Untranslated

UNTRANSLATED
Art that says it all with Untranslated

East London’s Curious Duke Gallery are proud to present the first UK solo show of Dan Rawlings, Untranslated. Opening this May 2016, Rawlings will be turning the Whitecross Street gallery into an immersive world of hand cut metal and shadows.

Untranslated, the first UK solo show of mixed media artist Dan Rawlings introduces us to his latest collection of hand cut metal objects. Taking the shows title from his fascination with words that have not been translated into English, Rawlings new collection focuses on words such as Waldeinsamkeit, meaning a feeling of connectedness to nature when in woodland. He explains these ephemeral words as a return to “the importance of dreaming, to enjoy the simpler moments” that contradicts our fast paced consumer led lifestyles. Untranslated is the antidote London has been waiting for.

It is this theme of a simpler life that threads through the immersive exhibition.
You will have seen his hand cut antique saws at Affordable Art Fair Battersea and Hampstead; you’ll certainly have seen his hand cut silo lighting up the forecourt of the fair. Untranslated takes Dan’s untranslated words and enlarges them into a shadowy immersive installation of hand cut metal artworks that throw their images onto the walls of the gallery. The soft and playful shadow of people enjoying a simpler life contradicts the found and rusted metal pieces that are carefully hand cut with a laser that grapples with the strength of the metal.

So, how exactly did Dan come to find this method of making art? Rawlings explains it as a ‘happy accident’ after turning to his Grandfather for scrap metal to patch up a door with, and happening upon an antique saw that he recognised his opportunity: “I recognised what I mentioned before about the 'collective memories' and decided to try and keep the saws form in tact and create something from it. It took a while to make some work I was really happy with, but I’m really glad I did.” Untranslated is certainly an exhibition of conversion.

The show is accompanied by a handmade multi lingual dictionary of untranslated words, which act as catalogue of prints. Having hand-made a page of the book everyday, Dan Rawlings has illustrated each word with screen prints, wood block prints and letter press pages, each of which are available to buy. The artist decided to create this book to invite everyone to enjoy the artwork on show, in the spirit of inclusivity.

Untranslated also sees the emergence of a new style of work from Rawlings: cut antique canvases. Having been forced indoors during winter, Rawlings turned to antique canvases to continue making new work and to develop his practice. Having trawled the auction rooms of the UK, Rawlings has specifically chosen canvases that he can ‘collaborate’ with, rather than detract from their beauty.

Dan Rawlings wants your old rusty saws and metal! On Saturday 28 May, 12-4pm Curious Duke Gallery will be holding a metal amnesty, with all unwanted metal going to Dan Rawlings for future artworks. If you are interested in having a spring clean of your garden shed or attic, please send images of your unwanted metal to info(at)curiousdukegallery(dot)com for further details.


Curious Duke Gallery is proud to present Dan Rawlings: Untranslated
PV 5 May 2016, 6-9pm
5-28 May 2016

Nearest Tube: Old Street (exit 6 - 2 min walk) Barbican (5mins)