Throughout the weeks after the first exhibition the curatorial team looked after the artworks from the Barne Barton Loves Art exhibition, this allowed us the chance to take the work into the new space and select photographs from each of the stations of the previous exhibition to form the archival show.
The Curatorial Team, Mantle Gardens, Studi 11 Plymouth College of Art, Photographed by Gem Ward
The day before the exhibition the curatorial team cleared the space, and I further repainted some of the freestanding plinths whilst Tess and Reiss touched up the walls. This allowed us to lay out the images we had selected within the room to ensure it was how we had previously planned it to look. The collection of images displayed some of the community arts work that had happened within Barne Barton, we used the space to create a story/timeline of events. It was due to this choice we decided it would be best to hang each image on one level within the white cube gallery space. We also felt it important to include two pieces from the ‘Bonkers Bunting’ one of which was a top which we placed onto a mannequin next to the images, and the other a pillow on a lower plinth in the center of the room, this allowed us to curate the room and the way in which the public would view the work. When hanging the photographs we ensured consistency by using the same clear pins we had previously used in the Barne Barton Event.
Install Mantle Gardens, Studio 11 Plymouth College of Art, Photographed by Gem Ward
Install Mantle Gardens, Studio 11 Plymouth College of Art, Photographed by Gem Ward
Install Mantle Gardens, Studio 11 Plymouth College of Art, Photographed by Gem Ward
Install Mantle Gardens, Studio 11 Plymouth College of Art, Photographed by Gem Ward
The curation of Mantle Gardens was very different to how we had presented it within Tamar View, we were able to concisely show the development within Barne Barton through an archive cleanly presented, whereas the exhibition at Tamar View was much more complex. However, both were challenging and in the situations the curatorial team thrived. One element that worked very well was Will Danby’s Photo Booth images, we had given him the guidelines for 5 A3 Images, to which he selected. These images were an incentive for the community to come and see and were very well received.
Artist As Curator 