Title: Art Lab: Experiments in Collaboration, curated by Alice Bradshaw
Date: 30 July – 11 September 2022
Location: Crossley Gallery, Dean Clough, Halifax

This exhibition showcases work by 34 artists randomly paired to collaborate over the course of 4 months with a diverse range of practices and collaboration methodologies.The exhibition marks a return to the physical space after Covid restrictions and also relaunches the Art Lab monthly meetings.

Preview: 30 July, 12-2pm
Preview performances by: Andy Abbott & Kimbal Bumstead, Siobhan Wall, Carrieanne Viviaette & Secret Pockets

Gallery opening times: Monday – Sunday 10am – 5pm, free entry.
Closing discussion: Monday 12 September, 7pm, Fletcher’s Mill, Dean Clough with Ebony Andrews & Ian C Taylor.

I was paired with Abu Jafar.

Journey

Clare and I were both born in the same continent and spent significant parts of our lives in Dhaka before moving away to a new culture and a new environment that is the United Kingdom.

Our narrative is full of stories of struggling over obstacles to experience so many different aspects of life’s challenges and successes.

The Process of life is akin to a dot, then this moves forward to a running journey; on its way, exploring at every step of the way constant change and evolving forms.

“Journey” is a conceptual artwork with 48 painted paper boxes placed in four plinths – two of the plinths are about the desire to touch, one is about the desire to be close, whilst the other resonates feelings of drifting away or coming to the shore like travellers or perhaps like refugees in precious dinghies.

Those boxes are like a gift from an artists’ inner soul, where it has a connotation of society’s behaviour. Within this is the exploration of power, of struggle and domination which itself exists in a constant battle and state of flux.

Abu Jafar

I was excited to be paired with Abu and to discover the unexpected connection of Dhaka, where my father had been posted with the British Council. The boxes on one of the plinths can’t be touched or moved by the public, they are protected, out of reach; on another they are placed higher up so that they are perhaps less inviting to touch, a little more aloof, harder to reach. The boxes on the lower plinths invite the viewer to play, to touch, to build, to bring together and enjoy closeness.

Clare Smith

All images: Abu Jafar