Black Box Projects is a new art gallery in London which specialises in contemporary photography and contemporary art that is created using photographic materials. It currently represents Steve Macleod internationally and Liz Nielsen in the UK. For its first exhibition, the gallery will present a selection of work by Macleod and Nielsen at 15 Bateman Street, London W1D 3AQ from 6 - 10 March 2018.
The exhibition will showcase around 20 pieces from each artist. Works from Macleod's previous series Blackwater, Aeld, Nil, Li+, Hel, Traverse and Murmur all made over the last decade will be on show, and many of which have not been exhibited before. All shot in the UK on a large-format camera, Macleod uses nature to share the conceptual impact and influence it can have on our emotions, our health and our imagination. Represented exclusively by Black Box Projects, his works are held in both private and public collections, including HRH the Duchess of Cambridge and HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Hazza' Al Nahyan.
Macleod is also a regular lecturer and speaker on photography, a Visiting Professor at UCS East Anglia; a Trustee of the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QEST) and Lifetime member of Frontline Club in London. He also operates a successful mentorship programme for emerging artists.
Brooklyn-based photographic artist Liz Nielsen will be represented by 20 unique colour photograms, all made in 2017, ranging in size from 40 x 50 cm to 100 x 127 cm. Her works have been exhibited in New York, Chicago, Paris, London, Budapest, Amsterdam and Berlin. Her unique photographs are printed in the analogue colour darkroom with handmade negatives and found light sources.
Liz earned her MFA from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2004, her BFA from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2002, and her BA in Philosophy and Spanish from Seattle University in 1997. Nielsen's works have been reviewed in The New Yorker, The Financial Times, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and ArtSlant.
In May 2018, Black Box Projects will take part in Photo London presenting Steve Macleod's latest series Hala, which will be the debut exhibition of this project. The gallery will host a solo show of new work by Liz Nielsen in London in October.
Black Box Projects is committed to working with artists who push the limits of traditional photographic practice. The gallery does not keep a permanent space, instead it arranges pop-up exhibitions in order to tailor the experience to the individual needs of the artist and the work to be shown. It aims to be a pioneer of the changing gallery model, as well as presenting a transparent working model with artists, clients and other gallerists that fosters community, creativity and collaboration.
Anna Kirrage and Kathlene Fox-Davies are the Directors of Black Box Projects. Collectively, they have nearly 30 years of art-world experience.
Anna began her career at The Fleming Collection before working for The London Original Print Fair. She then spent 6 years as Account Director at the arts consulting agency, Cawdell Douglas, where she managed clients including The Grosvenor House Art & Antiques Fair, the BADA Antiques & Fine Art Fair, Tefaf Maastricht, Masterpiece London, The Fine Art Society, Sims Reed, Pangolin London and Bowman Sculpture. Following this, Anna worked as a freelance consultant and was instrumental in the merger between two consultancies, Muse and Cawdell Douglas to create a new arts agency - Golden Squared Consulting.
Kathlene began her career as a Sales Associate at Michael Hoppen Gallery before moving to Hasted Hunt in New York as Gallery Manager. On her return to London, Kathlene joined Halcyon Gallery as an art consultant before becoming Associate Director at ATLAS Gallery in Marylebone. She left Atlas Gallery in 2014 to establish her own art consultancy, Fox-Davies Contemporary, where she worked with a select group of clients helping to build their collections. Kathlene is also a frequent contributor to Monocle Radio as a guest art expert, offering a commentary on the current arts headlines as well as reviews of gallery shows and art fairs.