Pam Glew — Beautiful and Damned

This evening sees the opening of post-urban pop artist, Pam Glew’s thrid London solo entitled 'Beautiful and Damned at Blackall Studios. The shows title, taken from F. Scott Fitzgeralds 1922 novel, explores the listless lives of moneyed society during the Jazz Age. This captivating era, drenched in glamour yet tinged with tragedy is the decadent setting for this extraordinary series of work. The exquisitely beautiful movie starlets, society icons and characters on display capture the spirit of the age, who are caught in the unforgiving glare of the limelight and some sadly burn out before their time. As Pam states "the tragedy amongst the beauty is what has inspired this show, the sharp contrast between a blessed life and one that ends in scandal, hedonism or destitution".
For this latest series, Pam Glew uses found materials from the same period. This is the first time she has incorporated antiques into her work. Each piece is deconstructed, dyed, and repeatedly bleached until a portrait emerges from the cloth. Rather than add pigment, Glew takes away the pigments in layers, creating ghostly figures, which appear almost woven into the cloth. The iconic portraits, include such characters as Charlie Chaplin, Bette Davis and Louise Brooks, who define the true spirit of the age.
The exhibition houses a new body of large-scale work on vintage and antique fabrics and two new small editions on aluminium. Downstairs in the gallery space, there will be rare and limited edition prints not previously seen.
PRIVATE VIEW Tuesday 24th May RSVP only. 6pm - 10pm. RSVP for this event is essential
Please email richard@maugermodern.com to be placed on the guest list.
Exhibition Wed 25th - Sun 29th May 10am - 6pm
Blackall Studios | 73 Leonard Street | London | EC2A 4QS