Last Friday was the opening of the latest show, Sketches of Time, at Knight Webb Gallery.
Chris Berry was in there and jotted down some thoughts…
Knight Webb Gallery’s latest exhibition celebrates the moments and conditions in which art is created. And given it’s such a happy collision of artists at this particular point in time, Brixtonites reading this shouldn’t hang about – here comes further proof that the exhibitions at this young and purposeful gallery are going from strength to strength.
Entering the gallery on Atlantic Road you’ll first be greeted by Vivien Zhang’s Shatter. Born in Beijing, and having done her fair share of globetrotting in her time, Vivien Zhang is an artist pondering personal and national identity. Through painting, her aim is to reclaim her sense of Chinese heritage and she achieves this through exploration of cultural relics and forms from her homeland.
Cloud-like stone pillars, and bronze wine vessels are just some of the artefacts that find their way onto her canvas. Vivien admits that she approached this work “with a more organic approach, as opposed to previous work which has been more schematic and restrained in its orderliness”. This piece is very much about her “simply exploring the space” in front of her, so it’s interesting that it seems to hint at some kind of visual path, or perhaps even a map of some sort.
Your eye then falls onto Karen Silve’s work. An Oregonian with a penchant for southern France, she concerns herself with her experiences of nature and bustling human environments; her process begins with a specific concept from these everyday impressions. She meditates on these moments, thinks them through, and only then begins to give them form. This is clearly seen in Market XXXII, in which she documents all the immediacy of what she witnesses in the world around her, layer by layer. Don’t miss the accompanying Sacred Place V on the wall opposite, which reaches a similar kind of crescendo, albeit in a different way. No doubt from a very different kind of experience.
Up next is Mark Russell’s Bison Grazing, which is nicely juxtaposed with Anders Knutsson’s minimalist, monochrome works. Russell prefers not to be confined to a particular style or genre – first and foremost he’s interested in tracing the drama of movement. Be it of animals or emotions, activity and disturbance “dictate the direction of the painting”. What comes across most of all is his joy in expressive brushstrokes.
To the right of this sits Knutsson’s contribution, which extols the moment in which the energy from the materials he uses is transformed into an image. His technique is unique, in that he mixes waxes, varnishes and oils in various combinations, which in turn lets him adjust the viscosity and transparency of his work. Given his background in engineering, it’s fascinating to see an artist innovating in this way, in almost creating his very own medium of expression. None of his monochrome surfaces are exactly alike, and come across almost as a collection of different fingerprints.
Knutsson’s work also acts as a calm interval, before bringing us round to Rufus Knight Webb’s own work. Afternoon Painting II and Prawn King are part of his series of Action Paintings, with his tumultuous, stirring strokes capturing the swell of the sea. Rufus explains the pieces were also preceded by meditation, before the both of which were realised in just a couple of hours each. They closely echo the Atlantic, with a warm undercurrent, so you never feel too far from SW9 when looking at them.
Brixton local Lesley Hilling’s Tower is also present, having made an appearance at the gallery’s previous show, and has scooted over from its position in front of the gallery window. What made the opening of the exhibition last week all the more special was the presence of Vivien, Lesley and an eclectic assortment of friendly locals milling about the space. Rufus enthuses about the number of “artists and eccentrics who call in every day”, all the while “proving that Brixton deserves its rebellious reputation as London’s most creative subculture.”
Rufus suggests that Brixton “needs at least two, if not three more galleries” – so are you listening Brixtonites? It’s fair to say, for any current or future gallery owners out there reading this, the bar has been set high for the summer ahead.
Knight Webb Gallery can be found at: 54 Atlantic Road, Brixton, SW9 8PZ – and here’s their Tumblr for your enjoyment.
