The Showroom presents Amp Envelope, the first solo exhibition in London by artist Adam Shield and the third iteration of The Showroom Mural Commission.
Shield's new body of work opens up drawing and collage as a means of exploring interior worlds; with imagery encompassing references distilled from post-apocalyptic science fiction writing, dystopian dream projectors, seventeenth century alchemy and everyday encounters with political, societal and economic structures.
Conceived as a total installation, Amp Envelope extends from The Showroom facade to the interior walls and surfaces of the exhibition space; incorporating entry points for public, collaborative processes of production to unfold over the coming months.
A series of hanging textile banners demarcate thresholds; a publication production zone for workshops houses a Risograph printer, ink-drums, photocopier and scanner as an in-situ print studio for public use.
Shield’s new series of large-scale drawings punctuate the space; with images drawn in black synthetic bitumen ink overlaid on swathes of screen-printed colour and set against walls of wide, warping grids. They explore the blurring of inner and outer worlds, drawing resonances between individual perspectives and wider structural conditions.
The grid, a recurring motif for Shield, weaves in and out of the various spaces and timeframes of the show, creating a pattern of energies and tempos; a rhythmic network within which the distinct yet inter-connected elements of the exhibition are situated.
Existing between the functional and sculptural, the hybrid furniture in the exhibition extends the language of the installation and DIY ethos that runs throughout Shield’s practice. As a site and generator for critical reflection and creative exchange, the space is equipped with tables and work-spaces for workshop contributors, storage for print materials and a display structure for a selection of handmade zines and publications produced by Long Distance Press.
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With special thanks to Sam Austen, Chenelle Hastick Bartholomew and Church Street Library team, Kathrin Böhm, Vanya Cantone, Mahsa Dehghani, Elliott Denny, Oana Damir, Elvira Dyangani Ose, Omar El Fassi and team, Alessia Franchi, Lily Hall, Anna Hughes, Seema Manchanda, Campbell McConnell, Corie Denby McGowan, Paulina Michnowska, John Phillips, Ishqha Abdul Rahim, Gabriela Salgado, Alex Simpson, Kuba Szreder, We design for the community (Axel Feldmann and Marco Ugolini), Thomas Whittle; and to Richard Whitby & the team contributing to The Feminist Library On Loan at The Showroom in Summer 2018, for the prototype for the LDP mobile publication support structure.
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