work / THE BUTCHER SHOP 2017
The Butcher Shop
Acrylic and spray paint on MDF
each work 59cm x 84cm 2017
exhibited
Ten Cubed Peter Atkins - 5 Projects
3rd April - 16th June 2018
List of works:
1. Mince/Lamb Cutlets
2. Hamburgers/Giblets
3. T-Bone/Filet Mignon
4. Spare Ribs
5. Meatballs/Lebanese Sausages
6. Beef Cheeks/Soup Bones
7. Rissoles/Chump Chops
8. Chopped Liver/Rump Steak
below: Butcher shop sign / reference form
The Butcher Shop is a new project that will be exhibited in the front window space of Ten Cubed Gallery as part of my forthcoming exhibition. The work is a response to the specific context of the site within the suburban shopping strip along Malvern Road, in Melbourne. The series of eight works reference the ubiquitous butcher shop signage, used to advertise various trays of meat products carefully arranged in glass cabinets, often seen in the front wndow of local Butcher shops, the small, star shaped, handwritten signs that also denote daily or weekly specials.
The works are stripped of all text and numerals, becoming blank slates, acting purely as emotional triggers to evoke the viewers own narratives and memories, of standing and looking in from the street, through the plate glass, to the trays of sausages, steaks and rissoles displayed inside. Over the course of the exhibition only one work from the series will be displayed in the front window of the gallery. This work will change each week, becoming the new 'weekly special' - an attempt to tap in to the rhythm of the street and neighbouring businesses. This singular act of looking in at the artwork from the outside could be seen to mirror a memory of a past experience, when the local Hardware, Butcher, Milk Bar, Grocer and Baker all sat side by side along busy suburban streets.
The butcher shop has now become the art gallery, as the changing narrative continues...
Below: Studio installation 2017/18
