Space In Between is delighted to present a group exhibition of new work by four international artists: Sarah Bayliss, María Angélica Madero, Ninna Bohn Pedersen and Belén Zahera. (play)ground-less takes as its starting point a manifesto which outlines a series of theoretical and practical signposts or parameters, creating a structure within which the group of artists have begun to explore a collaborative practice. Working from different countries, and following the idea of ‘play’, an ongoing series of tactics were generated to continually negotiate the terms of the project; tactics applied as interventions to trigger modes of doing, thinking, relating and acting upon, without ever solving a problem or achieving a goal. Instead, the project allows new methodologies and languages to take hold within the production of art works.

In an attempt to reverse the logic of a group show - where works are chosen or produced in order to respond to a previously set idea or topic - (play)ground-less is conceived as an arena to create the material conditions for the exchange and production of knowledge. With a focus on the tension between practice and theory, this exhibition brings together individual contributions that function as footnotes for a larger collective state of mind.

(play)ground-less includes new sculptural, video and text-based works, appropriated within the larger framework and moderated within the collective. The resulting show becomes a set for staging objects and gestures that respond to the process of making through chance, causality, repetition and rhythm. Through a sequence of designed structures, the sound of the artists’ voices and objects presented - as though they were instruments - enter into a dialogue with the space. This sound piece intermittently suggests what is at stake on the stage as a whole. In the video, the bodies of the artists merge as they engage with the nearby surfaces, letting go of the individual distinction. As in the collapsed costume, the body is held against the shape of a circle reminiscent of a play. The idea of eternity and silence is suggested in a collection of objects and gestures; an ‘etcetera’ sign, a military drum, three head poles pointing at themselves, and two moulds of yellow dragon fruit. The tangram game acts as a platform for a series of pieces that - through visual associations - allude to the paradoxical idea of the ‘third half’. They investigate the act of holding and the sculptural character of hands; an old doorknocker, two casted walnuts, two rocks and two images.

The group’s research has been comprised into a publication that sheds light on the processes, exchanges and conversations that give form to the project and the works in the exhibition. This accompanying publication - printed in a limited run of 150 copies - is available for £5.

Sarah Bayliss lives and works in London. She received the Claire Winsten Award for UK female artist from the Slade in 2012. She has shown nationally and internationally including at Baltic 39, Newcastle; Goethenburg Cultural Festival, Sweden; The Book Society, Seoul. She is represented by Space In Between, London.

María Angélica Madero lives and works in Bogota. She is an artist and translator, currently working as the head of Visual Arts at El Bosque University. She has an MA in Art from the Slade and an MA in Philosophy from Kingston University. International shows include Baltic 39, Newcastle; Tent Gallery, Edinburgh; and Noplace, Oslo.

Ninna Bohn Pedersen lives and works in Copenhagen. She graduated from the Slade in 2012 having won the Adrian Carruthers studio award for excellence. She has exhibited internationally including W139 gallery, Amsterdam; MACA, Athens; Baltic 39, Newcastle; Arti et Amicitia, Amsterdam.

Belén Zahera lives and works in Madrid. She graduated from the Slade and is currently a PhD candidate in Fine Arts at Universidad Complutense. She was awarded the Generación 2014 prize and the Botin Foundation Visual Arts Grant. She has worked with Silvia Cuenca Sanz (zahera+cuenca); co-founded Salon Flux (London); and is a member of Proyecto Rampa (Madrid).