Art on Fire

About

There will be: smoke and mirrors, burnt houses, archives on fire, sirens and alarms... To mark the Olympic Flame passing through Camberwell, UAL PhD artists and associates, present an exhibition that considers fire in its ceremonial, ritualistic, metaphysical and symbolic aspects; as well as its physical, audio-visual and scientific representations. An artists' residency relay will pass the torch of audience encounter across the three weeks; as practitioners work in the galleries, alongside the exhibits. In the context of the riots during 2010 and the fatal Lakanal House fire in Camberwell 2009, flames may raise mixed associations locally. This year's Olympic flame lit in Greece on May 10th 2012, where protestors in Athens clash with police over austerity measures, arrives in Camberwell in July on the way to the Olympic Cauldron in East London, where tens of billions of pounds have been spent. Despite austerity, there is the human resolve to celebrate. Fires and flames have roles to play in both. Art on Fire aims to give depth and breadth to our encounter with this symbol, brought to our attention by The Games, as it is run through the streets. Artists include: Daniel Baker's Smoke & Mirrors; installations by Eleanor Bowen; Maria Christoforatou, who considers fires in the home; Jenny Gordon's collages on fire; Aaron McPeake — who has made gongs/bells from molten bronze e.g. Iceland Landscape 3; a collaboration between Carolyn Flood & Dino Alfier — Where Words are Said; a siren piece by Rob Mullender; and Paul Ryan's archive on fire.