The Venal Muse Mat Collishaw

Often creating a dialogue with past masters to explore humanity s dark side collishaw s seemingly simple but actually complex works are often based on references from myth.

The venal muse mat collishaw.

The new art gallery walsall is delighted to present a major survey exhibition by british artist mat collishaw the first in a uk public gallery for over ten years. Case the venal muse 2012. These works allude to charles baudelaire s 1857 controversial volume of poetry les fleurs du mal the flowers of evil which dealt with such themes as eroticism death and lost innocence. Mat collishaw wall insecticide series 2006 2011.

About mat collishaw s the end of innocence mat collishaw has never shied away from difficult or challenging subject matter. Dialogues is also the artist s first solo exhibition in spain and offers an insight into his dark and compelling world through seminal works and rarely seen pieces including works from fundació sorigué s own collection. Mat collishaw the venal muse 2012. The venal muse series mat collishaw request image.

In addition to this series collishaw will present two works from his venal muse series which consist of ornate floral sculptures in sturdy vitrines. They are reflections on the depraved state of modern media saturated culture and the spectre of genetic manipulation. Mat collishaw is a key figure in the important generation of british artists who emerged from goldsmith s college in the late 1980s. Historical classification 2010s.

An important member of the young british artists mat collishaw creates work that confronts issues of moral ambiguity with formally stunning and alluring imagery. On close inspection their fine petals have a flesh like appearance with anthropomorphic scars and sores pitting the skin. New art gallery walsall also staged the uk premier of collishaw s zoetrope. Insecticides 2006 ongoing and catching fairies 1996 as well as the sculptural series the venal muse 2012 15.

Coupling references to art history literature and the victorian era with modern imaging technology the artist renders powerful. Matthew mat collishaw honfrps born 1966 is an english artist based in london. He participated in freeze 1988 and since his first solo exhibition in 1990 has exhibited widely internationally.