Okay, a couple of months ago I said that the 154 Collective exhibition had been the highlight of their exhibition calendar. Well, Sculpture And Sport equals that in what a wonderfully curated showcase of bronze sculptures celebrating London 2012.
Bringing together some of Britain’s most established and up and coming artists; this exhibition of individual sporting disciplines is drawn from Art At The Edge‘s two year programme to source and exhibit outstanding and unusual artworks celebrating the London Olympic and Paralympic Games 2012. It featuring works by Pete Sherrard; Suzie Zamit and Sophie Dickens. The artists were chosen to reflect a cross-section of the best in contemporary British Sculpture.
‘Blade Runner’
http://www.johnbuckleysculptor.co.uk
My favourites in the show were definitely John Buckly’s Blade Runner. John has been involved with land mine victims for 20 years now. He says that ‘Blade-runner captures the elegance of human movement at speed, contrasted with the crippling devastation that land mines inflict on their victims’.
The juxtaposition of this sculpture with John Ord’s photographic portrait of Jason Gardener, Gold Medalist, 2004 Athens Olympics, 4x100m Replay, help both the flow of the display but also of the lines in the sculpture.
Other favourite’s included Pete Sherrard’s bronze Wheelchair Athletics which reminded me of Henry Moore’s use of shape and Terence Coventry’s Pole Vault, whose profile is not disimilar to Dali’s bronze sculpture Persistance of Memory.
It’s unfortunate that John Ord’s work hasn’t been mentioned in any of the publicity surrounding this show, as the exhibition is all the better for it; and photography is notorious for drawing crowds. The bronze work and the photography compliment each other totally and it is obvious that a lot of though has gone into the placement of each work on display. There is a lot to look at and despite the incredible amount of work on display it doesn’t feel cluttered.
Do you best to catch the show. it is a perfect way to celebrate what was a wonderful summer and an event better games.
The exhibition runs until Saturday 27th October and is free admission.
http://www.barnsleylive.co.uk/
http://www.johnordphotography.co.uk
Alternative Barnsley 