Artist Research: Jim Lambie's Site Specific Vinyl Tape Installations.
Jim Lambie.
James "Jim" Lambie (born 1964) is a contemporary visual artist who lives and works in Glasgow, Scotland. As well as being a visual artist, he also operates as a musician and a DJ. Lambie graduated from the Glasgow School of Art (1990-1994) with an Honors Bachelor of Arts degree and went on to be shortlisted for the Turner Prize in 2005 as a result of his installation piece called Mental Oyster.
Mental Oyster, installation view, Anton Kern Gallery New York, 2004.
Lambie specialises in colourful sculptural installations made from everyday modern materials. This approach to working has allowed him to develop a technique and a trademark theme within his artistic practice (Vinyl Tape Floor Patterns). These site specific installations are comprised from brightly coloured vinyl tape that have been arranged into patterns around the floor of the gallery space. The process traces the shape of the room and subsequently reveals the idiosyncrasies of its architecture. By applying the tape in an arrangement of continuous lines, it transforms the dynamic of the space and brings an energy into the space that's often absent from the usual quiet gallery setting.
“For me something like Zobop, the floor piece, it is creating so many edges that they all dissolve. Is the room expanding or contracting? … Covering an object somehow evaporates the hard edge off the thing, and pulls you towards more of a dreamscape.”
Jim Lambie
Jim Lambie's Zobop Floor Installation at The Goss- Michael Foundation, (7 APR - 3 SEPT 2011).
The Fruitmarket Gallery, Edinburgh.
During my year on the Art and Design Extended course at University of Sunderland (Glass Centre) prior to starting my Fine Art Degree, there was a day visit to Edinburgh which I attended. The visit included a look around the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art and also The Fruitmarket Gallery.
As a result of this trip I got the opportunity to see and photograph a solo exhibition of Jim Lambie's work at The Fruitmarket Gallery which was being shown (27 June - 19 October 2014) as part of the Edinburgh Art Festival 2014.
The exhibition was nearing the end of its duration on show when I visited on the 5th September 2014 and it included a blend of his earliest sculptures like(The Kid with the Replaceable Head, 1996) (Roadie,1999) (Zobop,1999) alongside some of his more recent pieces like a new version of (Shaved Ice, 2011/14).
Jim Lambie's Shaved Ice, 2011/14.
My Experience and Opinion.
The multi-coloured floor piece that is Zobop (1999) was a prominent piece, that instantly took my attention and focus whilst walking around on the upper level of the exhibition. The way in which the strips of Vinyl Tape worked their way inwards from the perimeter of the space towards the centre created a sense of rhythm and vibrancy that stood out for me against the white walls. This combination of vibrant colours and line work was great to experience when walking around as it made me focus on the surface beneath my feet, which is something that is often overlooked when I'm walking around a gallery space as work tends to be installed on the walls or as an object to walk around.
This use of an everyday material and its ability to create a line of colour was instantly something that I found interesting and I was intrigued to see what other outcomes could be achieved by using it. I never touched upon or introduced this material into my own studio practice until recently when I used a similar material (Insulation Tape) nearing the end of my 1st year on my Fine Art Degree. This use of using Insulation Tape as a way to create pattern on the surface of MDF and blocks of wood was something I created and found visually successful, as a result of feedback I received in my first year final exhibition.
Therefore on return to University and my second year of studio practice, my aim and focus is to introduce Vinyl Tape and other materials that I haven't yet explored, as a way of creating a body of work that continues to look at Abstraction, Line, Space, Repetition, Colour, Movement and Depth.
With this is mind I have been continuing with this process of creating pattern and compositions on MDF and also thinking about how the dimensions can be scaled up to be wall mounted. This idea and method is one I'm currently still exploring and gaining knowledge about in order to make my designs look more complex and to give the illusion of dimension.
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