The second of two photography exhibitions visited today, Building Merseyside – A Contemporary Interpretation of the Architecture of Liverpool and the Surrounding Area is a small show of local work which aims to celebrate and explore the rich architectural heritage of the region in a contemporary context. The exhibition is the first collaborative project between St George’s Hall and local art organisation dot-art.
Ignoring the dreadful, over-processed images of Pete Carr, there is interesting work here from Alan McKernan, whose distinctive high-contrast monochrome silver gelatin prints of Liverpool buildings highlight angles and shadows, Bev Evans whose Q Park Shadows was captured looking up through the skylight in the Liverpool 1 Q-park, and Stephanie de Leng, in whose impressionistic images only fragments emerge from out of focus backgrounds (above).
Laura Clarke of dot-art, curator of the show, explains the thinking behind the exhibition:
With this exhibition I wanted to showcase our beautiful surroundings by choosing artwork that doesn’t just show the usual view of our region’s architecture but makes the viewer look again from a fresh perspective. I want to show people sides of buildings they might not have seen before through artwork which really draws out the spirit of a building or structure. From fantastic Georgian creations, to super modern sky scrapers I feel that Liverpool’s architecture can stand shoulder to shoulder with some of the worlds most beautiful cities and as such holds a wealth of inspiration for Liverpool artists here, hopefully, it is their job to show us just how beautiful it is.
Footnote: I discover that over the summer Stephanie de Leng was taking photos along Smithdown Road in my neighbourhood for The Secret Life of Smithdown project which will explore how over time, local shopkeepers have helped shape the neighbourhood. This will culminate in a special exhibition in the People’s City gallery of the new Museum of Liverpool when it opens in 2011.
That's How The Light Gets In 