Tag Archives: Stolenspace

London: Sandra Chevrier – Les Cages: We Can’t Be Tamed

June 22, 2018 butterfly

StolenSpace Gallery is currently showcasing the latest body of work by Canadian born artist, Sandra Chevrier, as she makes her long awaited return to the UK. Evocatively titled ‘Les Cages; We Can’t Be Tamed’, the exhibition features a fresh series of Chevrier’s iconic ‘Cage Paintings’ – juxtaposing feminine subjects with comic book iconography in order to explore concepts of social expectation via the female gaze.

”A man can believe until his last breath that he is different from a Caged animal in a Zoo. But through all his life until his death; he will be living in a prison without walls and will still believe he is free when in fact, everyday he will be shackled, whipped, and exist in captivity. We are all slaves of something, of someone, of an idea.”

“The Cages series as been revolving around submission, oppression, unfreedom, confinement and imprisonment. Cages are Cages, whether they were build with steel or from the fabric of the mind. We cannot be free outside the Cage unless we are able to experience the freedom within it. The freedom is inside us. Freedom within a Cage. I have a dream. A dream that freedom is not just an idea or a word. Only; I am not sure what it is… Not yet.”

By applying the comic book trope of the masked figure, Sandra Chevrier conceals the identity of her subjects, rendering them as simultaneously heroic, yet restricted.
Obscured by scenes of hostility and struggle, they peer from the canvas, challenging the viewer to look beyond their own preconceived notions of femininity. Often the artist applies scenes of heroic downfall to her collages – images that display the vulnerability of their super-powered subjects and remind us of their limitations. Sandra Chevrier’s intention is to make clear the often impossibly high standards that society holds women to.

Sandra Chevrier
Les Cages: We can’t be tamed
Until 1 July 2018

StolenSpace Gallery
London

London

London: Evoca1 ‘Caroline and the world on a stage’

March 10, 2018 butterfly

Dominican born street artist, Evoca1 (Elio Mercado) is currently presenting his first solo show in London at Stolenspace. ‘Caroline, and The World on a Stage’ explores the many conditions of human existence and the various misuses of power between people through the lens of a young fictional girl.

Growing up in challenging social and economic conditions in the Dominican Republic, Evoca1 is acutely aware of these difficulties that arise through social division, as well as the power that art has to alleviate such adversity. Despite not attending art school due to his family’s financial situation, Evoca1 learned and developed his style as a n autodidact.

Multidisciplinary artist, Evoca1 is showcasing his most comprehensive body of work, from graphite drawings oil paintings, wooden sculptures and videos. He magically combines the childhood innocence and dreams looking at a circus with the darkness of abuse of power by society.

Specifically about this show, Evoca1 has stated: “The oil paintings, drawings, sculptures and video performance in this show, serve as metaphors for our primitive world – a world which can sometimes resemble a ‘circus’. Through the eyes of a child, the puppet masters of our society are put on display and tried for their misuse of power and the calamity they create amongst us. The work mirrors our divided world in which people roll over all obstacles in their path in an attempt to gain popularity and experience “happiness” which is solely gained through the praise of others.”

View the full set of pics here

EVOCA1 – Caroline & the Wolrd on a stage
Until 8 April 2018
StolenSpace Gallery
17 Osborn Street
London E1 6TD

London, Shows

London: Alexander Chappell – Nobody

November 17, 2017 butterfly

London based artist Alexander Chappell debuted his solo show entitled ‘Nobody‘ at StolenSpace, exploring the path of anonymity in a society obsessed with being ‘somebody’.

Featuring 12 graphite portraits of graffiti writers: Astek, Bonzai, Chu, Conor Harrington, D*Face, Eine, Inkie, Insa, Joe Holbrook, Tizer and Xenz. Contrary to today’s obsession with fame, the depicted artists have led their artistic career through anonymity, using an alias and not showing their faces.

After photographing them, Alexander Chappell painstakingly recreated the portraits in fine detail using graphite and white marker. The depicted writers added their tagged signature in red on the framed portraits.
The show also features a self portrait of the artist, with a collaboration with Conor Harrington.

Alexander Chappell – Nobody
Until 19 November 2017
StolenSpace
17 Osborn Street,
London UK E1 6TD

London, Shows

London: Herakut – ‘Sad but Happy’ Solo Show

September 6, 2017 butterfly

After five years travelling and painting throughout the world , the German duo Herakut is returning to London for a new solo exhibition at Stolenspace entitled ‘Sad but Happy’.

Hera and Akut first came to London in 2010 when they painted their enigmatic character on the walls of the Moniker Art Fair, followed by a solo show in 2012.

Herakut at the Moniker Art Fair in 2010

The public discovered the magical energetic duo with their spraycans with Hera starting the figurative outlines and setting the rhythm like she’s dancing graciously while Akut focusses on photorealistic feature details like the eyes, conveying a myriad of emotions.

Additionally, the incorporation of poignant messages in their works creates a sense of wonder when observing their art. Specifically, their words take you into what seems to be the childlike, pure essence behind Herakut while delivering a punch to the imagery they provide.

What’s more, the recurrent theme of both animal imagery and hildren subjects transport us back to our childhood where innocent imaginary friends were an embraced accompaniment to our creative minds.

On the title for the show ‘Sad But Happy’, the duo stated; ‘It fits every single piece, we think, and fits our style in general. Ambivalence. Schizophrenia even. That’s us. That’s the essence of Herakut.’

This series of new works sees the duo progress with their distinctive and dark style. Depicting children and animals with large emotive eyes, they draw the viewer in to their mysteriously eerie world, making them contemplate the statements scribbled across the canvas and their relationship with the characters in the works.

Their dark use of colour contrasts with the bright and fast use of movement and brush work. Their style welcomes a kind of imperfect perfection, the brushstrokes seeming erratic and fluid but also so beautifully placed.

Their joint creative art process is about storytelling, the creation of imaginary worlds and inspiring their figures with individual characters:

The message on a canvas where two little girls with kitty masks hidden in a cardboard box says ‘She said lets go back to when all was perfect’, while a portrait of a thoughtful little girl mentions ‘ Stop destroying my city says the dragon’.

View the set of pics here

Herakut – Sad but Happy
Stolenspace Gallery
Until 1 October 2017
17 Osborn Street, London UK E1 6TD

London, Shows, Uncategorized

London: D*Face Misprints & Misfits @ StolenSpace

April 29, 2016 butterfly

D*Face - Misprints and Misfits

StolenSpace Gallery is hosting an exhibition called ‘Misprints & Misfits’, featuring a series of one off paper pieces by D*Face, from the deepest depths of D*Face’s print archives.

From the iconic ‘Dog Save the Queen’ to ‘Samo Butterfly effect’ and glittery ‘A Hole’, it’s a rare occasion to view unseen paper pieces, one offs, proofs, misprints and editions never before released. Hurry as the exhibition finishes on 1 May .

D*Face - Misprints and Misfits