Harminder Judge, A Ghost Dance, Private View

Join us for the opening of A Ghost Dance, a new solo exhibition by Harminder Judge happening simultaneously at Matt's Gallery and The Sunday Painter.

A processional performance between the two spaces will take place on the opening night, recalling early performance works by the artist.

A Ghost Dance is a show that references funeral rites, processions and the presence of ghosts and spirits. It draws on persistent themes in Judge’s work: life, death, ritual and rebirth, creating parallels between the deconstructed body and the cosmos.

The Ghost Dance of the title refers to a Native American ceremony. This type of circle dance was practised to raise the spirits of the dead in order to have them fight alongside the living to reclaim land from the colonial settlers.

Over recent years Judge has developed a distinctive and innovative practice grounded in an extended exploration of pigmented plaster as an artistic medium. The plaster sets – freezing a record of its creation in time - the surface is worked, polished and slowly worn away to reveal layers of colour, texture and movement beneath. This process embraces chance, and over time he has pushed it further with each new work. The results are sensual and seductive, with surfaces appearing sleek and shimmering. They have an illusory quality, seeming to hover in front of the wall, suggesting depth, evoking the idea of a portal or doorway and inviting the viewer to stay with them in contemplation.

For Matt’s Gallery Judge will work at scale, developing a monumental, enveloping expanse of material, pigment and colour for the space and setting this into dialogue with new discreet, floor-based semi-figurative works redolent of funereal urns or totems.

For The Sunday Painter, Judge will combine new works on a smaller scale with a new cadaver-like sculpture devised for their space.

Exhibition continues: 24 May – 7 July
Wednesday-Sunday, 12-6pm
at Matt's Gallery and The Sunday Painter

A Ghost Dance at Matt’s Gallery is supported by the Henry Moore Foundation.