Barnaby Barford is a young artist known for his narrative ceramic sculptures formed from used figurines and recreated into an ironic and often humorous interpretation of a visual comment on the realities of 21st century society.
His current work is a change in direction for the artist, as shown in his solo exhibition now showing at the David Gill Gallery in London, entitled the Seven Deadly Sins. Through the theme of consumerism as being the main source of sin within our society, it replaces the biblical sense of sin, which has been accepted by many as ‘normal’ to the majority of people within the Western world. Thousands of exquisite little flowers and leaves on which are images and words, familiar to all of us but in another context, form the base of his sculptures. An example of this is ENVY which is illustrated by CCTV images of the 2011 London riots, a sign of envy arising from inequality between the ‘haves’ and the ‘have nots’ of our world. In a similar way, each of the ‘sins’ is shown in a 21st century context which is far removed from the original interpretation.
Each sculptural piece is mounted on a mirror in order to include the visitor as part of the artwork, occasionally causing a sense of discomfort, exactly as the artist intended. A beautiful exhibition with a harsh message to be interpreted on a personal level by visitors to the gallery. David Gill Gallery is located in King Street, London and the exhibition will run through 12th April, 2013.
