'Advance' / 'self help'

Sanderson Gallery will present two exhibitions from 4th-23rd August. The main gallery will host 'Advance' from Ray Haydon while our courtyard space will house 'self help' from Josephine Cachemaille.

Ray Haydon - Advance

Ray Haydon responds intuitively to space, creating works of refinement and precision. His pieces retain a lyricism and freedom of line that belie the emphasis on technical process and exactitude which go into their making.

Haydon creates his forms by imagining the broad approach he wishes to take, then mapping the works in 3 dimensions. For larger kinetic pieces he produces maquettes, however, he does not make sketches or expend excessive time planning his works in general. Instead, the process is a playful and experimental – forms are arranged, dismantled and remade in an improvisational manner. In this way, some works are retained, while others are simply returned to the materials pile.

In contrast to Haydon’s intuitive and spontaneous approach to creating visual forms, he devotes much time and energy investigating the engineering required to make his pieces successful. The artist has borrowed fabrication technologies from a vast array of sources, including boat building, jewellery design, model making and fine furniture construction. In some cases he has invented and built machinery and equipment to allow him to create pieces in his preferred material. The importance of this approach cannot be overstated: it is Haydon’s willingness to find answers to any technical problem that has resulted in the range of unique processes that the artist now has at his disposal.

Haydon’s sculptures operate on a number of aesthetic and physical levels resulting in multiple vantage points. They appear lithe and supple, enlivening space, rather than overwhelming it. The scale of the works has increased over the past 5 years moving from 40cm bronze to 5 metre steel sculptures. The larger proportions mean the reach of the work is increased and as such encompasses a larger viewing area. However the physical bulk of the works has not increased – pieces remain light and airy, reflecting the artist’s desire to trace lines, rather than stamp out monuments. 

Josephine Cachemaille - self help

Exploring the minute and detailed paintings of Josephine Cachemaille subtly draws the viewer into a reflection on the way in which ideas of the ‘self’ and personal psychology shape our place in the collective of humanity. Her images describe the tension between universal values and the specific, personal or trivial.

Cachemaille works on an intimate scale, encouraging the viewer to physically engage with the work by peering closely at it. They appear as through a keyhole where we feel we can see only a portion of what is contained within the allotted space of the frame. Pieces operate separately as individual works, but also function as a ‘collective’ installation of images. This can be viewed metaphorically as a reference to the operation of individuals within the larger sweep of human society.

self help deals with anxiety and the phenomenon of the "worried well" a term used to describe the a state of hyper-vigilence and fear that can exist when there are no actual or real dangers present. While works appear realistic, an element of abstraction usually creeps in to create a sense of unease, where “the familiar and domestic rub up against the ominous and catastrophic”.