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Re: Anna Barriball Exhibition Frith Street Gallery 15th january -...

From:     Ben Zanoe
Category: Art
Date:     06 February 2009
Time:     08:43 AM

Review:

Although I fully "get" the gist of the silver foil criticism I would like to redress the balance or
add a little further critical mileage to this observation about the materials used by Anna
Barriball. The use of domestic or non-art materials is by no means novel or outlandish but the
commonality allows us to measure the nuance of her authorship a little more conscisely. Anna
Barriball's work first came to my attention in the Newlyn Art Gallery, Penzance where I was both
surprised and delighted by this play of associated meanings, they were slightly inconsistent but
perhaps that is the point, after all much of this material flows backwards and forwards
simultaneously discovering a sensuousness in familiarity whilst referring back into a shared past of
domestic or personalized zones. This introspective probing can create obstructions in the way the
work is perceived culturally, and this was certainly my bone of contention that I had armed myself
with on both viewing occasions, moments of sheer revery, inconsistent logic and a sort of hyper
sensitivity contrast with oblique questioning silences and gladly there are no sixth form labels
nailed to the foreheads of the gallery staff wishing to stamp out curiosity.
I cannot think of a better gallery than Frith Street to show Anna Barriball's work and if upon
visiting the silver foil gets between you and some excellently conscise obfuscation it could be your
inner secret self reminding you to make a shopping list, a shopping list can be a very telling
document of our times.....


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