Exhibitions & Displays: Future
Art At The Edge presents Sculpture And Sport: A Celebration for 2012
20th March 2012 to 20th May 2012
To celebrate the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Ashmolean will exhibit a group of 30 bronze sculptures recently commissioned by the public art organiser, Art At The Edge CIC. These are studies of different Olympic and Paralympic sports.
The great success of the British sports team at the Beijing Olympics 2008 was the catalyst for this project, which brings together some of Britain’s most established and up and coming sculptors to interpret individual sporting disciplines. Twenty nine of the sculptors, including Oxford’s John Buckley, were chosen to reflect a cross-section of contemporary British sculpture and the thirtieth was selected in an open sculpture competition.
The sculptures have been cast in bronze as limited editions of 25 by Pangolin Editions, Europe’s leading sculpture foundry, a number of which showcase the remarkable skill in using modern decorative patination techniques. The bronzes will be displayed in the Ashmolean’s Human Image Gallery (Gallery 2), amongst the Museum’s permanent collections.
Art competitions formed part of the modern Olympic Games during its early years, from 1912 to 1952. The competitions were part of the original intention of the Olympic Movement's founder, Pierre de Frédy, Baron de Coubertin. Therefore, the idea and spirit of the Art At The Edge collection has its roots in this tradition. The sculptors were selected from across the UK to contribute different approaches and styles. Each sculptor chose a different sport and was given the opportunity to liaise with a representative of their chosen sport’s national governing body to gain insight into its character and dynamics.
The criteria for the Art at the Edge competition were that each entry should be based on a Paralympic event, should not exceed in size 400mm in any dimension and should be suitable for casting into bronze.
This project was made possible through a generous donation by the Roper Family Charitable Trust and the support of Bath and North East Somerset Council and several other Bath based businesses.
Justin Braithwaite, founder of Art At The Edge, said, “Our selection of sculptures attempts to create a journey through contemporary sculptural styles and themes exploring the inherent artistry in different sporting events as interpreted by artists, looking forward to the Olympics in 2012”.
John Buckley, sculptor, “I was delighted to take part in Art At The Edge and to exhibit once more at the Ashmolean Museum. I have been involved in representing the effects on land mine victims for 20 years, the subject for my sculpture Blade-runner captures the human movement at speed along with the crippling devastation that land mines inflict on their victims”.
Curator’s Talk
Atrium Fri 20 Apr, 1–2pm
An introduction to the display with curator of ‘Sculpture and Sport’ Alan Dun. Free, no booking necessary, spaces limited.
Art At The Edge CIC
Art At The Edge is a community interest company limited by guarantee, based in the city of Bath. Net profits from the sale of sculptures will be used for the benefit of disabled and disadvantaged young people through the life changing work of the Youth Sport Trust and the British Paralympic Association.
The exhibition will tour to the following venues after the Ashmolean Museum:
Victoria Art Gallery, Bath 26 May – 1 July 2012
Bloomsbury Art Fair July 6th – 8th
gallery@oxo , London, 13 July – 13 August 2012
For more information contact Justin Braithwaite on 07887992045, justin@artattheedge.org or visit: www.artattheedge.org
Pangolin Editions
Pangolin Editions is one of Britain’s leading sculpture foundries casting for an international clientele and to any scale. It is one of the few foundries still practicing the traditional skills of lost wax block investment casting. In addition to the lost wax facilities a 3,000 square metre unit houses the sand moulding process where the largest of monuments can be moulded. The foundry prides itself on fine craftsmanship; each bronze is hand crafted using traditional skills to produce a distinctive, faithful and accurate finish. Pangolin Editions specialises in a wide spectrum of patinas and along side traditional colours, actively researches into ancient patination methods and has revived recipes for blues, greys and whites. For more information visit www.pangolin-editions.com
Temporary Display | 20 March–20 May 2012 | Gallery 2 | Admission Free