The Geneva based gallery Taste Contemporary is proud to announce its inclusion in a new series of specially curated exhibitions presented by Brian Kennedy under the title Rear Window, which takes place at Masons Yard, St. James, London over eight weeks from October to December 2019. Exploring attitudes to contemporary creativity, the series will begin on 30 October 2019 with the Taste Contemporary exhibition, entitled Beau-laid, the gallery’s first show in the UK.

Beau-laid a wonderful French word that introduces us to the notion of beauty within a piece that might, on the surface, be perceived as ugly; the idea that seemingly contradictory values can co-exist in the same work. The term first emerged in philosophy but appears frequently in art. Intrigued to hear this term used recently at artgenève by a collector, describing work also presented by Taste Contemporary, curator Brian Kennedy now explores the concept of beau-laid in this new exhibition, which highlights some of the gallery’s leading artists.

Primarily featuring works in clay and glass, Beau-laid considers the dichotomy of ugly beauty through the lens of artists whose work has shifted from the functional to the sculptural as they investigate both the physical and emotional limits of their material while at the same time eliminating all pre-existing notions that ceramics and glass are simply pretty, decorative objects.

The emotional, emotive and intensely personal ceramic works created by artist Virginia Leonard, which exude both beauty and trauma, are powerful self-portraits that address her bodily scarring and experiences of chronic pain. Anne Marie Laureys describes her work as ‘a physical exploration of action, reaction and interaction between hand, mind and material’. This results in ambitious forms that challenge the viewer’s notion of a vessel form, while Heidi Bjørgan confronts the viewer’s perception of ceramic ‘skills’ by creating dynamic and expressive works that appear as if they have melted or imploded in the kiln.

The exhibition also includes the work of glass artist Fredrik Nielsen whose work continuously resists the notion of comfortable, balanced forms, often appearing unfinished and rough around the edges. Placing this object-based work within a broader multidisciplinary context, Beau-laid will, in addition, contain work by Diane Arbus and Alison Elizabeth Taylor.