CLARE GEE is highly impressed by this joint show at the Loft

'Maeshowe' , embroidered work by Jean Malone

I HAVE long admired and enjoyed the work of Morag Tweedie and Carol Dunbar. It has been a while since I have seen work by either artist and so when the preview card arrived for Overlap I was delighted, and optimistic of a good exhibition. Not knowing the work of Jean Malone I was particularly keen to get along to the Loft Gallery and see something new (for me) and enjoy what was bound to be a quality experience.

At a packed preview it was difficult to see the work and immerse myself in it, and I knew immediately that the pieces would warrant a second visit, when I could spend some serious time alone with the works in a more tranquil environment. The Loft never fails to delight as a venue, and this exhibition does the gallery proud. I came back a week later and it was well worth it. No beating about the bush – this exhibition is a stunner.

All three artists have shown work of the highest quality. There is a general sense throughout the exhibition of age, history and memory, with time passing slowly, leaving important remnants and layers of stains behind it. Stitch and pattern also thread their way through the show, and it is clear to any viewer that this show has been thought through very carefully by the artists as a whole, rather than a showcase for individuals. Having said that, it is well worth a moment to focus on each artist separately.

Morag Tweedie creates intimate and beautiful stories. Repeating recognisable shapes and themes in different works – in this case a glove – make us feel that they are describing our own history, and the layered media forces the viewer to look deep into the work. The crispness of stitched detail could jar with the almost blurred imagery below but it works perfectly – showing us that hazy memory comes into sharp focus at times.

I particularly love the way Morag has left the remaining threads on the surface rather than neatening up. This is not the end of the journey but an almost arbitrary halting of the aging process for us to ponder it. Pieces such as ‘Sewn in Memory’ and the series of four ‘Fragments’ are really stunning, in a quiet and selfless way.

Carol Dunbar has exhibited works which have clearly been a long time in the making. A series of four prints show the stains left behind by flowers that have been a long time pressed. I often feel that dried or pressed flowers lose too much of their beauty to make the process worth it, but these pieces take the process a stage further and re-ignite the beauty of the original flowers.

The memory of the flowers in each of the prints sits next to a botanical drawing of the plant, almost haunting them. As with Morag’s pieces, Carol’s draw the viewer into a feeling that they are our own personal history or memory – I was delighted that personal memories were drawn out of me whilst viewing the works – the simplicity of hanging on to an important episode by pressing a flower in a book.

Again, taking the notion of pressing a flower into a book that one stage further, Carol has produced a stunning limited edition book, entitled “04/04/2008″ made up of these flower memories. As a lover of artist books and multiples, I was delighted to see that a number of Carol’s exhibits were cards, books and multiples. Rarely do we see these types of work in formal exhibition, and with her edition of cards lending its name to this exhibition, it is great to see this form of visual art being given the space and respect it is due.

Jean Malone has exhibited six pieces in this show which make up three pairs of works. Using expertly achieved embroidery techniques, ‘Yarso Tomb’ and ‘Maeshowe’ again speak to us of time passing, the importance of history and human memory on the landscape, describing plans and maps of these important archaeological sites – not the usual subject matter of formal embroidery.

The embroidered text as part of Jean’s works is an exciting addition to the image. Another pair of works – “Copper shawl 1 and 2″ – again use a traditional and historical technique but give it a twist, which enables the viewer to think about the strangeness of knitting and where it came from. Here, lace shawls are created in the finest copper wire, mimicking the cobweb lace wool and techniques of Shetland. Traditional stitches are used, and the shawls are ‘blocked out’ like a freshly made shawl. The resulting works are truly beautiful.

All three artists have here created and exhibited works that are not only beautiful to the eye and exquisitely made, but draw the viewer into challenging their understanding of memory, history and tradition. Poignant, thoughtful and quietly important artworks sit perfectly alongside each other, and the whole exhibition is a delight. This particular viewer would not hesitate to highly recommend a visit.

© Clare Gee, 2009

Links

• Loft Gallery