New art show from Goldsmiths and Swiss Church in London explores iconoclasm, archaeology and digital technology
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March 3 will see the opening of Hierophanies, a new solo show by London-based Irish artist Patrick Hough presented by Goldsmiths, University of London and Swiss Church in London.
The exhibition is inspired by the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, when objects belonging to the church were stripped of their holy status, inducing a wave of iconoclasm, or the destruction of religious imagery. It reflects on the relationship between archaeology, technology and the reanimating power of digital cinema, in the context of contemporary iconoclasm – particularly the recent destruction of cultural and religious heritage throughout Syria and Iraq.
Hierophanies, an installation to be shown in the main church hall, consists of a large, transparent LED screen accompanied by several freestanding speakers. A continuously looping 3D animation depicts an artefact from the ancient ruins of Palmyra that was destroyed by the so-called Islamic State militants in 2015.
The video will be accompanied by a multi-channel sound installation that moves between a range of genres and atmospheres (including field recordings within The Swiss Church) creating a highly cinematic and reflective experience that unfolds the history of this lost object.
The installation will be accompanied by a sculptural installation in the upper gallery of the church.
Funerary Relief is a sculptural work that again focuses on the reconstruction of an artefact, destroyed by IS. The artefact was first reconstructed digitally through 3D modelling and then made physical again at a major film prop production workshop in Shepperton Studios, London where the 3D model was CNC milled in polystyrene and hand finished by an expert team of prop makers.
The exhibition will be accompanied by an artist film screening on the 13th of March in the Swiss Church, including video works by Patrick Hough and British artist Andy Holden.
Hough contributes Object Interviews, a series of three films in which specialists from various fields interpret and discuss a range of film props. Andy Holden’s video work Catharsis (2016) centres around the meaning of the object as projection area of human needs, culture and desires.
Visitor information:
Patrick Hough: Hierophanies
The Swiss Church in London
3 March - 18 March 2017
Opening reception: Thursday 2 March 6 - 10pm Opening hours: Thursday - Saturday 6pm - 9pm Admission: free
The Goldsmiths partnership
For six years, the Swiss Church and the MFA Curating programme at Goldsmiths University of London, have had a successful partnership and run a yearly competition for first year art curating students, coordinated by David Mollin and Ele Carpenter, in collaboration with the Swiss Church team.
The exhibition at the Swiss Church gives students of the Goldsmiths programme the opportunity to curate an art exhibition in a unique space, creating a dialogue between the sacred and the secular world.