I wasn't sure I wanted to go to Houghton this year as I knew little about Tony Cragg and his work and I was also not sure that I wanted to spend the money visiting work that I didn't particularly respond to. However, that is exactly why i should have gone or indeed why anyone should go and experience any work. Don't feel comfortable, don't just see what you like. Go and explore, see new work, discover old work, find out about the work, the artist and their influences and thoughts.
So when the opportunity came to go over to Houghton Hall and not only see Sir Anthony's work with fellow Fine Art students from NUA but to also meet the man himself it was too good an opportunity to miss. This was about two weeks before we all started back from the long summer break and it would be another way to get back in the swing of things.
Initially we were welcomed to the estate and given the current brochure (which was printed by a supplier of mine in my Art Director world). We had a look at a few of the pieces and generally caught up with each other before Tony was introduced to us by Lord Cholmondeley, unfortunately I wasn't brave enough to ask if he had seen my Braille Land Art proposal for Houghton Hall (https://carldurban.wixsite.com/website/post/thinking-big). Maybe next time..
We only had a limited time with Tony as he was off to Sweden, or Germany, he couldn't quite remember where... in fact this was the first time he had actually seen his work in this space and environment, due to the Covid restrictions, as he lives in Germany and has done for so long now he struggled remembering certain English words as he was talking to us. As is the norm at Houghton there are certain locations for a visiting artist to show their work, a mixture of being in the grounds, a small gallery and then locations within the house itself. Wherever they are and whoever they are by there is always that juxtaposition of the art against the grandeur of the stately home and grounds. In recent years I have seen Damien Hirst and Anish Kapoor's work on display here. It is as far away from a gallery as you can get, which does give a new reading to the work but I think it is a unique opportunity and the fact it is on the doorstep, well 35 minutes away is something to be embraced, whatever you feel about art in this sort of location.
There were one or two points that Tony made during his discussion that really struck home. The first of which was that as an artist you must always create the work you want to create, explore the areas that interest you and be true to yourself. It is only by doing this that you will be able to discover answers and develop your practice. Having worked for most of my life in the Advertising and Design sector and answering briefs where you may be able to express your ideas and thoughts you are always at the bequest of the client and are basically responding to what they want. And more often than not having to do something they want, not necessarily what you want or believe to be right.
The other main point that I took from Tony was that anything manmade has geometry. Although this is a wide sweeping statement it does ring true. Everything produced conforms, it has regularity, even when it is made to look as if it doesn't. There are patterns, shapes, regularities and control. Nature doesn't work like this and he has been very active in trying to avoid those type of restrictions. Which when you start to examine his work more you can see exactly what he means. He bends, twists, stretches and pushes his work to create the extraordinary pieces, large and small. It all started to make sense.
One of the things I found most interesting about the exhibition, which is slightly ironic, considering it is a show was about a sculptor, were the drawings and sketches. They really do show the initial ideas and thoughts that went on to become many of the pieces on show but in isolation they are fascinating. The same hand is clearly evident, the same approach and exploration that is such a distinctive part of the three dimensional work can really be seen in them.
A great and unique opportunity, especially as we invited exclusively and the general public weren't even on site at the time. It opened our eyes into those of the creator and gave an insight into his approach, it informed and it educated. Thank you Sir Tony, thank you Lord Cholmondeley and Houghton Hall, thank you NUA.
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