Relentless Optimism, a Moment of Blindness Before and After the Dark Space
25 September – 18 October 2015
1pm to 6pm Thursday to Sunday
Private View: Thursday 24 September, 6pm to 8pm
Relentless Optimism, a Moment of Blindness Before and After the Dark Space, is an exhibition of new film work by Aaron Wells (Chelsea Studio Award).
Using collaged filmic material from a diverse collection of found audio-visual footage, as well as specific material recorded by the artist, the resulting film works interrogate what it is to exist in a place, whether that place be physically real, digital or imagined.
This investigation is paired with an interest in the social and cultural aspects of the disparate imagery that is manipulated on screen, material taken from a range of sources: from virtual tour videos and advertising, to intimate shots of sites with historical and personal significance to the artist.
The exhibition deals with themes of allegory, passivity and unfounded optimism, exploring problems attached to the contemporary fantasy of ‘the good life,’ while simultaneously critiquing the essential state of living within the present.