Reception: 6pm Tuesday, 31 July 2018

Combining two quite different art practices, Helen Braund and Jessica Herrington have created new works for The Colour and the Shape. Focusing on their their aesthetic interests they combine abstract elements of light, colour and shape, as well as a sense of playfulness and of tactility. Together, they work with an emphasis on exploring and expressing the material qualities of the work and moving between abstraction and representation.

Helen works primarily in photography, creating scenes for the camera by constructing, altering, and engaging with elements of the photographic environment. The work for this exhibition is an investigation into materiality and includes the fabrication of sculptural works which will be displayed in the gallery space. This focus on first developing sculptural objects is an experiment with inverting her usual working method, where objects are props for a photographic concept. As the work continues to be developed post exhibition, these sculptures will go on to form the basis for a photographic series, moving the objects into the photographic space and generating an environment and response around them.

Jessica works in sculpture and installation, and has a background in visual neuroscience. Jessica has created new neon works for this exhibition, marking a turning point in her practice. Here, she is experimenting with the different quality and colour of light afforded by neon, whilst continuing to create work in her characteristic ‘lumpy’ aesthetic. This work marks the playful beginnings of experimenting with lighting in regards to visual perception. Further iterations of this work will experiment with interactivity between the audience and the lighting.