Once submitting my ethics application or a review from my tutor. I decided to conduct some field research, by visiting the Liverpool Biennial at the Lewis’ building, as advised by Caroline, my supervisor.
I found the environment to be really fascinating in an abandoned building. The raw and industrial atmosphere brought a very curious and explorative nature in me. The lack of borders or fencing around the art pieces, allowed visitors to get up close to the artworks and almost become absorbed into the works.
I did find the placing of wall texts to be a little misplaced, and sometimes confusing as to what wall text went with which art piece. However, the nature of the pieces being sculptures, meant that the wall texts had to be further away.
I started with the ground floor, which seemed to explore the body as an abstracted vessel. I found some of these sculptures particularly fascinating, in their renderings and re-imaginings of the body. I found the discussions of the body having boundaries between the inner self and outside world, presented an interesting view of the human form, and thus questioning how definitions of the body are westernised and insight a lack of fluidity of form.
Some pieces to point out on the ground floor that I found to be interesting is Diego Bianchi’s sculptures. His pieces titled ‘Inflation’ are made from found objects and discarded materials, abstracted to evoke the human form.
I thought using found objects, connected humans to the environment and illustrates how the human form is product of its own environment. I found the sculptures to be quite comical with seemingly tongues sticking out and contorted bodies.
The sounds along with the sculptures, evoke the digestive noises that come from humans such as snoring and farting. Through emphasising these qualities of the human digestive system, it infers a sense of humour and absurdity to the human form.
The second piece by Jes Fan entitled ‘Network (For Staying low to the ground)’, was made from recycled laboratory glass.
The clinical and entangled tubes, refer to the body as a structured mechanical system, of which I explored heavily within my dissertation, regarding the mechanised perspective of the human body. Within these biomorphic vessels, black mould grows within the glass tubes, to evoke the racialised fear of contamination. I found this point to be particularly relevant to the COVID pandemic, due to the discrimination of lower class, black communities.
On the second floor, I found the art installations by Ane Graff inspirational towards by project. Her pieces titled ‘The Goblets’ are wine glasses filled with various pollutants associated with specific themes, such as brain fog, fatigue and depression.
Graff used various elements of road dust, cosmetics and food, and encased them in resin within these glasses.
I found the cloud-like and porous effect in the glasses, resembles the idea that bacteria within the human gut impact our mental and physical well-being. Thus, showing how the human and the environment intertwine with each other, to insight this fluid form. I found the use of casting found objects within resin, in order to evoke the bodies interaction with the environment, echoes towards my project of casting plants within my brain mould.
Overall, I found the exhibition to be an insightful discussion into the human form, and the abstracted view of humans without the boundaries of form. I found the environment for the exhibition, to be significantly impact to the artworks, in the industrial and abandoned nature. I also appreciated how the windows allowed you to look out towards the city, and thus invite the city in.