Flow with it

Lucy at West London Living kindly keeps her eye out for opportunities to further the upcycling cause. Here's something she came across and sent on over to me...

To coincide with the turning of this year to the next, Flow gallery presents Transformations, an exhibition running from December through to February 2010 showcasing the work of 13 artists who are concerned with the transformation of the old into something new. The exhibition will explore the different ways artists alter existing, discarded and forgotten objects to give them greater significance, unexpected beauty and new life. I’ve chosen a few artists to highlight here along with images of their work.

Grant McCaig explores through his work the use of silver and the meanings that we attach to it. “I enjoy playing with concepts of preciousness,” he says, “combining the silver with the throwaway and the discarded to create familiar but alternative objects.”

CJ O'Neill revamps existing ceramics by adding new patterns and cutting away geometric forms from them. Rejuvenating discarded objects with new features allows the story of these objects to be continued.

Barbara Massey and Helen Rogers are concerned with the need to consider our environmental impact. They imaginatively integrate recycling into their contemporary design practice by weaving with discarded materials. Old army maps were used in the fabric of the tea towels shown here.

Maria Militsi is interested in the power of absence that makes us look, the dimension of the lack and the space left by a missing object. In an attempt to absorb what already exists rather than adding to the world, Maria collects objects that have suffered a loss; the loss of their owner or the loss of their function. This triggers a desire within her to complete them, to reassess their function and to fill their empty space with precious metals.

• Flow Gallery
• 1-5 Needham Road
• London W11 2RP
  
• 020 7243 0782
• www.flowgallery.co.uk