Abstract

Michael Daglish
Sounding Stones (WIP), 2024
Black and White inkjet prints

Through his work, the fragility of our everyday life is echoed in the scar of a dried riverbed, or the shade offered by a monolithic rock.
The climbing community is small and tightly knit; smaller still are the groups of lifelong friends that the act of climbing binds together. In Standing Stones, Daglish explores one such group of climbers and considers his relationship towards these loved ones who are present, while equal significance is given to imperfections in the rock as the perfect ‘holds' are reminiscent of those who have passed. Even the boulders themselves are old friends jutting from a hillside, rising above a flat moor or hidden deep within a forested landscape. Each are sought out and revisited with a sense of exploration; their strengths and weaknesses are known and loved.

Part of a group show The Skin We Live In 23/11/2024 - 02/03/2025

The Skin We Live In is the inaugural exhibition of artwork from Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art’s collection brought together in a group show exploring contemporary portraiture through photography, painting, sculpture, film, and printmaking.

The exhibition features artwork by 29 contemporary artists and photographers who turn the tables on historic associations and practices of portraiture to go beyond ‘skin deep’ delving further into our shared human condition.

Portraiture’s origins trace back to ancient Egypt and until the invention of photography in 1822, painting, sculpture and drawing were utilised to provide a record of the ‘sitters’ appearance or capture a significant moment in time. Portraiture was initially the reserve of the rich and powerful who sort to display their importance, virtue, wealth, taste and power. Tending to flatter, the primary concern of portraitists was to capture the likeness of the sitter, bringing forth their character through distinctive features like their hands and face.

The artworks on display in The Skin We Live In move away from a focus on the individual to reveal a collective experience. They provide visibility and voice to marginalised communities and uncover aspects of our human experience such as loss, isolation, abuse and sexuality often held within ourselves. In many of the artworks, the face is abstracted, obscured, or masked to focus instead on the body incorporating performance, pose, clothing, personal effects or narrative construction to connect with the viewer, not through stare, but instead through honesty, humility and humanity.

Since 2006 Northern Gallery for Contemporary Art has acquired over 500 artworks by more than 50 artists or artist collectives with a focus on, but not limited to, lens-based media and the North East of England. Today the collection continues to grow and is widely loaned across the North East of England and United Kingdom.