Part of a series of contemporary exhibitions proposed and curated by Artwise for Hall Place & Gardens, Bexley, Watershed brought together 15 contemporary artists who look at water in conceptual, political, meditative and sometimes playful ways.
Through photography, sculpture, video and installations, the exhibition celebrated the precious resource of water. Korean artist Chang Kyum Kim's meditative sculptural video projection, captures the playful and restful nature of water through the changing seasons in a projected pond; Massimo Vitali's monumental landscape photograph depicts the pleasure of being around water in nature. In Noemie Goudal's large scale photograph Cascade (waterfall), pouring water is replaced by a plastic sheet; Tania Kovats' Where Seas Meet is a sculptural installation made from sea water taken from three places around the world where seas visibly meet and Martin Parr candidly documents British holidaymakers at the seaside.
Laura Ellen Bacon became the first artist in residence at Hall place, working on site to create a bespoke installation in her signature material - willow. Course is a deeply curvaceous work that descends into the River Cray, a chalk stream, at Hall Place. WWF-UK supported this artist-in-residence commission as part of their broader campaign in 2015 to raise awareness on the sustainability of chalk streams. The River Cray is one of 200 chalk streams in the world (85% of which can be found in the UK).
Video Interview with Laura Ellen Bacon.
| Participating Artists: | ||
| Laura Ellen Bacon | David Buckland | Susan Derges |
| Noemie Goudal | Chang Kyum Kim | Tania Kovats |
| Susie MacMurray | Tatsuo Miyajima | Martin Parr |
| Robert Polidori | Amy Stephens | Studio Roso |
| Gavin Turk | Massimo Vitali | Simon Warner |