlining the extent to which earthly material is irreversibly dispersed, giving rise to a definitive blurring of the boundaries between the body and landscape, whilst putting the possibility of conclusion on hold.
William Cobbing will be performing live pieces at both the DIRTY WORK part ONE and part TWO launch events.
Since 2000 Cobbing has exhibited internationally, in group shows including A Secret History of Clay Tate Liverpool (2004), Room with a View Gemeente Museum, The Hague (2006), Drifting Clouds Furini Arte Contemporanea, Italy (2007), and solo exhibitions at Galerie Fons Welters, Amsterdam (2002) and Netwerk Centre for Contemporary Art, Belgium (2007.) He is currently showing at The Whitechapel Gallery as part of The London Open 2022.
William Cobbing