The Pedestrian
Paul Carter, Allan Currall, Moyra Derby, Kate Gray, Steve Hollingsworth
26 June - 22 August 1998
Exploring life in the millennium, The Pedestrian brought together art works which talked of the future using language of the present day. Inspired by a Ray Bradbury short story, the exhibition questioned both collective and personal beliefs for the 21st century.
In Kate Gray’s video, a hand tries to beat the auto focus device of the video camera. Out-foxing the machinery, the hand appears to glow. In her second piece, on the back wall of the gallery, an androgynous figure in disposable underwear stands in a strange, foreign landscape. The red light of a sunset transforms the jagged rubble from this wasteland into a futuristic sci-fi set.
Moyra Derby’s paintings are propped up against the wall and stacked on the gallery floor to bring the viewer physically closer to the work. Depicting the flat expanses of ‘modern’ urban landscapes the inhabitants of these scenes appear lost within them. Paul Carter’s 'God Radio Shack' offers the viewer the opportunity to make contact with and listen to an unseen beyond; by steping inside an ordinary garden shed and following the instructions to attempt communication with God Radio.
In Steve Hollingsworth’s work, a neon jigsaw piece lies on the gallery floor on top of a image of its former self. Left over from a lost puzzle, the piece has evolved on its own to become whole again. And at the entrance to the gallery, a white utility office shirt luminously hangs on a flickering orange neon coat hanger. Steve Hollingsworth combines these two everyday objects and transforms them into the surreal.
Take the chance to wind down and relax in front of the viewing screen in Alan Currall’s 'Circle of Blankness'. Everyday stress slips away as you forget your surroundings and concentrate on the grey screen and its repeating instructions. As The Pedestrian moves around the gallery space, the work of these five artists project the possibilities of an unknown future
Accompanying essay
Millennium Stories for the Replicants of Tomorrow by Josie Berry
Private View
Kate Gray, 1998
Steve Hollingsworth, 1998
