John Newling 'The Fall'
BEAM, Nottingham
2 December 2022–1 April 2023
Thursday–Saturday 9am–5pm, or by appointment
Celebrating 70 years & 17 years working with Beam Editions
The Fall is a new exhibition by John Newling that brings together new sculptures alongside one of his most important works in recent years, A Library of Ecological Conversations – Leaves and Me, first shown at the Ikon Gallery in Birmingham as part of Newling’s exhibition Dear Nature in 2020.
The exhibition also marks the artist’s 70th birthday, 50 years of artistic practice and Newling’s long-standing relationship with Beam spanning 17 years and over 15 publications.
Selected works
A Library of Ecological Conversations
– Leaves and Me, 2018–2020
Leaves, paint, gold, silver and copper leaf on paper
A Library of Ecological Conversations – Leaves and Me is composed of 36 panels that occupy an entire gallery wall and is a continuation of the artist’s exploration of nature and language which began with the project Nymans Language in 2016. To make these, the artist worked the surface of hot-pressed paper with paint and gold, silver and copper leaf, integrating leaves into the process, then removing the leaves to reveal ghost-like outlines of these natural forms. The works are a ‘conversation’ within nature and create visual poetry that draws our attention to the many languages and communications that exist between all living things. Each panel can be read like the pages of a book, presenting the inherent knowledge that exists within nature.
Folded Blanket, 2022
Cobnut tree leaves gilded on one side in copper leaf
Folded Blanket is a new work that shows a blanket covered in leaves and then folded and framed. The leaves were pressed, layered and preserved. A blanket is a domestic object associated with comfort, simplicity and empathy. Newling uses the blanket as a metaphor for the need for the human species to re-establish an essential co-relationship with nature.
Playing a Sentence , 2022
Leaves
Playing a Sentence is a series of objects made from leaves. A paper aeroplane, a scroll, a mobile phone, a fan, a set of whistles and a scrunched ball of paper. The objects are presented in a line like a sentence, with each object as a character. The work, in part, references Newling's delight in play as a way of learning more about materials and the interconnectedness of objects. He finds wonder in a child’s instinctive attraction to the natural environment, play and construction; an activity he understands and continues to do.
Between hands and the leaves of trees, 2022
Cobnut, Cherry, Apple, Plum and Birch leaves
The work titled Between hands and the leaves of trees is a series of scrunched ‘paper’ balls made from leaves. Newling has formed and manipulated a collection of leaves to take on the characteristics of a sheet of paper screwed up into a ball. The transformation of materials is a recurring theme in many of Newling’s artworks. These ‘simple’ forms are charged with layers of meaning. The form of a discarded ball of paper created from leaves evokes humans’ carelessness and detachment from nature, while simultaneously presenting nature’s insurmountable energy.
Research Drawings – 9 Twists of Nature, 1978–1979
Graphite and ink on paper
Included in the exhibition to mark Newling’s 50 years of practice, are a series of drawings from 1978–1979, Research Drawings – 9 Twists of Nature. Produced during his time at Chelsea School of Art, these are one of the earliest examples of the artist’s dialogues with nature. From a series of 16, these drawings are an entirely poetic imagining of the physical construction, DNA and energetic patterns to be found in trees, assembled with an almost scientific aesthetic. Newling, throughout his career, has continually explored the tension between philosophy, science and morality and advocated for a society built on new values, recognising nature as its central tenet.