Let's Go to a Place: in Gravitas, group show curated by Christiane Monarchi for Photo50, London Art Fair 2017 and related symposium on collaboration and photography

Photo50: Gravitas, curated by Christiane Monarchi
18 – 22 January 2017

London Art Fair, Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, London N1 0QH

Featuring the work of Madison Blackwood, Bronte Cordes, Sian Davey, Sophie Green, Frances Kearney, Baptiste Lignel, Anthony Luvera, Melanie Manchot, Wendy McMurdo, Yvette Monahan, Spencer Murphy, Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert, and Abbie Trayler-Smith.

‘Gravitas’ refers to one of the core personal virtues taken by ancient Roman society as an important part of the expression of a purposeful life, a facet of the ideal and well-rounded citizen. It denoted depth as well as a seriousness and solemnity of character. The presence of gravitas signalled the transition of the Roman youth from the ranks of boyhood to become a respected member of society.

Artistic representation of the interior world of children and adolescents as they enter the adult world is fraught with challenges: not least the existence of taboos regarding the portrayal of children in the media under the age of consent. However, at a time when childhood itself comes under increasing pressure from society in many real and virtual arenas, the path through adolescence constitutes a fascinating journey worth illuminating for both artistic and sociological discourse.

As the gap between childhood and maturity fills with lived experience and memory, how (and when) does the adult present him/herself today? What are the guiding virtues for today’s children, for their emotional well-being, expression of self and play? How does the adolescent identity evolve within and navigate contemporary society’s mixed bouquet of tradition and counterculture? These questions may have multifaceted answers shadowed by their own rapid obsolescence. They provide a window into the world of adults-in-waiting, whose virtues and vices can appear as timeless as the lens-based image and its prosthetic imaginary, which freezes these fleeting moments in their development.

Related Panel Discussion

On Wednesday 18 January, Christiane Monarchi, editor of Photomonitor and curator of Photo50’s Gravitas, chaired Made Together: participating and collaborating in photographic practice. This panel discussion was composed of Anthony Luvera, Baptiste Lignel, Melanie Manchot and Wendy McMurdo: four artists presenting work in London Art Fair 2017's Photo50 exhibition ‘Gravitas’. During this event (part of a Photography Focus Day) the panel members discussed the importance of interaction, participation and collaboration between artist and subject in their lens-based practice.

Retrieved: https://www.londonartfair.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/5.-London-Art-Fair-2017-Talks-tours-and-performances-FINAL.pdf

Subsequent showings of this work
In the Summer following Gravitas (27th July -4th Sept 2017) my Let’s Go to a Place project was installed in situ within the vitrines of the Museum of Childhood in Edinburgh. ‘This site-specific installation is a series of portraits presenting the multiple subjectivities of a generation of digital natives, to be discovered throughout the atmospheric galleries of the Museum of Childhood.’ This exhibition was curated by Alice Strang and was as part of the Edinburgh Arts Festival (installation images and catalogue ref provided).

[ Let’s Go to a Place was also shown in Berlin in May of that year as part of the group exhibition Regarding Portraiture curated by Andreas Schmidt at Galerie Andreas Schmidt
Dates: 6th May – 15th July 2017. The show included work by Wendy McMurdo, Louis Porter, Corinne Vionnet, Georgia Metaxas, Oliver Schmidt and Gabriella Sancisi. http://www.andreasschmidtgalerie.com/regarding-portraiture]

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