A blog post by Stephen Worrall
No doubt many of us have been rummaging through the garden shed, sorting out recycling or clearing the wood pile during the lock down. I have been attempting to see the ordinary, everyday things you find in a garden in a different way, with an artist’s appreciation of possibilities!
There are possibilities in many objects we take for granted. Seen out of context, or simply presented in a different light, items found in your garden, garage or shed can be a source of artistic exploration. To paraphrase, art is in the eye of the beholder.
I realised I had a rather large heap of used wire netting hiding behind my wood store. I had never really noticed it, so rarely did I push my way around the netting mountain! I have used chicken wire netting before as a sculptural medium, forming hanging pods and tubular forms for an earlier Sculpture Trail. So my eye was caught by a squared netting roll I had used to protect some young fruit trees. I like a quick result. So how to use this netting simply, in an abstract sense, in contrast to it’s functionality? So with a nod to the typical protective boxes of netting placed around a young tree, I have simply tilted and balanced the forms, changing their function. Netting is ephemeral, it can disappear completely, or stand out in contrast when light at night.
Another functional item I discovered, again, it has been in full view in my garage for years, but went un-noticed. A lovely zinc drain pipe, a spare left over from a roofing project years ago. I think I have always admired the pipe, it’s smooth perfectly formed shape, the unusual material; it has been subconsciously catalogued for a higher purpose. To me it must stand alone, unashamedly straight and perfect. Its presence heightened when seen in relation to a natural form. Pure simplicity.
The pandemic has forced us to reassess how we live, to see life from a new perspective; why not also creatively reassess our environment and see everyday objects from a new artistic perspective…art is in the eye of the beholder!