a.samms@live.co.uk
Sum
10th August - 8th September
Sarabande Foundation, London
PRESS RELEASE
For 11 contemporary artists based at Sarabande’s studios in Haggerston 2022 - 2023, SUM was the culmination of their residency. Represented as an inviting house and lush garden, the exhibition was the quintessential allegory for their time spent together. Through collaboration and cohabitation, they nurtured and grew their practices as well as their relationships with each other. Over the course of four weeks, the artists welcomed the audience into their ‘home’ to see the exhibition and to experience takeovers, performances and family-style dinners.
A small, white ‘house’ structure and surrounding ‘garden’ displayed works that referenced either the domestic or nature. A woven entrance by Jia Xi Li will hung from the house’s frame, a bed, hand-painted, embodying the relentless defiance of Iranian women by Laila Tara H, experimental, wet plate photographs by Kasia Wozniak and photo work exploring rhinoplasty in Iran by Shirin Fathi. There was also a perch for six wearable crows to come to life through the performances of Isabel Castro Jung.
The ‘garden’ revealed animals drawn and painted by Robert Cooper; tombstones sculpted by Taryn O’Reilly; sumptuous paintings by Fuchsia; a digital well, tucked in the grass, created by Zongbo Jiang; a table with a woven top of hair and leather by Anouska Samms; and a fountain that gradually eroded from the acid held inside it by Urte Janus.
Sarabande was set up by the late designer, Lee Alexander McQueen, who left the majority of his estate to support creative and visionary talent. In addition to providing scholarships and studio space for artists, Sarabande produces a number of events, from the practical to the inspirational.
Warped
12th May - 15th May
The Sarabande Foundation, London
PRESS RELEASE
Celebrating the art of contemporary weaving at Sarabande Foundation as part of London Craft Week. The immersive exhibition showcased the talents of three Sarabande studio residents whose weaving takes very different forms – jeweller Megan Brown, interdisciplinary artist Anouska Samms and designer Martina Spetlova. WARPED presented the artists’ own unique approaches to weaving and their use of varied materials – from human hair to woven leather and precious metals.
At the heart of the show was an interactive loom installation spanning 8 metres x 2 metres, created from repurposed wood from Alexander McQueen’s AW23 show. Purposefully designed to function as a collective tool, visitors were invited to join conversations while co-creating an abstract piece of material on the loom, exploring themes from family lineage, heritage and community, working alongside the warp and weft.
The coming together of these three distinct practitioners not only highlighted the innovative ways creatives make use of the loom today, but paid homage to the design of a machine that has remained relatively unchanged through time and geography. The loom bridges all three of these innovative and diverse creative practices.
Sarabande was set up by the late designer, Lee Alexander McQueen, who left the majority of his estate to support creative and visionary talent. In addition to providing scholarships and studio space for artists, Sarabande produces a number of events, from the practical to the inspirational.