Transformations commission
Artist wins £20,000 Transformations commission at The Lowry
The stunning imagination of Sarah Staton is coming to the The Lowry. The London-born artist has won the latest £20,000 Transformations commission to create artwork for The Lowry’s Promenade gallery, which will be shown from April 2009.
The prestigious panel including Turner Prize-shortlisted artists Jane & Louise Wilson and Stephen Snoddy, the Director of the New Art Gallery in Walsall, selected Sarah from 130 hopefuls.
Sarah, who studied at St Martin’s School of Art (London), is known for her brilliant use of wood – mixing real and composite woods - and her ability to re-imagine everyday items. It’s the sort of flair that has seen her exhibit in Berlin, New York and Vienna. In 2005 she won a research fellowship with the Henry Moore Institute and in 2008 an Arts Foundation Award for her sculpture.
Sarah commented,
“This is a really exciting challenge that I look forward to working on. The Lowry's rich and dramatic architecture provides collision of space, shape and scale, providing a provoking space in which to explore sculptural gigantism. I have had an abstract impression of Salford in my mind since I started listening to the Fall in my twenties. This music continues to provide audio inspiration for my work, and it is going to be interesting to see how it feeds into the making of an exhibition in Salford itself.”
The Transformations commission aims to create site-specific work for The Lowry’s Promenade Gallery and it presents a rare opportunity for artists to experiment and test new approaches to their practice. Sarah’s exhibition titled, ‘A Clump of Plinths’, is an exhibition of sculpture and will include large-scale works on plinths 3-4 metres in height. Fascinated by construction processes, her work investigates form, function and feeling through a series of architectural and sculptural interventions using old and new commercial technologies to full effect.
Mark Doyle, Curator of Special Exhibitions at The Lowry, explained, “The panel was very excited by the standard of all the five shortlisted artists, but after a lively debate we all agreed that Sarah Staton should be awarded the second commission in the Transformations series. Her strong sculptural response to the Promenade gallery promises to take full advantage of its unique aspect, and we look forward to seeing how her ideas develop over the coming months.”
The Transformation commissions have been funded over three years by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.
Posted on Tuesday, 07 October 2008 under Press Galleries Press