Babel, Blackall Studios, East London
Babel is an exhibition of the work of eight young designers around the theme of the Tower of Babel through the media of sculpture, photography, jewellery, drawing, installation, film making and music.
The designers featured come from Japan, Lithuania and the U.K. The concept uses the Biblical story as a metaphor for today’s world where overload of the senses from information technology and misunderstandings of language threatens to lead us into a virtual Tower of Babel – an incredible palace of pleasure that stops us from looking at life around us in all its simplest forms.
Margaret Moore displayed a composed photograph of a sculptural installation created this summer made up of mobile phone components collected from a recycling centre. Margaret also showed a digital print version on habotai silk.
Mobile Babel 2009, Margaret Moore; Untitled 2009, Ernest Zacharevic
Ernest Zacharevic, a Lithuanian artist, uses simple cotton napkins to create images using nicotine smoke and carbon. Ernest has created a body of work drawing in nicotine and painting in smoke. Chris Dunseath’s Star Tower is made of mulberry paper and its various sections reference religious iconography.
Star Tower, Chris Dunseath; Jewellery, Midori Ikeda; Rebecca Lucraft
Middlesex University graduate Midori Ikeda has designed a series of modular jewellery pieces in copper and fabric that can be assembled to create your own individual item. Each ‘brick’ represents a symbol, so you can create your own ‘words’ in jewellery.
RCA graduate Rebecca Lucraft likes ‘exploring theatrical and atmospheric installations that capture fantastical and mystical worlds, creating a sense of escapism.’ Her animal pieces made of wood and sequins etc were arranged in groups along a white wall of the gallery.
Fellow RCA graduate Hannah Warren brought Burnt Norton, a series of drawings inspired by the T.S Eliot poem Burnt Norton, in which the poet discusses the inadequacy of words and language to describe emotions.
Burnt Norton, Hannah Warren; Balal, Masaaki Kato
Masaaki Kato graduated in Fine Art from Middlesex University this year and has created Balal – a light installation composed of a cluster of tiny white cubes hanging in space.
Soar, Yosuke Hashimoto; Babel
Finally, Yosuke Hashimoto’s photograph series Soar in black and white explore the drama of manmade towers and pinnacles.
Babel continues until October 22 at Blackall Studios, East London
Babel
Margaret Moore
Ernest Zacharevic
Chris Dunseath
rebecca.lucraft@network.rca.ac.uk
Hannah Warren
Masaaki Kato
Yosuke Hashimoto
