A break from our usual here, museums and a review of an art installation at the Leper Chapel in Cambridge. We will be posting about the Leper Chapel shortly. When we landed back from our recent trip to France we were walking along Newmarket road in Cambridge on a Friday night. As we passed the Leper Chapel we were aware of some form event on. As it transpired it was the opening night of the new art installation by Debbie Lauder and Anna Salamon.
Here are the two interviews with the artists in question.
The work itself was made in the Leper Chapel with a mixture of earth and netting material. The artists attempted to integrate their work as much as possible with the building itself. The work was intended to invoke the history and culture involved with the Leper Chapel.
With the dark and bright materials in question along with the white interior of the chapel the idea of shade and differing lights was crucial. The exhibition was open during the day and the night. The contrast between the lights made for very contrasting images. On top of this with the change in light during the day, due to clouds etc. the concept felt as if it was continually shifting. By night candlelight offered some illumination but the shadows that the majority of the work resided in was enough to confound the usual senses of dimension.
Having listened to a podcast the week before on the mythologies of Avalon, one of the central pieces stood out within my mind. It seemed at first to be a flat scattering of sand / soil but as I stood above it this flat substance seemed to transmute into a more mystical and fathomless pool. The exhibition itself gave me an overall feeling of reverence and awe within a fantastic location.
I will be looking out for both artists in future and definitely looking forward to any further collaborations that occur.
