SNAP. The Portfolio
14/Sep/2013 - 09/Nov/2013
The exhibition consist of a unique collection of twelve large-scale prints by artists Sarah Lucas, Gary Hume, Juergen Teller, Abigail Lane, Cerith Wyn Evans, Don Brown, Darren Almond, Simon Liddiment, Julian Simmons, Johnnie Shand Kydd, Russell Haswell and Mark Fuller each contributing an iconic image to a boxed set published, in an edition of 50 signed and numbered digital inkjet prints, by Paul Stolper gallery to which we would like to express our gratitude.
‘SNAP – THE PORTFOLIO’ has been coordinated by contributing artist and Suffolk resident Abigail Lane. She explains, ‘It has become clear that a lot of interesting artists have rekindled links to this area in the last few years – it’s quite extraordinary. The reasons for this are not clear-cut but obviously something is occurring…as a result SNAP was initiated.’ All the artists share a connection with East Anglia, either as their home, their place of work or their place of origin coordinate.
Though each of the twelve images is specific to the contributors’ unique artistic practice, quite organically, elements of the portfolio gravitate thematically towards the relationship between the body and landscape – often the natural poetic force of the environs paired with the artist’s interaction within it. The portfolio also utilizes text and photographic imagery in an unconventional mapping of the quirky, rural character of the secluded region. However, the work is not necessarily stringently defined by the geography that unites the artists. ‘SNAP – THE PORTFOLIO’ is a testament to the region’s creative magnetism, and each image is a marker for how each artist has responded to such a distinctive landscape.
The format of ‘SNAP – THE PORTFOLIO’ is unusual in its scale, use of materials and subsequent display. Presented in an archival box, each print must be unfolded to reveal a sweeping, oversized print measuring 152.4cm x 101.6cm – figures and text are monumental and landscape all encompassing. To realise the large scale of each work, the images were printed on coated MG blue-backed paper, a paper prosaically associated with commercial media. A very uncompromising medium, the nature, texture and scale of the paper appealed to the artists who strive for the most appropriate and direct manner to show their work. An unusual choice for fine art print, the paper is more commonly pasted to walls and billboards for the use of advertising, a far cry from the poetic and complex series of images collected here. Folds and creases create a playful shadowing, indexing the associated landscape; the undulating paper resembles an unfolded map or nostalgically reminds us of cherished antique film posters. The physical act of repetitively unfolding, eventually to an overwhelming scale, builds a sense of anticipation and drama.
By the same token, the deliberate folding of a fine art print is completely at odds with conventional printmaking, where the integrity and pristine condition of the paper is paramount, jealously guarded andhas a direct bearing on a work’s value. The concept of a folded print stored in an archival box appealed to the artists as the project challenges the traditional nature of prints and printmaking.
Within the gallery space, the twelve prints from the portfolio are, true to the nature of the material itself, plastered directly to the wall. Fated to be destroyed, the profound transience of these exhibited works stands true to the conviction of the project’s expression of a specific happening. Due to the massive scale of each print, the collective display of ‘SNAP – THE PORTFOLIO’ fully envelopes the viewer within the imaginary surroundings of the region from which it has drawn its inspiration.
