Went to the opening of 'Politics in Print' at Exeter Phoenix Galleries last night. The exhibition is the result of a commission by Double Elephant Print Workshop, which invited artists to respond to the archive at the Devon Record Office. Although I didn't apply for the commission myself, I was excited to see it happening. Support for professional artists to make challenging work is all too rare in Exeter.
It was a tough brief: it must have been hard to know where to start when faced with the Devon Record Office's vast archive. For some artists there was the additional challenge of mastering printmaking itself, albeit with the expert support of Double Elephant.
Although the exhibition contained a significant quantity of collaged/reworked archive material (with lengthy history lessons attached), some of the work offered a more digested and contemporary view. Steven Paige's redacted texts were particularly of the moment. With their focus on secrecy, censorship and reconstructed truth, they seem a perfect complement to the Wikileaks news story.
The exhibition includes seven artists in total: Lucy Brett, Volkhardt Müller, Steven Paige, Gary Powell, Jonathan Velardi, Catherine Cartwright and Nicci Wonnacott.
Until 30th January. Exeter Phoenix Galleries, Gandy Street, Exeter EX4 3LS
http://www.exeterphoenix.org.uk/galleries/?page=1
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