Studio Iron, the concept store and gallery led by Isamaya Ffrench, operates in the spaces where the boundaries between art and design become hazy, curating a programme that puts a focus on objects and materiality at its core.
The Severe Mercy exhibition by British-American artist, photographer and director Robin Hunter-Blake, whose work spans multiple mediums, is a natural choice for Ffrench, who placed the works in a considered context in the space.
‘Robin’s work felt like a really interesting starting point because there’s something very emotional and visceral about it, but also a sensitivity to material, form and the body,’ Ffrench says. ‘I chose pieces from the Studio Iron roster that could respond to that in different ways, whether through material, tension, humour or sensuality. I wanted the whole thing to feel like a world rather than an exhibition of separate disciplines.’
For Hunter-Blake, who unites photography, kinetic installations and screen printing here, the exhibition presented a chance to bring ideas to life he had been mulling over for years. ‘The works explore emotion, time, and their relationship, with the aim of allowing the viewer to experience the work rather than analyse it,’ he says. ‘Their abstract nature and scale are intended to provoke questions, inviting the viewer into a process of interpretation. This is where the emotional, almost Rorschach-like quality of the work comes into effect, allowing each person to bring their own experiences, associations, and feelings to what they see.’
The works play on scale, material and proportion, cutting often ambiguous forms which invite the viewer to craft their own interpretations. ‘People tend to spend time with the aluminium works, studying them and allowing themselves to sit with what they evoke,’ Hunter-Blake adds. ‘I wanted to extend this experience across the exhibition, moving beyond observation into something more immersive. The screen prints explore a sense of emptiness, and the feeling of being hollow while continuing to exist, function, and move forward within the world. The installation aims to trigger feelings of overwhelm, love, tension, and impulsive expression.’
This is exactly the point, says Ffrench. ‘That’s a big part of what I want Studio Iron to explore. I want people to experience these things in a more instinctive way, to sit with them, touch them, live around them and form their own relationships with them. Hopefully you leave “Severe Mercy” thinking less about what category something belongs to and more about how it makes you feel.’
Robin Hunter-Blake: Severe Mercy, presented by Studio Iron at The Painting Rooms, Covent Garden, until 27 October