Axisweb has selected five artworks featuring contemporary artists working with decoration, and also considering its use and function: Anastasya Martynova, Alice Forward, Helen Latham, Anne Thalheim and Polly Cruse
Carved Mannequin Arms, 2016
Carved mannequin arms commissioned by Museea for “Utopian Bodies – Fashion Looks Forward”, Liljevalchs, Stockholm in collaboration with Proportion > London
Il Pranzo di Grimani, 2016
Ornamental plasterwork ceiling, a Short&Forward collaborative private commission, Calle Terco, Venice, Italy. Crystacal plaster and 22ct gold leaf
References include Luis Bunuel's "Discreet Charm of the Borgouisie" and ornamental plasterwork in the nearby Palazzo Grimani in Venice.
Gold and Steel, 2017
Looking at portraits of women in the 17th Century I was struck by the lack of real personality in them: they are stylised and formulaic - a mere comment on the wealth of the possession/person and nothing to do with the character. What would the women themselves have wanted? Subtle signs of rebellion, like a clenched fist, or a wilder dress colour - I've done that for them and us.
Manche Honorable No 2, 2016
In the fourteenth century , most of the time , the sleeves were independent from the doublets , to which they were basted so they could be changed at will . The women did the same. Thus , to honor a knight, a lady unpicked her sleeve that the knight would tie to his helmet , and these were called manche honorable."
Shoe Fettish, 2015
Cyano-type photographic print
Published 14 April 2017