Owen Bullett, Surface Tension

About

There is a marked departure in Owen Bullett’s latest body of work. Whilst his previous exhibition with Marsden Woo Gallery was concerned with form and the intersection of solid and void, there is now a fusion of these elements within and surrounding this intriguing series. Volume and form don’t just co-exist as separate entities; they have become consciously enmeshed.

These new sculptures have a distinct presence and although physically grounded, there is cohesion of energy and movement at play, as the title suggests. Placed in the landscape of the gallery space, this merging of form and anti-form creates a discourse around the works that echoes across the exhibition.

Working on a smaller scale than his previous solo show at Marsden Woo Gallery, a sense of intimacy from working at his bench can be seen and felt. Using native English wood such as oak, cedar and elm, Bullett heightens the natural characteristics of his materials - some pieces are roughly knotted, others are finely shaped, and these are then further juxtaposed with various metal components and lively injections of colour. These contrasts within the work place an emphasis on what is observed and what is hidden, what is felt and what is absent.

OWEN BULLETT's sculpture presents us with both a personal and a shared sense of archaeology of mind and matter. Ancient wood and modern steel, the rough and the refined, heaviness and weightlessness all feature in his material lexicon. His formal investigations are informed by the psychological forces of matter and objects and the experience of variation and continuity found at thresholds; the contact and balance of ‘inside’ and ‘outside’ space, and the permeability of the self.

Bullett studied Sculpture at Camberwell College of Art (2000-2003) and at the Royal College of Art (2003-2005) and has exhibited widely in the UK and internationally. Recent solo shows include Force Field (2012) at Marsden Woo Gallery, Matter and Memory (2014) at William Benington Gallery, London, and Volume & Void (2013) at ING Bank, London. He has also undertaken residencies in the UK, France, Malta and Belize. Examples of his work can be found in the collections of Ernst & Young and Redbridge Borough Council, UK; Rennes Metropole, France; Poustinia Land Art Park, Belize; and in numerous private collections worldwide.