Lloyd Durling

Bit part

Lloyd Durling - In the Black

In the Black
Oil & Pen on paper, 84 x 90 cm

Lloyd Durling - In the Pink

In the Pink
Oil & Pen on paper, 84 x 90 cm

Lloyd Durling - Jazz Hands 2

Jazz Hands 2
Oil & Pen on paper, 30 x 42 cm

Lloyd Durling - Jazz Hands 3

Jazz Hands 3
Oil & Pen on paper, 30 x 42 cm

Lloyd Durling - View of Exhibition

View of the exhibition

Bit part

At the heart of Durling’s work is a duality between form and non form. But this duality is not a Manichean statement, it is far more worldly and smart for such a simplistic light/dark, good/evil analogy. It is too engrossed in sensuality and the corporeal to endure such restriction.

The apparent economy of structure is the result of a cumulative process whereby each repeated mark has its own micro-aura of overlap and placement that is mirrored by the work as a whole. But rather than being a mere a struggle for effect, the charm or trance of repetition creates a dynamism akin to a static discharge. The simplicity of his dominant media, felt-tip and oil, the use of paper as support, brings us straight to the surface.

The importance of surface cannot be underestimated. Line is replaced by areas of contact, overlap and omission. Space is filled around an image. Areas left blank depart from their role as suggestive silhouette and resonate with the absence of form. Here we are drawn into immediate participation, our need for information becomes the driving force. And ultimately this is what it’s about. Information.

Earlier work, which deals with stripped-down environments, carries a certain cinematic retro-sheen, and with it the concept of the edit. Difficult to locate historically, it seems the question being asked is when does the present slip into the past, and how much of that perception is mediated through the fictions we are exposed to. Durling has cited an indebtedness to the cinematography of Claude Chabrol, taking particular note of the textural collision between atavistic expression and social convention, the calm surface disrupted by unexpected bursts of brutality in films such as Le Femme infidèle, Le Boucher, or Que la bête meure.

Recent work focuses on the overtly sexual/sensual nature of plants, as well as what might be perceived as an inherent cruelty. Stylistically, in the suggestion of collage and tearing, we find discreet references to the work of Clyfford Still, another key influence. Form is once again conveyed through accumulation and omission, but with the added complexity of suggested forms. One particular work comes to mind. New Lips. Chromatically it displays Durling’s signature embedded coolness. But even putting aside the guidance of title, pitcher plant metamorphoses into mouth. However, the straightforward association between plant and lips enters into unsettling territory. This is a mouth composed of grafted or transplanted skin. As with many of the plant drawings, there is a repellent energy, the seductive segues into something less so, becoming a confrontation with mortality, a close-up that defamiliarises the traditional take on the memento mori. It should be noted that the surface here also enjoys an explorative loosening through the application of water, an untying of labour with an abandon that takes the work into new areas.

The graft-work alluded to in New Lips brings us to present explorations at Château de Sacy. An ambitious intervention involving the interaction of artwork with environment, the grafting of image onto its subject. An exploration where artwork becomes actual surface of the world, as well as its testimony.

Patrick Brandon


Previous Work

Lloyd Durling - New Lips

New Lips
Watercolour on paper, 12 x 16 cm, 2010

Still life (Ivory Black)

Still life (Ivory Black)
Wood Engraving, 36 x 26 cm, 2010



Sunrise

Sunrise
Pen & Graphite on Paper, 30 x 42 cm, 2010

Red Interior

Red Interior
Pen & Graphite on Paper, 60 x 80 cm, 2010

Still life (Peach Black)

Still life (Peach Black)
Wood Engraving, 36 x 26 cm, 2010

Lloyd Durling Born in Solihull. Lives & works in London. E-mail lloyddurling@hotmail.com Solo Exhibitions
2011

Bit Part

, Château de Sacy, Picardy

Assembly

, Chapter, Cardiff
2010

Laughter Staggers On

, Golden, Chicago
2006

Schadenfreude

, Royal Academy of Arts, Sackler Project Gallery, London

Somewhere Better Than This

, Pippy Houldsworth, London Selected Group Exhibitions
2010
International Biennial of Engraving, Acqui Terme, Italy

Sweet Dis/order

, Whitworth Art Gallery & Museum, Manchester
2009

The Disciples of Lucas Cranach

, Utrophia Project Space, London

Exeter Contemporary Open

, Exeter Phoenix Arts Centre

Supernature

, View Art Gallery, Bristol

(….)

, Omphalos Arte Contemporanea, Bari, Italy

Hanging In The Balance

, Pippy Houldsworth, London
2008

Rotate

, Contemporary Art Society, London

The Golden Record

, Collective Gallery, Edinburgh
2007

Loners’ Island

, g39, Cardiff

Revolver

, Second Exposure, Penzance

Things We Lost In The Fire

, City Art Gallery, Leicester

Salon 2007 New British Painting & Works On Paper

, London
2006

Things We Lost In The Fire

, Transition, LondonOutpost Contemporary Art, Los Angeles Publications
2010
Artslant,

Laughter Staggers On

, June 2010, Review by Robyn Farrell Roulo
2009
Drawn In, AN Magazine, July 2009, Review by Nigel Davies Supernature, Art Cornwall, Review by Patrick Brandon Matchbox, 12th February 2009 The First Post, 9th February 2009, Review by Neal Brown
2008
One In The Other, g39 Publication, 2008 Revolver, New Wave In Cornish Art, Publication by Smith & Stox
2007
The Guardian, 15th December 2007, Review by Jessica Lack The Guardian, 10th March 2007, Review by Robert Clark Garageland Magazine, Issue 2, Article by Gordon Dalton Kulturflash, Issue 172, March 2007
2006
Niete Per La Giente, Young Mountains Publishing, 2006 Collections, Residencies & Awards Residency, Ateliers d’artistes de Sacy, 2011 Oppenheim John-Downes Memorial Trust. Awarded Dec 2010 Museum of Engraving Collection, Paleologi Castle, Italy Progressive Art Collection, USA Whitworth Art Gallery & Museum, Manchester, UK Nomura Bank, Japan Fidelity PLC, London Private Collection of Gillian Anderson Private Collections In the United Kingdom Education
2003-2004
The London Institute
1997-2000
Birmingham Institute of Art & Design
1995-1997
Solihull College of Technology