Twentieth Exhibition
“A concern for a contained image, one in which all the elements are balanced, means that my photographs are not straight documentary reflections.”
EXHIBIT presents Bibliology at Golden Lane Estate, a photography exhibition with a special bookcrossing event by British artist, Kathryn Faulkner. The exhibition extends Faulkner’s interest on reading as subject, and showcases a body of work that highlight the role of books in Golden Lane Estate. The bookcrossing event is sponsored by Penguin Books, during which new books will be crossed with books brought in by participants and released into the wilds of Golden Lane Estate.
During her residency, Faulkner has visited numerous residents and observed how they live with books. Drawn to the intimate scale of the living spaces, she has engaged in conversations about individual experiences with books. Faulkner captures moments that represent personal relationships with reading and with the book as object. Despite the fact that the flats are all architecturally similar, the occupants have customized each interior.
Concentrating on the book as object, the still lives draw attention to the collecting impulse that is evident in many homes. Whether a stack of favorite books, or books yet to be read, they speak of serious intent and a desire for self-improvement and new experience. The larger views of storage systems – bookcases, staircases – show how often books can furnish a home and reveal the owner’s history, interests and bias.
Whilst there are observations that touch upon a social/anthropological survey approach, the images play with composition, color and light in the way that a painter might. With reference to the Still Life genre, the everyday materiality of domestic spaces is reduced to an essential fragment of that space and the lives inhabiting it.
A series of color pinhole photographs of residents reading in their favorite spot are projected in the basement gallery space. The pinhole photographs move away from the almost fetishistic attachment to sharpness and differential focal planes to suggest a world apart, a different reality, where a slowed down timeframe exists and the living elements reveal their transitory nature. The projected pinhole photographs charmingly reveal the ephemeral presence of the readers in their personal space, and the inevitable passing of time alludes to the absorbing nature of reading.
Shot on medium format film and traditionally hand printed full frame, Faulkner consciously chose a methodology in keeping with Modernism’s truth to materials ethos. Reading is a democratic and universal activity. Be it for knowledge and pleasure or work, this snapshot of literary life on Golden Lane Estate proves that despite the rise of electronic publishing, the book still holds its place in the affections of the people who live there.
Bibliology at Golden Lane Estate is one of the Super Estate Projects, which celebrate the 50th anniversary of Golden Lane Estate.
26 Feb – 20 Mar 2010
