Event overview
Simon Bill's paintings are all oval, and all of the same dimensions – 127/97cms; otherwise, though, Bill's work is characterised by abrupt discontinuities in style, genre and subject, and by his highly idiosyncratic choices of medium and title. To give one example from his recent exhibition at BALTIC centre for contemporary art, a painting called Chewy Spongy is made using foam-rubber chips, silicone bath-sealant and wood stain. Other media have included dental floss, corn, fake gems, dried cat food, champagne corks, leaves and videotape.
These works represent the latest phase in a painting career that began in 1993 with a show at Cabinet Gallery (then based in Brixton). At that time Bill was showing huge 'portraits' of hybridised pop-cultural monsters – Mr Blobby mixed with Satan. They were described by Jeffrey Kastner in his FRIEZE review as 'monumentally ugly'. This pre-millenial, transgressive, sensibility gave way in the late 90s to the more exploratory, comical but philosophical, mode found in the oval paintings for which Bill is now known. Most artist's careers are punctuated by transitional works, but Bill's oeuvre contains nothing else. Each new work is like a prototype, but instead of executing a series of works consistent with this model (in the usual manner of professional painters), he makes a another prototype each time instead.
Bill is also known as a writer. His novel, BRAINS (pub. Cabinet II, 2011), a hybrid of popular science and comic fiction, tells the story of a painter becoming artist-in-residence at a neurology clinic.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 15 Oct 2014 | 5:30pm - 7:00pm |
Accessibility
If you are attending an event and need the College to help with any mobility requirements you may have, please contact the event organiser in advance to ensure we can accommodate your needs.
