JADAR

★★★★☆

In a new artistic endeavour, The Lowry aims to showcase local Northern talents alongside other national and international artists, uniting the works of three artists within the meandering galleries with the intention of repeating this unique structure for future exhibitions. The Lowry’s new free exhibition, Local / National / International, introduces audiences to the works of Aliyah Hussain, Paloma Proudfoot, Renee So. Despite their vastly different approaches, each artist dives into themes of feminism, the male gaze, gender norms, theatre, and body dysmorphia within the medium of ceramics.

Proudfoot’s visceral tableaus, costume-pieces, and replicated environments are a stark contrast to Hussain’s flowing fungal ceramic collages; as are So’s antiquity evoking perfume bottle designs and with their sexual undertones. The exhibit truly offers an eye-opening experience, weaving together the stories and ideas of these artists into an engaging and unexpectedly thought-provoking artistic web.

Touring the exhibit with curator Zoe Watson, there was a real sense of creative passion and dramatic flair in each artist’s gallery space. Each artist was given complete freedom over their sections of the gallery, the lighting, the ambience, the way it could be displayed – a nice departure from the usual segmented and almost clinical viewings of most traditional galleries spaces.

Lay Figure, by London-born Paloma Proudfoot, was a breathe of fresh air with its jaw-dropping displays of both the mundane and visceral, interweaving elements of her past in fashion and her fascination with medicine, contextualising it with ceramic sculptures and mixed media reliefs. Her pieces have an incredible tenderness despite some of the macabre and bloody details. Each vein and sinew seems as delicately crafted as each stitch and tile that went into constructing the incredible details of her larger pieces.

On first glance, the scenes are a little absurd, but as you look closer, an entangling world of fashion, transformation, and passivity with the bodies all entrapped, exposed and exhibited for our viewing pleasure. Her fascination in the female “hysterical body” researched primarily in the Salpêtrière Hospital in 19th century Paris adds an interesting dynamic, highlighting the powerlessness and stasis of patients under their doctor’s care within an incredibly detailed modern setting (lamps, radiators and plug sockets all meticulously crafted into each piece to add to the realism).

Proudfoot also crafted a miraculous mannequin-like ceramic bodice that stands proudly on display and will be worn in a performance in the exhibits final showing on 16th February alongside artist and choreographer Aniela Piasecka, and composer Ailie Ormston. It’s truly fascinating to see an art exhibit intentionally using the Lowry’s unique stance as a theatre, gallery, and public space and combine art displays with fashion and performance so intrinsically. I hope to see this level of exploration and boundary crossing techniques in further exhibitions.

Local artist Aliyah Hussain also interestingly links her work with theatre and literature, combining eerie soundscapes, dim theatre lights, comical plant pot seats, interactive and touchable art pieces (separate from the main display), and a sprawling collage of individual ceramic shapes that can be remixed into new pieces in further exhibitions. She was waiting for her roots draws inspiration from folklore, rural spaces, and primarily, Anne Richter’s 1967 science-fiction short story, The Sleep of Plants, where a woman is happily transformed into a plant. Hussain flips this tale wit on its head with a vareiety of creepy fronds, fungal shapes, and ceramics pieces that cross the line between plant and body horror.

Her space is incredibly immersive and spine-tingling but could possibly benefit from more variety – perhaps a few bigger pieces amongst the collages to break things up a little, or more identifiable body parts morphed in with the fronds and flowers to add a sense of the grotesque for a horror and sci-fi fan like me.

The Essence, by our International artist, Renee So, combines a variety of traditional and almost antiquated ceramic pots, mirroring old and new perfume and Chinese snuff bottle designs and reflecting on marketing strategies with a cheeky, contemporary lens. Her bottles are a creative collection of fun designs, some resembling modern YSL Opium bottles, with a particularly thought-provoking sexually posed female alluding to their controversial marketing campaign. Others are witty, creative and filled with flair.

In an unusual departure from the rest of her work, So also brought a new “magic mirror” piece to be displayed (Manchester being the perfect place to showcase a cuju ball game design). The magic mirror is a fascinating and ancient design dating from 206 BC – 24 AD and an enchanting addition to the gallery despite its contrast with the rest of the exhibit’s themes.

Overall, the exhibition is an incredible journey through the minds of three feminist ceramic creators, and a surprisingly fun experience. While there could be a few more immersive pieces here and there, the video of the artists’ explaining their crafts, the curated writings about their works, and the sheer variety in their art work makes for an engaging afternoon retreat.

Local / National / International runs at The Lowry until February 18.