Attic Project
Attic Project was a 1999 to 2001 site-specific drawing activity on the interior attic walls of a rented house. A previous occupant’s mark-making, an interest in Neoclassical painting, and Gaston Bachelard’s book The Poetics of Space were the inspirations. This ephemeral work became the model for a painting/sculpture installation exhibited in 2007 at the Beaverbrook Art Gallery.
“Through a small window, we can see the interior of an attic, walls covered in graffiti and drawings. This provides us with an almost voyeuristic experience; we’ re invited to snoop and see what we can in this interior space. The backdrop for this is a large canvas depicting, in much larger scale, the rendering of the classical façade that appears on the tiny interior wall. We are transformed in an instant from Brobdingnagian to Lilliputian.”
Peter Powning – excerpt from the Leap of Faith exhibition catalogue essay, published, 2007
Gaston Bachelard_s inspirational quote, 1999
Attic staircase, 1999
West Gable, before drawing activity, 1999
West Gable, charcoal drawing referencing a Gian Paulo Panini painting, 2001
West Gable, detail of drawing referencing a Gian Paulo Panini painting, 2001
South Gable, before drawing activity, 1999
South Gable, charcoal drawing referencing the Pantheon, Paris Catacombs and Pompeii, 2001
South Gable, detail of drawing referencing the Paris Catacomb, 2001
East Gable, before drawing activity, 1999
Rachel Brodie, documenting East Gable, 2001
East Gable, detail of drawing referencing a Gian Paulo Panini painting, 2001
North Gable, charcoal drawing referencing the Medici Chapel, 2001
North Gable, detail of drawing referencing the Medici Chapel, 2001
Exterior of the attic space, 2001
Art appreciation publication referencing the Gian Paulo Panini painting subject
Attic, painting_sculpture installation, Beaverbrook Art Gallery, 2007
Attic, painting, 2007, acrylic and charcoal on canvas, 305 x 213.5 cm
Interior view into the attic sculpture, 2007, acrylic paint, foamcore, photographs, 157.5 x 30.5 x 30.5
Attic Installation, 2007, Beaverbrook Art Gallery, Michaëlle Jean, Greg Charlton, Laura Ritchie, and Peter Powning