#gallerycuration

[thejazziebella]

How many different faces and creatures can you find?... by my talented friend #azariascastillo #upcomingartist #projectintheworks #thehouseoftheperfect #gallerycuration

[newslangproductions]

EXHIBITION: CHANGING STATE BY THE LONELY LONDONERS

Words by Sheena  www.sheuppity.com

Last night welcomed the second installation of the Lonely Londoners expertly curated exhibition

Changing States. It was an amalgamation of illustration by Croydon Nitty, typographic posters by Cecile Emeke, and photographs by Bekke Popoola, juxtaposed with live performances in the form of monologues, taken from the new coming of age play Changing State by the playwright Tian Glasgow.

At once, both a small theatre production and art exhibition, Changing States did not disappoint. True to it’s name, one moment you were standing there talking to other attendees, writing on walls, and viewing the artwork, then all of a sudden, out of nowhere, someone would start reciting a monologue in the middle of the room. The music would go off and the room would gradually go silent, the spectators listening, waiting, and watching until the next monologue started in another part of the room. And then another, and then another, forcing your mind and body to constantly shift, participating unknowingly in the performance.

What I loved most about the Lonely Londoners exhibition, is the way it was reminiscent of some of my most favourite neo-expressionist and contemporary artists such as Jean-Michel Basquiat, Barbara Kruger, John Baldessari, Jenny Holzer and Paula Scher. Artists who all create(d) work that visually expressed their thoughts and feelings on the human condition, society and their personal philosophies.

The Lonely Londoners exhibitions are curated within urban spaces, in a way that feels carefully thought out but free with a strong cut and paste vibe. There is none of the staleness of white walls or abundance of empty space characteristic of art exhibitions held in major galleries. Nothing was framed, most pieces felt almost randomly placed, and viewers are encouraged to interact with spaces which were deemed “empty”, and encouraged to make their own artworks. In the end both viewer, artist and artwork within the gallery became a live performance, by the end of the night the space was completely transformed.

The Lonely Londoners was curated by Pelin, Kareem and Rianna.