Object as Muse in Kirkcaldy
The Crafts Council and Fife Contemporary Art & Craft are pleased to announce that Object as Muse will be on show at Kirkcaldy Museum & Art Gallery, 9 May – 21 June 2009.
Object as Muse is an exhibition that presents six different artist responses to the Asentamiento Dress by textile artist Julie Cook, part of the Crafts Council Collection.
Instructions for the Asentamiento Dress by Julie Cook;
1. lift over the head and secure the neck with the knotted string
2. take up the secret arm position
3. to reset the body, apply the internal silk poultice to the solar plexus
4. allow catharsis to take place and lift the skirt when you dance
The Asentamiento Dress is part of ‘Duende: A time for healing’, a series that was developed by Julie Cook in collaboration with counselling psychologist, Lisa Isaacs. Influenced by an expressive Andalusian culture and Flamenco song and dance, the Asentamiento Dress provides emotional catharsis to the wearer through the act of performance. Made from a cotton duvet with silk poultice and tapes it is worn as a dress that encompasses the whole body in warm, comforting duck down.
Object as Muse presents six pieces of varying disciplines in response to the Asentamiento Dress and its accompanying video performance piece. Colette Bryce, David Birkin, Dunne and Raby with Noam Toram, Tamsin van Essen, Arabel Lebrusan and Susie MacMurray present a poem, a photo, a film, six ceramic vessels, a silver mantilla and a drawing that will be shown alongside the ‘muse’. Through these very different works the artists explore rituals, neuroses, emotional and physical health and relationships, all prevalent themes in Julie Cook’s work.
Colette Bryce uses the duvet as the starting point for a poem about a woman dealing with the breakdown of a relationship, Arabel Lebrusan worked with a Spanish craftsman to create a silver filigree mantilla that refers to Andalusian culture and Susie MacMurray draws an intricate gauze bandage that picks up on the theme of wounds and the healing process.
“Fife Contemporary Art & Craft is pleased to bring Object as Muse to Kirkcaldy for its only Scottish showing. It is particularly appropriate to present an exhibition centred on the potency of an object from a collection and how it can inspire other work within the context of a museum with its own rich collections.”
Diana A Sykes, Director, Fife Contemporary Art & Craft
The current Crafts Council programme of touring exhibitions includes three exhibitions drawn from or inspired by the Crafts Council Collection; Collecting a Kaleidoscope, Deviants and Object as Muse, and two presented with partner organisations; Out of the Ordinary with the V&A and WOOD with Studio TEN. Object as Muse is a diverse exhibition uniting craft and fine art disciplines presenting the viewer with a thought-provoking range of responses that raise questions about human emotions.
—Ends—
For more information and electronic images please contact Jill Read in the Crafts Council Press Office on Tel: +44 (0) 20 7806 2549, Email: media@craftscouncil.org.uk
*Visitor Information *
Kirkcaldy Museum & Art Gallery
War Memorial Gardens
Kirkcaldy
Fife
KY1 1YG
Tel: 01592 583213
Opening Times:
Mon-Sat 10.30am-5pm
Sunday 2pm-5pm
Free admission
Fife Contemporary Art & Craft
www.fcac.co.uk
Notes to Editors
• Fife Contemporary Art & Craft is a leading visual art and craft agency that create exciting opportunities for the people of Fife and beyond to experience quality exhibitions and events, and to participate in projects with local, national and international artists and makers
• Object as Muse is part of the Crafts Council Touring Exhibition Initiative that offers museums and galleries the opportunity to host innovative curated exhibitions showcasing the Crafts Council Collection.
• Object as Muse is now available for hire. Please contact Charlotte Dew, Exhibitions Project Officer, Crafts Council, c_dew@craftscouncil.org.uk or tel: 020 7806 2515
• The Crafts Council is the national agency for contemporary crafts. It aims to position the UK as the best place in the world for making, seeing and collecting contemporary craft.
• For further information about the Crafts Council visit www.craftscouncil.org.uk
• The Crafts Council is supported by Arts Council England. Arts Council England works to get great art to everyone by championing, developing and investing in artistic experiences that enrich people’s lives. As the national development agency for the arts, it supports a range of artistic activities from theatre to music, literature to dance, photography to digital art, and carnival to crafts. Between 2008 and 2011, Arts Council England will invest £1.3 billion of public money from government and a further £0.3 billion from the National Lottery to create these experiences for as many people as possible across the country.
