Opens Friday 20 February, 6–8pm
Exhibition continues 21 February – 3 April 2015
Open Wednesday to Saturday 12–5pm
Dreams Time Free an exhibition by Mat Jenner, presents new works alongside his on-going project Foam. Jenner’s practice is grounded in collage, collection, distribution and display. For Jenner, these strategies have the potential for cultural agency and mirror our everyday experience of production, consumption and spectatorship.
For the duration of Dreams Time Free, Jenner will transform the gallery into a social space and changing display environment for ephemeral material and distributed artworks. These works are made from reconstituted and appropriated found image materials – photographs, jpegs, adverts, cuttings, signage, magazines and newspapers – sourced from circulation and passed through the ‘digestive tract’ of the artist studio where they are exposed to the daily activity of artistic production.
Consumption becomes a positive productive action with the resulting ‘excreted’ works, formatted for display in the gallery and for wider distribution around Grand Union in Digbeth.
Alongside this changing display of distributed material, Jenner will present a further iteration of his on-going project Foam.
Conceived as an indistinct and mercurial format, Foam occupies multiple display propositions. It is simultaneously an archive, an experimental commissioning platform, a group exhibition and an expansive on-going artwork. Foam consists of a mass collection of commissioned one-off 12” dub plate records by 115 contemporary artists.
These works can only be presented within strict parameters that are intended to emphasise each record’s status as a material art object.
Each record is unique; they can only be listened to in situ within Grand Union’s physical location. They are not replicated, broadcast or digitally disseminated.
Audiences are encouraged to interact with the archive by selecting and playing individual artworks through a bespoke record player and speaker system.
To mark Foam’s time at Grand Union, and our 5 year anniversary, we, in collaboration with Jenner, have commissioned further artists to make new audio works for inclusion.
Newly commissioned contributing artists include Heather Philipson, Julia Crabtree and Will Evans, Tris Vonna-Michell, Emma Hart, Maia Conran, Concrete Famine, Holly Antrum, BAZ and Phil Hession.
A full list of artists and works available within Foam can be found at www.ffooaamm.org. A series of live events and talks accompanies the exhibition.
Mat Jenner (born 1976, UK) lives and works in London. Recent exhibitions include ATTIC, Nottingham, Wysing Arts Centre – Cambridge, And/Or, Project Number – London, Maria Stenfors Gallery – London, Jeanine Hofland Gallery – Amsterdam and Misery Connoisseur.
Events at Grand Union:
Friday 6 March 6–8pm
Late night opening featuring a performance by artist Patrick Goddard as part of Digbeth First Friday
Saturday 28 March 2–5.30pm
Altered Yesterdays: An afternoon of people talking about archives. Part of Flatpack Film Festival.
Friday 3 April 7pm – late
GU’s 5th Birthday Party!
To mark the end of Dreams Time Free and to celebrate 5 years of Grand Union we invite you to join us for a special performance by Phil Hession, toasts, drinks and late night dancing. Also part of Digbeth First Friday.
Offsite:
Tuesday 17 March 6–7pm
Barber Institute Lecture Hall, Birmingham University
Artist talk: Mat Jenner discusses his exhibition Dreams Time Free.
