Handmade woollen crochet, felt appliqués, fabrics, ornaments, polystyrene, polyester, steel cables. Dimensions variable
Collection of the artist.
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Joana Vasconcelos: Time Machine
Manchester Art Gallery
15 February - 1 June 2014
Manchester Art Gallery, Mosley Street, Manchester M2 3JL
Hours: Open daily, 10am - 5pm and Thursdays 10am- 9pm
A riotous storm of colour is coming to Manchester as renowned Portuguese contemporary artist Joana Vasconcelos showcases her seductive and subversive large-scale sculptures for an exclusive site-specific exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery.
Joana Vasconcelos
has come to be known for her acute sense of scale, peculiar choice of
materials and mastery of colour, particularly after her highly regarded
sculpture ‘The Bride’ – a 5m high chandelier made of 25,000 tampons –
was exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 2005. Showing a strong affinity
for the decontextualisation and subversion of pre-existent objects and
everyday realities, her work is a melting pot of tradition and
modernity, popular and erudite culture, the private and the public, as
well as the hand-crafted and the industrial. Seductive, humorous
and exuberant, her sculptures directly challenge the pre-arranged
routines of the quotidian, offering a critique of contemporary society
by highlighting issues such as the status of women, class distinction
and national identity.
OB tampons, stainless steel, cotton thread, steel cables.
600 x Ø 300 cm.
António Cachola Collection, Elvas.
Work produced and restored with the support of Johnson & Johnson, Lda.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
In what is her most ambitious UK exhibition to date, ‘Time Machine’ promises to takes us on a journey though Vasconcelos’ extravagant world of contextual appropriation where over twenty of the artist’s most significant sculptures are taking over the entire gallery building, filling its major exhibition spaces, adorning its exterior and acting as interventions with the gallery’s permanent collection.
The highlight of the exhibition is the
world premiere of a new textile work that has been specially
commissioned as a site-specific installation for the gallery’s atrium
and staircase. A new addition to the ‘Valkyries’ series, the aptly named ‘Britannia’
is a fabric patchwork extravaganza that weaves together knitting and
crochet with fine silk, cotton velvets (referred to as Manchester cloth
across much of the world), recycled clothes and industrially produced
textiles embellished with Portuguese tassels, crystals and beads.
Hanging in striking contrast to the straight, clean lines of the glass
atrium, its brightly coloured organic forms cascade down the gallery’s
stairs to then spill over the balconies, into the atrium, in a manic,
riotous manner.
However, Joana Vasconcelos’ complete takeover of the gallery doesn’t end here; interventions have been ingeniously placed all over the gallery spaces – both inside and outside – to create unexpected, humorous and thoughtful connections both with the historical architecture of the building and works of art from the city’s collections. A new addition to the three-dimensional series of ‘Crochet Paintings’ has been produced in response to the gallery’s 18th century works, while William de Morgan wall tiles – on display in the Pre-Raphaelites gallery – are referenced in a new piece from Vasconcelos’ ‘Tetris’ series made out of tiles, crochet and various fabrics. In addition to these, a new work for the ‘Cement Sculptures’ series has also been created in response to the gallery’s sculpture ‘Atalanta’ (1888) by Francis Derwent Wood and the painting ‘Eve Tempted’ (1877) by John Spencer Stanhope. Recalling classical statues of the sensual female form, ‘Bond Girl’, which is cast in cement, is vibrantly painted and decorated with crochet and hand-made net.. Finally, three of Vasconcelos’ sculptures from the ‘Full Steam Ahead’ series will be shown together for the first time. Red, yellow and green (the colours of the Portuguese flag), these kinetic flower-shaped sculptures feature steam irons as petals that slowly unfurl, turning the gallery space into a steamy robotic flower garden.
Displaying a wide selection of new and recent works, the majority of which have yet to be exhibited in the UK, Joana Vasconcelos’ ‘Time Machine’ will be stirring up Manchester’s cultural scene until 1 June 2014.
OB tampons, stainless steel, cotton thread, steel cables.
600 x Ø 300 cm.
António Cachola Collection, Elvas.
Work produced and restored with the support of Johnson & Johnson, Lda.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Handmade woollen crochet, polyester, on canvas, stucco, gold leaf, MDF, iron.
186 x 311 x 67 cm
Collection of the artist.
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Handmade woollen crochet, industrial knitted fabric, polyester, stainless steel.
305 x 260 x 87 cm
Collection of the artist.
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
BOSCH
steam irons, PLC gearmotor, microprocessor-based electronic control
unit, low pressure hydraulic system, stainless steel, demineralized
water.
155 x Ø 170 cm
Collection of the artist.
Obra produzida com o patrocínio de Robert Bosch Hausgeräte GmbH.
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
photo © Alan Seabright.
Viúva Lamego hand painted tiles, handmade woollen crochet, ornaments, polyester, MDF, iron.
425 x 625 x 490 cm
Collection of the artist
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro faience painted with ceramic glaze, handmade cotton crochet.
14 x 50 x 67 cm
Collection of the artist
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
Carrara marble lions and bases, Azores crocheted lace.
(2x) 200 x 65 x 110 cm
2014 Time Machine, Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester.
Stainless steel pans and lids, concrete.
(2x) 297 x 155 x 410 cm.
Private collection
Work produced with the support of Silampos.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Stainless steel pans and lids, concrete.
(2x) 297 x 155 x 410 cm.
Private collection
Work produced with the support of Silampos.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Bell
47 helicopter, ostrich feathers, Swarovski crystals, gold leaf,
industrial coating, dyed leather upholstery embossed with fine gold,
Arraiolos rugs, walnut wood, wood grain painting, passementerie.
300 x 274 x 1265 cm
Courtesy Haunch of Venison/Christie's, London.
Work produced in collaboration with Fundação Ricardo do Espírito Santo Silva, Lisbon.
2012 Joana Vasconcelos Versailles, Château de Versailles, Versailles, photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Trafaria
Praia is Vasconcelos's proposal for the Participation of Portugal at
the 55th International Art Exhibition - la Biennale di Venezia.
1960 motor-driven steel passenger ferry.
3010 x 750 x 1430 cm
Great Panorama of Lisbon (21st Century), 2013.
Viúva Lamego hand-painted, tin-glazed ceramic tiles on a sandwich-structured composite panel.
220 x 6000 cm
Valkyrie Azulejo, 2013
Handmade woollen crochet, fabrics, ornaments, polyester, LEDs and electric system.
Dimensions variable.
Courtesy of the artist and the Transtejo - Transportes Tejo, S.A., Lisbon
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Plastic sand moulds, stainless steel.
400 x 220 x 220 cm
Collection of the artist.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Plastic sand moulds, stainless steel.
400 x 220 x 220 cm
Collection of the artist.
photo © Joana Vasconcelos.
Wool, cotton.
346 x 367 cm
Courtesy Haunch of Venison/Christie's, London.
Work produced in collaboration with Manufactura de Tapeçarias de Portalegre.
Steingraeber & Söhne baby grand piano, piano stool, handmade cotton crochet.
100 x 150 x 206 cm
Private collection/Courtesy Haunch of Venison, London.
Handmade woollen crochet, industrial knitted fabric, fabrics, ornaments, polyester, steel cables.
650 x 1140 x 1360 cm
Kalfayan Galleries, Athens
2012 Joana Vasconcelos Versailles, Château de Versailles, Versailles.
Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro faience painted with ceramic glaze, Azores crocheted lace.
180 x 80 x 135 cm
Private collection, Lisbon.
2013 Joana Vasconcelos, Palácio Nacional da Ajuda, Lisbon.
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