PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE PHILLIP LAI EXHIBITION OPENING NIGHT
After reading the vague press release for Philip Lai’s fourth show with Stuart Shave, I felt it necessary to see the work for myself. I entered the usual entrance on Eastcastle Street where I was told the exhibit was accessed by the rear of the building. Following the instructions I reached the back alley and followed the row of unmarked back doors.
After buzzing two unidentified black doors, I questioned whether Stuart Shave had jumped on the Speakeasy trend and I soon would be entering through a secret passageway or fridge door. Luckily the third black door opened and was not password protected.
Lai’s first work, This seems to be a mistake (2012) is a concrete cylinder, the centre shaded darker by soot. The second room involves an installation and video entitled Blanks (2012). The third piece, Soliloquy (2012), is the mixed-media installation which Lai created and, in doing so, transformed the gallery’s access. The piece is best viewed from the front of the gallery on Eastcastle Street.
The exhibition is a real play on the conventional white space, where Lai creates an alternative route to the traditional gallery experience.
Philip Lai was born in Malaysia in 1969 and currently lives and works in London. He is also a professor of fine art at Goldmiths College.
Dates and Times:
Phillip Lai is on until February 11th 2012.
Opening hours Tuesday- Saturday 11am-6pm. Closed Sunday an Monday
Stuart Shave/ Modern Art
23/25 Eastcastle Street London W1W 8DF
Photographs by Marta Colli. Article by Daria McWilliams for XXXX Magazine
