THINGS FOR HERE, NOW AND THERE: OCEAN MIMS

About

Permanent Gallery presents a series of new works by Ocean Mims that question and celebrate the materials and products of mass-produced domestic design. Through applying an idiosyncratic design methodology, Mims reworks the components of mass-produced furniture, exploring the potential of reconfiguring their predetermined design and function. The exhibition will consist of three new works, including a fully automated slowly transforming sculpture. This object moves between being a monolith of smooth wood and laminate finishes to a piece of unidentifiable furniture with open draws, surfaces and ambiguous compartments: an extremely seductive but essentially non-useful form. The autonomous transformation takes place at an imperceptibly slow speed, confounding the experience of looking at the work. This piece will be presented alongside a digital animation of a new transforming work. By showing these 3D and 2D works together, Mims draws attention to the relationship between design and construction. The third piece in the exhibition actively engages with the process of making and remaking flat-pack furniture designs. Limited by the components of a particular shelving unit, Mims will attempt to remake three additional units in sequence, testing the extent to which these specific materials can be adapted across designs within a catalogue range. Together the works reflect on the promise of consumer products, where their limits lie and the potential of these restrictions to inform a creative process. Ocean Mims graduated from the Royal College of Art, Sculpture MA in 2008. Accompanying the exhibition is an especially commissioned publication featuring an essay by Gareth Williams, senior tutor in Design Products at the Royal College of Art. ‘Things for Here, Now and There' is one of a series of exhibitions as part of ‘House', the new Brighton Visual Arts Festival, exploring the theme of the domestic. http://www.housefestival.org EXHIBITION EVENTS: Permanent Film Night, Wednesday 3 June, 8pm (Doors 7.30pm), £4/£3 concessions (students and NVT members) At New Venture Theatre, Bedford Place 'Modern Times' (1936, 87 mins), by Charlie Chaplin and 'One Week' (1920, 19 mins) by Buster Keaton. In association with Cinematheque. Gallery Discussion, Saturday 6 June, 3pm, Free At Permanent Gallery Ocean Mims and artist Steve Bunn will make presentations about the nature of mass-produced objects and their materials, exploring the notion that limitations are a necessary basis for creative processes. Followed by an open discussion.