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ON THE LINE @ Crimes town gallery. 30/5/2009

From:     Mel.
Category: Exhibitions
Date:     31 May 2009
Time:     12:03 PM

Review:

This was my first visit to Crimes Town in Stoke newington. I'd heard a few good things about it over the year, but living in the other 
side of town means that travelling to a non tube area is just too much of chore to go just to see an exhibition...
Anyway...i thought this exhibition was well worth my hour journey and hey there's loads of great places for a post exhibtion coffee 
or dinner. Its quite a small gallery space but well thought out and this is a really well curated show with a consistently high 
standard of art. everything works well together with a strong thread between the works. Shane Bradford's mein Kampf book 
dipped in paint is beatiful whilst being heavily loaded with nihilistic intent...in contrast Oliver Clegg's delicately poised card tower 
is just waiting to be wafted over. 
In the back room Ben Newton offers a wonderfully crafted bullion bar with a ready made axe stuck in the middle of it..a very topical 
comment on the current art world plight whilst raising issues of marxist thought on commodity fetishism. Ian Monroe's works are as 
splendid as ever and work really well in this small space where you can really study up close the precision and skill of thier 
making. the film by ayman  Ramadan? is a very hipnotic piece based on the last supper. Elsewhere Gavin Turk adds his usual 
brand of humour to the events whilst complimenting the ethos of the exhibitions theme...
On the whole this was a really refreshing show that puts many west end 'blue chip' gallery exhibitions to shame, and is well worth 
the visit to Stoke Newington ...


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