Lawson Oyekan, Contiguous Conduit Usual Cocoon, 80 x 40 x 40 cm[Twin Form]
We Evolve "Good"
My art explores the physical drama of nature's complexity, the rhythms of the evolution of my own consciousness and the extraordinary challenge to open a platform of dialogue with the diverse identities that make modern Britain. It is not a simple synthesis of these inspirations but an authentic pursuit of the wisdom that lies within the dynamic equilibrium as well as the contradictions in all of them. Like the live Magma that lay in the crust of the earth, erupting to become granite, sand and clay, sculpting in interaction with the broader environment and context. The anthills of the Savannah of the Nigeria of my childhood capture the nuances as well as the polyrhythmic process that which has evolved in my artistic expression. My work is a unique expression of my humanity unbowed, uncompromised in pursuit of excellence, the coming together of the exposure in my parents’ home from the 60s to the shifting nationalities of refugees, the Rhodesians, South Africans, the Ghanaians 70s, and Ethiopians amongst others in Ibadan.
Oyekan, London 2009
Lawson's work is fundamentally about life. He manipulates the very substance of creation (clay), the mythical material all life forms are made out of, and presents it anew. The structures are such as to confound the viewer. The confusion is delivered through the scale and depth of the work. It is worth focusing on this particular piece on show as a route to understanding the meaning behind his works.
This piece is made up of three monoliths placed in a single line. This simple fact is worth noting, the Number Three, the pledge of three, needs to be expanded upon at this point. Three is the number of life, the past, the present, and the future. It represents the three stages in life, childhood, adulthood, and Old Age. Or for more drama it represents birth, life, and death. We are aware of the three Fates in Greek and Roman mythology, and the structure of the Trinity within Christianity. In philosophy Hegel presented the thesis, antithesis, and synthesis. Within Judaism there are three patriarchs, and prayers' are said three times a day, and ablution before prayer within Islam is repeated thrice.
Now it is possible to simply focus on the Number three without addressing the very presence of the sculptural pieces in front of you. The bodies, and they are bodies, in front of you are slightly larger than human size. They lord over their viewers, forcing an assessment of the self. In front of an inanimate object capable of inhalation and exhalation, it is possible to make honest judgements about one's own relationship to the world. As Lawson says, these are healing beings, and healing only comes about through scrutiny and the deliberate application of a remedy. Sometimes the scrutiny can only come about through confrontation, and these monoliths do exactly that, they confront.
There are no simple answers to the questions that arise when in dialogue with Lawson's work, and this is what is supposed to happen in the presence of experiences outside our immediate understanding. If art is supposed to do anything, it is supposed to help us understand all world, and that can only be done when we are taken outside ourselves and encounter the new. Physics Being Healing Physics helps us do this.
© R. Gbadamosi 2007
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Artists/Organisatons
Data Wall:
AESD: Agency for Economy and Space Development:
Maziar Afrassiabi, Shahin Afrassiabi,
Sam Basu, John Colenbrander,
with thanks to Julian Meinold and
Piers O'Hanlon
NIS: New International School: Matthew Stock
Treignac Projet: Sam Basu,
Elizabeth Murray.
The Real:
Phyllida Barlow, Tom Burr,
Anne Damer, Karin Ruggaber,
Audrey Reynolds, Fergal Stapleton,
Brian Wall, Martin Westwood.
Oysters Ain't:
Karen Ay, Vanya Balogh,
Fiona Banner, Richard Bartle,
David Batchelor, Rob Beckett,
Simon Bill, Hartmut Bohm,
Jake & Dinos Chapman,
Cedric Christie, Steve Claydon,
Clem Crosby, Cullinan+Richards,
Penelope Curtis, Arnaud Desjardin,
Valerie Driscoll, Richard Ducker,
Garth Evans, Urs Fischer,
FREEE ( Dave Beech, Andy Hewitt &
Mel Jordan), John Gibbons,
Tom Gidley, Paul Gildea,
Katherine Gili, Andrea Giulivi,
Stewart Gough, Naum Gabo,
Robin Greenwood, Brian Griffiths,
Zoe Griffiths, Nicola Hicks,
Peter Hide, Flore Nove-Josserand,
Helene Kazan, Michael Kidner,
Philip King, Simon Liddiment,
Ed Lipski, Colin Lowe,
Sarah Lucas, Christina Mackie,
Rebecca Johnson Marshall,
Bruce McLean, Haroon Mirza,
Cathy de Monchaux, Henry Moore,
Zadoc Nava, Paul Neagu,
Lawson Oyekan, Eduardo Paolozzi
, Nicholas Pope, Richard Priestley,
Michael Sandle, Paul Sakoilsky,
Celia Scott, Dallas Seitz,
Meg Shirayama, Jane Simpson,
Anthony Smart, Bob & Roberta Smith,
Richard Smith, Steve Smith,
Sarah Staton, Dan Stevens,
Simon Stringer, Michael Stubbs,
Gavin Turk, Jessica Voorsanger,
Gary Webb, Richard Wentworth,
Keith Wilson, Mark Woods,
Richard Woods, Lars Wolter,
Christian Wulffen.
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LOCATION:
Almond Building,
The Biscuit Factory,
Drummond Road,
Bermondsey,
London
SE16 4DG.
[Map]
NEAREST STATION:
Bermondsey
OPENING HOURS:
26 April - 31 May
Wed - Sun 12 - 6 pm
FREE ADMISSION
CONTACT
Adam Thomas
Tara Cranswick
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