Ash Fitzgerald

ASC Gallery, St Georges Circus, London

window display of book pieces and artist's statement, exhibition inside 

featuring more work  ...... open Mon-Sat 1.30pm to 5pm Mon to Sat until 4th Sept

first impressions of an exhibition I have not yet seen - this window display caught my attention but the opening hours make it difficult for me to get along this week....... 

 

It seems that these book pieces have been placed into a constructed ancient setting. I found myself wondering how these effects had been achieved - had they been buried in sand? There is an element of not understanding, of needing explanation. These books now have a form quite unlike the books I have seen. By giving the exhibition the title 'Library'  the artist could by making the assertion that a library is a storeroom full of material that is not understood and that would need to be translated for the viewer. This jars with my understanding of a library as a place of comfortable familiarity and access to knowledge.

In his statement the artist likens the books to buildings in construction 'even abandoned to be discovered again'. It is apt then that in trying to photograph the books in the window display that I also caught the reflection of the buildings opposite. For a book to be like a building we would have to suspend reality and scale, to believe in an ancient civilisation with ruined buildings and a forgotten language. What relevance do the artifacts of an ancient civilisation have for us today? Can we and do we learn from history?

I have written this based on what I have seen in the window. I have not seen the exhibition yet. The opening hours are limited and it closes on the 4th.


google 'Ash Fitzgerald' to see images of his work and click on 
www.camberwellarts.org.uk/ash-fitzgerald.html