Painting Rituals

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PAINTING RITUALS JILL MULLEADY | MARIA THURN UND TAXIS | LINDSEY BULL Curated by Aretha Campbell & Lucy Lopez Coldharbour London Gallery presents an exhibition of new work by Jill Mulleady, Lindsey Bull and Maria Thurn und Taxis, exploring the processes and application of marks within painting. Whilst working in disparate mediums, scale and through a variety of procedures the artists are connected by a commonality of decision-making and a search for a level of tension within a moment in time. Rituals performed by applying paint to a surface create marks that resemble a language, which is simultaneously familiar and unreal. Looking to the physicality of mark making that we might find in a work by Pollock, or the translation of the senses in a painting by Kandinsky; each of these outline the ritual within a work; the unseen process. In addition to this, the works of the three exhibited painters illustrate ritual in their content, be it literal or nuanced. Lindsey Bull's paintings represent an ongoing connection with the rites and performances of witchcraft, myths, tales and folklore. This watercolour series depicts figures taking part in some kind of unknown and ambiguous ritual. The watercolours often function as a ‘zoomed in' version of an image - pared down to one or two basic elements. For Jill Mulleady the aim is to reveal, rather than display; in this the speed and decisions within the processes of making the work take on a heightened importance. The physical act of painting brings to the surface the gesture, the mark. The painted surface exists as the traces of its maker, leaving a trail of the human presence. The finished painting remains as a lone physical manifestation, a residue of the actual work of art, which existed in the act or process of the painting's creation. Thurn und Taxis' focus is on the roles and meanings of masks in society: metaphorically, physically and emotionally. The simple act of removing one's identity adds a haunting quality to an innocent rite that draws parallels with other more obscure human behavioral patterns and responses. Private View: 26.04.2012 6.30-9pm Exhibition: 26th April - 25th May 2012 Open Tues- Fri 11-6, Sat 12-4 RSVP to info@coldharbourlondon.com www.coldharbourlondon.com