21 November – 18 December 2009

Preview Event- Friday 20 November 6-8pm

It is a fact of space science that there is such a body in the universe as a black hole; in a theory of quantum physics is proposed that at the centre of such a structure there is a form known as a singularity. A singularity it is surmised may provide a gateway between our universe and an infinite number of alternatives, which run unseen alongside our own. The theoretical notion of infinite alternatives may in some way relate to our own fantasies of alternative realities in which we may have taken different paths at one point or another in our lives. Who or what would we be if we had turned left instead of right, rich and famous, happy. We always lean towards the positive, in some way feeling that our current experiences are somehow in complete, and that there must be somewhere better.

The four artists that feature in “The Never Ending Multi-Story” have not only just encountered their own singularity, in graduating from their respective arts degrees, but also explore ideas of alternatives through their works. These ideas document our relationship with our environment and how we exist there. Power, struggle, harmony, fragility and conflict are among some of the elements that are contained within the artists’ works. Chris Hill’s photographs document the grit and emotion of changing times and the effects it can have on culture and human reliance on a sense of normality, and the sense of power this brings. Anwyl Cooper-Willis looks towards the city and it’s built environment, exploring the use of buildings in cultures to express and impose power, before subverting this through her materials and the structure of her installation. The urban environment features to in the work of Charlotte Ratcliff, through her composite images, the disjointed and hybrid cultures and places are examined, her work is interested in the spaces in-between; spaces trapped between times, cultures and the exponential expansion of the urban sprawl. In an opposing twist to this work Joss Cole’s paintings examine an ethereal space, combining influences of Zen and Blues music in order to create the work, the paintings are not representations from the experiences from these disparate influences, rather they are the experience in their own right, inviting the viewer into a neutral zone of sight and sound.

This exhibition promises the viewer a chance to see into alternative realities, some the viewer may have already experienced or fantasised about others may be totally alien. However there is a singularity at the centre of the work that leads us on a journey and spits us out at the other side: maybe not any richer or more famous but hopefully a little happier.

The Never Ending Multi-Story: Chris Hill, Joss Cole, Anwyl Cooper-Willis, Charlotte Ratcliff