Roger Clarke: Works 1991 to 2003

About

This exhibition brings together sculptures that Roger Clarke made between 1991 and 2003. These early works were initiated the year following his graduation from the Slade School of Fine Art and developed during his year long appointment as the Henry Moore Sculpture Fellow at Winchester School of Fine Art in 1991.

Using sheet metal, often perforated, and employing sheet metal fabrication techniques, the works allude to a variety of structures with scales from the micro to macrocosmic. Made in units/modules that are repeated, often with a subtle change and with the option to be placed in different arrangements, there is the implied potential that they could be a part of a much larger or continuous number.

As John Gillett, Director of the Winchester Gallery wrote for the exhibition there in 1992, ‘Subtly unique, experimentally tailored, and very evidently hand-built, they employ the language of the prototype, and the clean lines of industrial styling. Occasionally their shapes suggest the visual forms of forging, extruding and casting; but very clearly they are always constructed, assembled, fitted, their riveted metal and their ducted outlets borrowed from the air-conditioning system or the coachbuilder.’

Over the following years Clarke produced further sculptures including many that are wall-hung and employed industrial coating processes to cover these sculptures with colour on both the inside and outside surfaces of the perforated material.

Over this period of time, they have been placed in exhibitions including the Whitechapel Open at the Whitechapel Gallery, The Economist, Oriel Mostyn, CBK Gallery (Rotterdam), Todd Gallery,  East Open in the Norwich Gallery and twice at Galerie Christian Fochem (Krefeld, Germany).