(l to r) Michael Delacruz, Janne Malmros and Masako Suzuki
Ten artists’ work is showcased in the latest exhibition, Fabric, at Glyndŵr University’s Oriel Sycharth Gallery.
The show focuses on the theme of Fabric in the material form and as a concept for daily life and thoughts.
Artists from the UK, Denmark, the USA, Japan and Afghanistan are all represented.
Two pieces of work by an American artist Michael Delacruz feature in the show, both exploring the idea of fabric as a signifier for military decorations, where certain strips of coloured fabric indicate levels of rank and courage.
After studying history of art as an undergraduate, Michael went on to enjoy a 15-year career in the Marine Corps before returning to study and becoming a professional artist.
“I’m an American, so I have an affinity for New York abstract expressionism from the mid C20th,” said Michael. “I feel I’ve inherited some of that feel into my work. I’m more concerned though with the social and individual cost of warfare. A lot of the geometries I implement evoke military inconography.”
The show’s curator, Janne Malmros, a graduate of St Martin’s and Slade School of Art, said she hoped that showing work by Kabul-based artists would reveal a positive side to Afghanistan.
Janne said: “Often people just see the really bad things about Afghanistan. There are about four million people living in Kabul and they lead normal lives.
“Many of them are artists and they make things, as this show proves. It has fantastically rich traditions for arts and crafts and the people of Kabul are very eager to have a country that’s not just associated with war and corruption.
“They have a positive outlook and want to be a better country.”
Among the other works are oil paintings by Tokyo-based Masako Suzuki and British artist Dave Ball, whose collection of images of babies eating lemons is each accompanied with a classification.
Janne added: “Dave’s abstract concept explores the idea of putting people into boxes. He explores the fabric of society and how we weave in and out.
“Fabric for him has two meanings – what clothes you wear and what part of society you belong to.”
The remaining artists featured in the show are Arif Bahaduri (Afghanistan); Jordan Baseman (USA); Mohammad Nasir Hashimi (Afghanistan); James Irwin (UK); Mike Tuck (UK) and Phoebe Unwin (UK).
“I hope that it will be an interesting exhibition and I hope that people will find stories and connections between the different works.
“I think it’s really important for an exhibition to set out to do that – works of the same colour that speak to each other about the same things.”
Fabric runs at the Oriel Sycharth Gallery at Glyndŵr University until 14 April 2014. Admission is free and the gallery is open Monday to Friday 9am to 4.30pm.
For more information visit http://www.glyndwr.ac.uk/OrielSycharthGallery
