Delaine Le Bas: Witch Hunt

About

The works of Delaine Le Bas are asking a question, one that holds particular reference to Delaine's own Cultural Heritage. ‘Distorted Ideologies and contemporary colonialist language continue to this day to extinguish the true inheritance of The Romany people,' Delaine's work unashamedly confronts the benchmarking of those who have chosen to define our understanding of 'The Real Gypsies' but for Delaine, ‘This is not a lifestyle choice, it is real life steeped in a cultural history that spans time as well as continents, and that has a language which maintains roots from it's original homeland.' Witchcraft was built around words: as much dependent on lost ways of speaking as on particular incantations. A witch, like a Gypsy, was known by the words she spoke, and for centuries this has provoked unmatched levels of hysteria, excitement and persecution. Today political scapegoating may be a shrouded equivalent for the finger pointing once reserved for those suspected of dark magic, while in recession, the hunt for pariahs and effigies to burn continues in earnest. ‘Witch Hunt' is a touring multimedia project comprising a meticulous installation of sculpture, painting, embroidery, textiles, performance and film. For Campbell Works, Delaine will create a new incarnatation of this work reflecting the religious dimension of the Witch Hunt, and including previously unseen work which explores the role of language in identifying the 'other'. The intricate detail of Delaine's embroidery and textiles, and the high level of attention to every corner of the gallery will form the locus for an examination of what it feels like to be on the 'outside' when you may well be on the 'inside'. Mythology and truth wrapped together so tightly and delicately that they form a new membrane of fiction/fact. The work shown at Campbell Works is at the invitation of Neil Taylor and Harriet Murray, to provide a platform and extension for dialogue, around the ideas and questions raised by recent installations of Witch Hunt at Aspex (Portsmouth), Chapter (Cardiff) and Context (Derry). Opening reception on 20th January includes a new live performance ‘Trashimos Si Ruzlipen, Chavvy' by Delaine Le Bas, Damain Le Bas & Mike Rogers. Closing event: 11th February 6 — 9pm Book Launch and Film premier of ‘Chanctonbury Ravens', with Delaine Le Bas and readings by Damain James