Tim Shaw 'What Remains'
The Exchange Gallery in Penzance presents "Two immersive sculptural installations by Cornwall based sculptor & Royal Academician", Tim Shaw.
Tim Shaw's solo show features work that brings, "the global presence & effect of terrorism & the pervasive sense of hidden powers having control over our lives" into the gallery. The immersive installations begin by leading the viewer into an un-doored corridor that bends 90˚ at the other end. Not entirely sure where it leads, the artist lulls us into an unfinished space that is dimly lit. At the entrance to the work only the light from the gallery foyer/cafe lights the way ahead. Unpainted plaster board, stud walls & untreated wood form the space that is to be followed to a half open door just on the inside of the bend. Further along is a fully closed door on the end wall of the corridor with only a single low watt light bulb illuminating the narrow space. Through the open door a similarly dressed room with a fireplace contains a set of life size human figures, this work is named 'Soul Snatchers Possession'. The content of this work aided by the approach is very unnerving & hard hitting. It will not be described here because you must see it for yourself to know what it is. Also I much prefer to describe the wider space & how it contributed to the overall experience.
The space was clearly considered as the approach to the first room is very important for setting up the audiences experience once they arrive. In addition it eventually becomes clear that this is the only way in & out of the whole space. This element seems intrinsic to adjusting our idea of what the content for this show means. We must confront the corridor at least twice, visiting & revisiting the loaded space.
Back in the corridor heading towards the closed door, pushing it open there is a slight blinding as the space beyond is a white wall gallery. Giving some rest bite from the dim installation which by now weighs heavy on your thoughts. A series of small sculptures & wall works bring us back to a "gallery" experience. However the whole space is filled with a constant noise, low & in the back ground but enough to let you know there is something else happening. The best way to describe the sound is to think of a film when an explosion happens & we experience the result of that explosion through the character's shock. Sound that is akin to a tinnitus pitch/slow motion drone/squeal of train breaks. The sound source is coming from another space not yet explored. Finding another closed door in the white wall gallery, it must be in there.
Opening the door reveals the sound is from inside & the whole space is bathed in blue light. This installation called, 'Mother, The Air Is Blue, The Air Is Dangerous', brings us into dark & shadowy the space that slowly reveals its details as our eyes adjust to the light. Tables & chairs are thrown around in the space, bags & belongings scattered everywhere & canteen trays that are suspended in the air slowly spin. On the walls in more blue light there are shadows of figures running in slow motion for an exit in the far corner. This space is held in a specific moment of time seconds after an explosion, just after the BOOM but before the debris settles. An instant capturing the flying parts. Taken from a personal experience of Tim Shaw when as a child in Belfast he experienced this very moment when an IRA bomb went off in a mall that he was at.
This work puts an audience right into two specific, terrifying moments. Initially inspired by the artists experience, however an essay by Dr Richard Davey suggests that,
"...this is no longer a specific representation of the centre of Belfast on a July afternoon but something more universal: it is an invitation to journey into the heart of terror, when the world slows down, everything becomes more intense, and we stand momentarily rooted to the spot."
