Inchmore Gallery, Inverness, until 5October 2008

The Order of Things - courtesy of the artist, Matt Sillars

INCHMORE Gallery’s current exhibition includes new work by Gayle Robinson and Malcolm McCoig in the downstairs galleries, together with a mixed showcase of ceramics, glass, paintings, sculpture and original prints. Upstairs in Inchmore’s more experimental space, independent photography is celebrated with work by Caroline Dear, Peter Fenton, Anne Thomson, Eileen Fitzpatrick, Matt Sillars and Martin Elder.

The “Scottish Photographers (northern cell)” exhibition is an exciting development as it embraces the craft of photography in a loose affiliation of Highland-based artists, linked to the Scottish Photographers network. Meeting primarily to discuss work critically in a professional context, it is an absolute joy to see this work being presented.

Whilst the aim of the group is to foster creative development and innovation rather than publicly exhibit, I am delighted to see the art form made visible in this way. Photography lacks recognition in the UK as a Fine Art and it is inspiring to see the range of work being produced by Scottish and Highland-based artists.

Emphasis is very much on interpretation rather than a documentary or snapshot approach to the medium. In a digital age it is particularly refreshing and inspirational to see the ethos of the group visually manifest. “The original excitement and innocence of this most democratic of media” is alive and well.

Artists working in other mediums would benefit equally from an approach which tests the limits of their craft and allows work to evolve in a spirit of mutual recognition. This is based ultimately on the craft itself rather than ego, fashion or celebrity. I thoroughly enjoyed this show and hope it will be one of many that the group might share with the public. It is always a pleasure to see work driven by individual creative process and fully engaged with every element of image making.

Caroline Dear’s triptych ‘Polytunnel Drawing 1,2,3′ is a tremendously subtle piece of abstract composition that is both painterly and sculptural. There is a rhythm of filtered light connecting each panel akin to the artist’s use of natural materials such as grass, peat, rush and heather. The landscape, inner and outer, is invoked by her use of light, transforming the two dimensional surface into what feels like animated sculptural relief. Low dappled tones of grey and beige are interlaced with the appearance of scored and incised organic forms. The whole work is fluid, an evocation of nature achieved through a solid understanding of composition, light and tone.

Peter Fenton’s work engages with natural material, paring down the image in beautifully simple and balanced compositions of black and white. A pair of studies of twigs and plant material has the elegance of Eastern calligraphy and the presence of a drawing made by a human hand. Marks emerge from a pure white ground as a sign of “impermanence”. A number of the artist’s finely crafted books are also on display, among them A Matter of Life…, a sequence of black and white images of growing ferns, their structured rows of markers like graves. The scale of the work is personal but also monumental, a meditation on life and death that is deeply poignant, transforming an image of the everyday into a very human meditation.

Eileen Fitzpatrick’s images of Dr Arthur Bates, a former consultant physician and puppet maker now in his 80’s, are a fascinating series of images. Fitzpatrick’s display of photographs contains an interesting sequence presented in small album form which focuses on the puppets and their maker. Close ups of the doll-like faces read like effigies of age. There is an element of the grotesque in this work which is compelling and strangely beautiful.

The close up of a tiny papier-mâché hand being held by a human creator or a group of female puppets frozen in conversation present the viewer with contemplative images with which we can identify. We can see our own frailty and vulnerability in them. Many of these images would benefit from larger printing, displayed as a large scale suite or published in book form. There is a body of work here that if presented on a different scale would make a good solo exhibition.

‘The Vanity of Interruption’ by Matt Sillars presents a series of four images of the male body, two of which are printed larger than life size and take on the monumentality of landscape. The ‘Madness of Civilisation’ is on one level a superb life study, capturing the subtle contours of the torso and the point where hip meets thigh. The image is defined by positive and negative space based on an understanding of composition from the high tonal values of black and white photography.

The progression into colour is handled quietly and with sensitivity. The strong masculine hand grasps a clod of earth and grass suggesting dominion over the land. Equally the body is naked flesh and will certainly decay. This theme is also expressed in the exquisitely composed image ‘The Order of Things’. The flow of this image from one form to another is simply beautiful, the forearm and piece of turf curve into each other resting in the palm of the hand. The line of faded grass and living arm mirror each other like a meeting of life and death, creation and destruction.

Strangely the image reminded me of a musical and biblical phrase, that of Brahms’ German Requiem, “Behold for all flesh is as grass” – perhaps this association with the work was also triggered by the gallery’s converted church interior. There is an elegant flow of line and form creating a complete and powerful statement. The body is presented symbolically and the image works beautifully as an aesthetic and conceptual work.

In the downstairs gallery new work by regular Inchmore artist Gayle Robinson exhibits her characteristic blend of subtle colour and texture achieved through the multilayered collagraphic process. Her abstracted landscapes, constructed using collage technique on backing board allows layers of relief to be built up, inked and printed. This method of printmaking creates a rich and varied surface which together with the tactile quality of relief adds depth to the image.

‘Evening Harvest’ is a good example, with strata of earth built up beneath the surface landscape and high horizon line. Organic forms are illuminated by aura-like tones created by the inked surface relief. There is a sense of aerial perspective in much of Robinson’s work combined with the suggestion of landscaped horizon. Trees are simplified like the veins of a leaf invoking both microcosm and macrocosm.

Malcolm McCoig’s mixed media works such as ‘Submerged Nissen Hut’ and the wonderfully dreamy ‘Floating Nissen Hut’ are intriguing pieces. Intricate patterns of colour and texture, use of line and crosshatching are explored, evolving into more abstracted works such as ‘Four Nissen Huts’. Here the form of the subject and balance of colour in greys and greens dominate the composition rather than suggesting any kind of literal narrative.

‘Corrugation’ sees interplay between form and technique which is tactile, like a wrestling of different media. There is an exploration of materials and techniques here which requires further investigation and refinement. It will be interesting to see how this work evolves in the future.

© Georgina Coburn, 2008

Links

• Inchmore Gallery
• Scottish Photographers