In the spotlight: Christian Ovonlen’s painted silks make a glittering debut

28 June 2022

The winner of the 2022 Brookfield Properties Craft Award was inspired by all things thespian for his first solo show

28 June 2022

Christian Ovonlen in the studio with Botanical Silk (Burnt Orange). Photo: Alun Callender

Artist Christian Ovonlen, who has won this year’s Brookfield Properties Craft Award, is creating a vibrant spectacle brimming with colour and movement for his debut solo show. From 20 June, his handcrafted silk pieces will be displayed across two of Brookfield Properties’ buildings in the City of London: Aldgate Tower and 99 Bishopsgate, alongside a wider body of work.

‘I'm showing my Ballets Russes and Botanical works with my drawings and printing on textiles,’ says Ovonlen. ‘And I’m also making new work called King with Beads and Pearls and Girl with Feathered Cape for people to see for the first time.’ The exhibition marks the first solo showing for Ovonlen, who will be exhibiting his hand-painted and screen-printed wall-based silks – each light enough to flutter in a passing breeze.

Installation view of 'Theatrical', a solo exhibition by Christian Ovonlen in Brookfield Properties' 99 Bishopsgate. Photo: Alun Callender

At Brookfield Properties' 99 Bishopsgate, the exhibition – curated in partnership with the Crafts Council – is titled Theatrical, gesturing towards Ovonlen’s greatest source of inspiration. In particular, the artist drew from 19th and 20th century performance archives at the V&A, focusing on the costumes, scenography and lighting of the Ballets Russes to create five of the nine pieces on show. Each piece hangs vertically, recalling stage curtains or backdrops. Botanical, at the nearby Aldgate Tower – a 10-minute walk away – takes a floral focus. Sixteen works from his Botanical Silks series feature lush foliage and flowers, creating an oasis of colour within the concrete jungle. ‘The Brookfield Properties buildings are amazing – big and massive,’ says Ovonlen. ‘My work will bring lots of colour to them.’

Various works by Christian Ovonlen. Photo: Alun Callender

The artist was chosen from more than 400 makers – and a shortlist of five artists – thanks to his presentation of Ballets Russes-inspired pieces at Collect art fair in February. Ovonlen was represented at the fair by Intoart: a Peckham-based art and design studio that works with people with learning disabilities. ‘Intoart's approach to representing artists at Collect perhaps differs from other galleries, as we support artists in the development of significant bodies of new work to debut at the fair,’ says Intoart’s director Ella Ritchie. ‘Christian worked over nine months in the lead up to Collect 2022 to develop the Ballets Russes series, with an ambitious scale and complexity of production.’ She adds: ‘The fruition of this work has taken his drawing into textiles to develop a truly unique visual language.’

Christian Ovonlen with Ella Ritchie, director of Intoart. Photo: Alun Callender

It’s this energetic ‘visual language’ that impressed the judging panel, as Brookfield Properties’ curatorial director Saff Williams recalls. ‘As soon as we walked into the space, we were blown away. There's something in the sense of movement, the colours that he selects, and the joy in each line. His figures appear to lift off the silks – they’re dancing across the fabric, bold in line and brushwork.’ It’s an effect that Brookfield Properties – a global leader in real estate development, which since 1988 has also brought art to the spaces it develops – are excited to share with the world. ‘Christian's works will be the perfect injection of life for visitors to view in our spaces,’ says Williams.

His figures appear to lift off the silks – they’re dancing across the fabric, bold in line and brushwork
Saff Williams, curatorial director, Brookfield Properties

As for the future? Winning the Brookfield Properties Craft Award – which encompasses a prize package worth £60,000 – will undoubtedly put Ovonlen’s work in the spotlight. Alongside the forthcoming exhibition, Brookfield Properties has also acquired seven pieces for the Crafts Council Collection, and will fund the creation of a newly commissioned artwork, due to be completed by the end of 2022. ‘The recognition that comes with the award and the resulting exhibitions and commission is testament to Christian’s contribution to contemporary craft – with the hope for future opportunities and greater visibility of his work,’ says Ritchie.

This visibility is thanks, in part, to the exhibition’s unexpected location: the ground floor reception spaces of two landmark buildings. ‘Visitors may not be planning to see art there – it can be an exciting surprise and will reach different audiences. We want to challenge the perception that art is elitist or always hard to understand,’ says Williams. For Ovonlen, his focus remains firmly on making: ‘I like working with textiles and costumes and want to do more in the future.’

Ovonlen’s win comes on the heels of textile artist Anna Ray, who scooped the Brookfield Properties Craft Award in 2021, and ceramic and textile artist Matt Smith, who won the Award’s inaugural edition in 2020.

‘Theatrical’ and ‘Botanical’ run from 20 June to 22 September at 99 Bishopsgate and Aldgate Tower in London

In the spotlight: Christian Ovonlen’s painted silks make a glittering debut

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