Visual Art ‘
Heads will roll
ALEX FROST exposed his new work to the elements of east Glasgow and it didn’t last long. Alexander Kennedy wonders if it was wilfully na‘t've or an act of self-sacrificing bravery?
few days ittto (ilasgow' International. art liggers on the peanut and free warm ('hardonnay circuit receiy‘ed a cttrt (hut not ttttsspectedt email from Sorcha Dallas in forehoding j.t[tll;ll letters infortning all that ‘l)ue to unforeseen .Itetttttstances the walking tour to Visit Alex l‘it‘ost‘s .Itlptttt‘e. scheduled to happen on Sunday lst May. ltas hcen cancelled'. The sculptttre in question. ’\l.t\erick' (pictured). had heen yantlalised. \l_:‘ltllll;tl'lsll \ isions of a hall of flames rolling through the streets of l)ennistoun quickly followed. lhe work. an off-site project of Sorcha Dallas .Illery. continued the (ilasgow-hased artist’s interest
ttt sell portraiture filtered throttgh process of
]It\t‘l;tlltill. 'I‘he mosaic technique ttsed allowed him to ’lt‘alt‘ layers of colour and texture. yet ayoided the .ltehed mess of traditional expression. ltnages of the atotk show It lying on its side. staring into the distance ill-.t' tlte decapitated head of a dead god or an early (’httstian saint in llagia Sophia. The head. as portrait .tlltl stthiect. seems monumental. but its si/e totttradicts its symholic (and actual) fragility. 'l‘his met large narcissistic nionad seems lost. :\s an art oltteet and s_\ mhol of suhjectiy‘ity you are aware that its siale‘ oi stasis and quiet gestation will not last. The otttsttle world society will act on it and fragment it.
lIosI is rightfully sick of the attention this daft .tttaek has receiyed saying. ‘A numher of journalists lt.t".t‘ heen in touch wanting to make an issue of the tact that ttty sculpture was Vandalised. This is .lt\.tppttitttittg.‘ lle ltas a point. hut on the quest for a ston greater depths haye heen plummeted. l‘rost is
104 THE LIST '.
ITS SIZE CONTRADICTS ITS SYMBOLIC (AND ACTUAL) FRAILTY
one of the few artists who is not scared of the finished. sculpted ohicct: does not suffer frotn the
paranoia that gathers in the corners of installations. So. when one of his works is tampered with and snatched away hefore art students caIt haye a good look at how it can he done. we should all he a hit put out.
Public art and \andalism make uneasy hedfellow s; liguratiye puhlic sculptures seem to heg for an oh--sor
hilarious Duchampian moustache. a grass tnohaw k or
their specs to he yanked off. littt contemporary artists know this (icoitticlasllcs are r/(‘ l‘lig’r'lll‘l \tl why did
l‘rost install his self—portrait in wasteland off
Melbourne Street in (ilasgow’s (iallowgate'.’ Well. as Dallas says. ".\la\erick' is .-\le\'s most amhitiotts project to date . . . any art placed within the puhlic realm is of course going to he open to itttery entionf
Of course. you can play it safer. .-\ recent programme of e\ ents in Bristol has attempted to meld contemporary artistic practices. approaches and material to the realm of ptthlic art. 'contemporary art in unexpected sitcs’. Hun/sine rill/1e ()u/su/t'. curated hy (‘laire l)oherty. includes works hy si\ international ttl'llSlS. :\ll (if the \\til‘k seems ltl he \llL‘tl it] quite \Lllc. semi—puhlic spaces churcltyards. a warehouse. the castle \aults. likewise. posters or |i\c eyents help protect original work froIII \andalism. ’l‘here is sense in this. httt as an approach it also limits expression. access. and the oyerall impact that a work such as l‘rost's '.\la\erick' can haye in a site hy jarring with or generously throwing itself open to the mercy of its surrounding locale.
J “I
th»: BEST EXHIBITIONS
it: Beck’s Futures 2005 A strong line~up this year with films taking the documentary form along with trippy tricksters playing cards, perfumes evocative of 19303 wet tweed from Edinburgh and huge carnivaIeSQUe sculpture in the foyer. See review, page 102 CCA, Glasgow, until Sun 70 Jul
:22: Degree Shows The highlight of the year for art colleges across the land. Thousands of students open up their explorations. experimentations and much hard work in Edinburgh and Glasgow for your perusal. A great chance to purchase original work and check out what‘s going down in the corridors of art schools. See profiles, page 104--105. Glasgow School of Art, Sat
l 8851! 25 Jun, Edinburgh College o/Art, Sat 78—Tue 28 Jun and Tramway Glasgow, Thu 16~~St1r726 Jun
21:: Scandinavian Design Beyond the Myth The cool edges of northern European design are roughed up and shown to be as diverse as they are beautiful. See preview, page 102. The Lighthouse, Glasgow, Sun IQ-—-Tue 28 Jun
2;»: An Aside Typewriters in snow, shiny dogs and skeleton trees. Artist Tacita Dean has curated a selection of works by other artists. that puzzle and reward. Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh, until Sun 77 Jul 2%: Evergreen Science and art interlink like a perfect double helix. lnver/eith House, Edinburgh, until Sun 3 Jul
:3: Francis Bacon: Portraits and Heads Extensive show of portraits made of Bacon‘s friends and lovers by the man who portrays tenderness and Violence with the same brushstroke. National Gallery of Modern Art, Edinburgh, uni/l Sun 4 Sep