Break in Transmission at The Holden Gallery

James Mathews-Hiskett
Fiona Banner, Tête à tête, 2014 Courtesy of the artist

Break in Transmission at The Holden Gallery, Manchester 22 January — 16 March 2018 Entrance is free

The Holden Gallery has an uncanny knack for drawing unexpected parallels and creating dynamic and exciting group exhibitions. Drawing on the unpredictable and unintentional, Break in Transmission certainly does not disappoint. Featuring Meriç Algün, Fiona Banner, Kerry Tribe, Shannon Ebner and Sam Durant, The Holden Gallery present a group of artists unafraid to expose the failures, miscommunications and unforeseen possibilities innate within modern modes of communication.

The artists range across text, installation, video and photography, pushing the limitations of their chosen medium and ripping context from under our feet. Language is at the heart of it all, as we see transformation as well as transmission, moments of change, and of loss. Although the work in this show seems at times ontological, it is also positively outward facing and routed in human experience.

Durant examines the power of language in a political setting. He appropriates texts taken from political protest signage and creates vibrant works using light boxes. Thus, changing the context of language loaded with emotion and creating a profound effect. Authorship as well as situation are scrutinised by Algün, who uses modes of collecting and receiving to expose the pitfalls of written communication. However, this is expressed in an almost celebratory fashion, recognising the power of failure to expand limitations and preconceptions.

Transformation takes on a physicality in Banner’s work, which combines language with a potent materiality. She creates tension where a relationship is formed between solid and industrial materials and written communication. Ebner also investigates how materials relate to one another, using photography to make the changing and fluid nature of text static. Similarly, Tribe expresses the failure of any one medium to record complex events, such as past memories, creating multi-media pieces that expose the ultimately flawed nature of representing the past.

At a time when the misinterpretation of information, and its questionable authenticity, seems so current, Break in Transmission at The Holden Gallery presents a truly thought-provoking experience.

Break in Transmission at The Holden Gallery, Manchester 22 January — 16 March 2018 Entrance is free

Where to go near Break in Transmission at The Holden Gallery

Manchester
Gallery
Manchester School of Art

The Manchester School of Art, of which the Holden Gallery is a part, is a beautiful neo-Gothic building that’s part of MMU’s All Saints campus.

Manchester Metropolitan University Brooks building, Birley Campus in Manchester
Manchester
Event venue
MMU Birley Campus

Birley is Manchester Met’s world-class centre for Education and Health Professionals and the university’s flagship community campus.

The Salutation pub in Manchester
Manchester
Bar or Pub
The Salutation

This traditional boozer, surrounded by imposing flats and university buildings, was taken over by Trof (of the Deaf Institute fame). The Sally, as the regulars call it, hosts an energetic, arty crowd – and its recently expanded outside area is another good reason to visit.

Manchester
University
MMU Student Union

Manchester Metropolitan University Students’ Union building houses a bar and various other facilities for students and staff.

Manchester
Catalog Bookshop

Find Peter and his Christiania cargo bike around All Saints Park, a hop, skip and a bunnyhop from Manchester Poetry Library.

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