 Poised in the Infinite Ocean, 2004 Three screen video installation, sound Ergin Cavusoglu Poised in the Infinite Ocean & Tahtakale Ergin Cavusoglu (born Bulgaria, 1968) is one of the leading emerging artists in the UK and is known for his poetic and unsettling video installations that reframe our sense of our surroundings. He represented Turkey at the Venice Biennale in 2003 and received widespread public attention earlier this year when he was short-listed for the Becks Futures Prize. The Haunch of Venison exhibition presents two new works in the artist's first major solo show in London. Cavusoglu explores our relationship to the space we inhabit and live in - in particular, he explores light's ability to define space. By capturing a poetic rhythm of light and movement, both individually through editing, and collectively through the juxtaposition of screens, the works reframe our sense of space, and of reality. Cavusoglu uses darkness and sound as means to unsettle our sense of our surroundings and evoke the presence of the unseen. Although the sequencing of the works suggest specific scenarios and political points of view, the absence of resolved narratives gives the work a poetic quality. The Haunch of Venison exhibition showcases "Tahtakale" (Wooden Fortress), 2004 and "Poised in the Infinite Ocean", 2004. "Tahtakale" is a four screen video installation that presents groups of men working in Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, and a screen of scrolling text reporting snatches of their conversations. These are accompanied by a soundtrack of music sung by a Byzantine orthodox male choir. Two groups are traders, one in currency, the other gold, and lighting and editing are used to explore their interaction, and relationship to the space they work in. This work is carried out by phone and through the intimate interaction of the traders, while the goods themselves are unseen, as are the millions of people in Turkey whose lives are affected by these conversations. They are represented by the screen of images of market labourers who work in a different section of the market, queueing to receive their heavy burdens of tangible goods. "Poised in the Infinite Ocean", 2004 is a three screen installation of locations filmed in the Bay of Biscay: a chateau by the ocean; the sky and sea; and the town and lighthouse of Biarritz. A storm brings lightning and rain to the town, and in this juxtaposition of nature and the built environment, the light from the lighthouse both defines the space while giving an alarming signal to sailors to avoid the treacherous rocks below. The screens are accompanied by a soundtrack of a literary narrative that introduces ideas about living and working at sea, in a potentially hostile environment. Ergin Cavusoglu was born in Bulgaria as part of the Turkish minority, studied in Istanbul and in London, where he now lives and works. He recently had a solo show at the DCA in Dundee, Scotland, and earlier this year showed at the Berlin Biennial. Exhibition: 28 October - 30 November 2004 Opening hours: Mon/Tue/Wed/Fri 10 am - 6 pm Thu 10 am - 7 pm, Sat 10 - 5 pm Haunch of Venison 6 Haunch of Venison Yard GB-London, W1K 5ES Telephone +44 (0)20 7495 5050 Fax +44 (0)20 7495 4050 Email calum@haunchofvenison.com www.haunchofvenison.com |
 |