The Golden Land of the Sunny South by Anna Davern
Anna Davern brings contemporary jewellery to life in her new exhibition at e.g.etal, The Golden Land of Sunny South. Davern has created a large, mechanised diorama that can be manipulated by handles, cranks and pulleys to play out a fantastical narrative, peppered with strange hybrid characters designed to be removed and worn as jewellery.
The diorama features a fictional retelling of colonial exploration in an altered landscape – fused with the pomp and ceremony of Elizabethan tradition. A painterly scene in the style of Eugene Von Gueard provides the backdrop for a group of explorers as they embark on a journey.
Unbeknownst to the protagonists, hidden in this mysterious landscape are concealed ‘menaces’ – humorously constructed characters that materialise as the viewer turns a crank or pulls a lever.
Each piece of the narrative tells its own story. A Knight Commander adorned with pearls sports the head of a cat and rides a camel. A circus carriage transports a bust of King Henry VIII, drawn by four sheep. Removed from the landscape, each character becomes a decorative object for display or adornment. A souvenir of a mysterious land: discovered, possessed and tamed.
Dates: 31 August – 12 September, 2015
Drinks with the artist Friday 4 September, 5-7pm at e.g.etal
Presented as part of Radiant Pavilion.
