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Lucia Andrea Sweeney comes from a family who have been art practitioners in one form or another, such as her Great-grandfather Charles Dalrymple Kelly, who was a Stonemason and Sculptor from the Highlands in Scotland and commissioned for several monumental programmes, including the Lady’s Chapel in the Anglican Liverpool Cathedral, England. To her father, Robert Allan Sweeney (Snr), who while in the Scots Guards in Kenya was assigned as the Battalion artist, which he continued with in England. Other members of her family in the arts include Gaynor Evelyn Sweeney (Visual Artist/Live Art), Robert Eric Allan Sweeney (Jnr) (Graphics and Computer Technology) and Victoria Samantha Smith (Film Maker, Actor and Dancer). Even with influence from their Mother, Beryl Sweeney, who has a passion for Arts and Crafts.
Sweeney, whose other interests in research have influenced her art and creative explorations include Archaeology and Ancient History and further by scientific process and special effects of model making in the film industry.
This recent work is titled, ‘Escape from Genesis’. This is a life-like reproduction of a mummified human. One, which looks authentic and not out of place in the World Museum on the Ancient Culture floor. The obvious form cognitive of death expresses several issues by the artist. The concept of mortality and the sanctification of the human form, as is canonised through all cultures in history. Moreover, though, the ideologies of antiquity and the ancient are brought to mind when one considers the notions of the possible existence of this ‘individual’ in life. Similar to Liverpool, it is a place of residues from other cultures, the great institutions forged by merchants in the 19th century who brought with them commodities, historical finds and objects of artefacts. Each institutionalised in academia and museums in the city. The high art and philosophies of which permeate down the echelons of the society and commodified through to the present day. There is a second sculpture juxtaposed to the 'dead body'. One of an unborn foetus near gestation. The foetal sculpture is pallid. In contrast, the relationship of these two sculptures and the temporal spatiality between poses the transience of time and the vulnerability of life from birth to death (Alpha to Omega). This ‘human’ could be anyone, but conveys ideas of times gone by and reminds us of the human intervention and the empathy of such sentience. ‘Escape from Genesis’ placed in the context of the ‘Loft Space’ platform considers the socio-urban relationship of humanity in history in which we all form a part, as with life and existence the innate lineage by time and generations all interrelate. By those who would have once inhabited the house of the ‘Loft Space’ and moving further back to whose hands set the foundations, the property owners who funded the construction, indeed descending further back in history to what was there before and so on. Everything has heritage and ancestry and the present would not be without such. Each stage has an integral part to the next and so too does the existence of the ‘human’ we see before us sculptured by Sweeney, which introspectively reflects back to ourselves. ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Transvoyeur
News ... Egyptian
Mummy in Liverpool Loft
A body of a child and adult was found in a loft by George Lund. He was shocked when he climbed the ladder into the loft to be confronted by what he described as ‘an Egyptian mummy and a new born both connected by the umbilical cord’. He clambered down hysterical and maybe thought it this was an April Fools prank. He soon discovered it was the new exhibition of Lucia Andrea Sweeney, titled ‘Escape from Genesis’, which is a papier-mache life size sculpture by the artist. This is part of the Loft Space Programme, Curated by Jo Derbyshire, who lives at the property, but has platformed various exhibitions since January 2007. This is to present art in an urban context. This is associated to the Transvoyeur Art Group (www.transvoyeur.co.uk). The property was once famous for the back drop to the home of ‘Grandad’ from the 1980s sitcom ‘Bread’. This exhibition runs until 7th April 2007. To view the exhibition email Derbyshire on aprilskies1204@aol.com (More information at www.joderbyshire.co.uk). ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Review
of Escape from Genesis by Lucia Andrea Sweeney at Loft Space Programme
(01 April 2007 - 14 April 2007), Curated by Jo Derbyshire.
‘Escape from Genesis’ is sculptural installation by the artist Lucia Andrea Sweeney. This is part of the series of exhibitions at the Loft Space by the Curator Jo Derbyshire. Each exhibition has run for approximately week, but due to the curiosity of this particular work by Sweeney, the art has been exhibited for a further week. This curatorial programme by Derbyshire has taken art from the gallery context and places it into the urban space of a residential house, already once famous for the home of the Granddad character from the late 1980s television sitcom ‘Bread’. The Loft Space is bare, but for two sculptures of a mummified human form and a new born. These are connected by an umbilical cord and rest next to each other; each laid on white cotton. The infant’s cognate of swaddling, while the material the life size sculpture of a corpse similar is to a shroud. It is intriguing how the concept of the materials itself, both used to rest or cover imbues different notions, either to conceal or protect the tangible fragility of these two forms. The realism of these sculptures when primarily viewed disturbs the senses, as it explores through visual dialogue the utmost in human life. The distinctive visual representation on the concept of time and human existence from birth to death is always an integral and poignant subject. The umbilical cord denotes our own place at that point of contemplation. The in-betweeness evokes viewers senses to their own conscious position in time and place. These forms by the artist are influenced and inspired by art, science and history, significantly archaeology, where her main passion lies. However, as art, these are explications of the aesthetic object as artefact, both derived by human intervention and evolution of humanity and civilisations. The interconnection of beginning and end, Alpha and Omega, as referenced by the artist, delineate the ideology of time and mortality. Sweeney combines the canon of the human form through art and artefact of the empirical of the institution, the sanctification of the human form as represented by the gallery and the museum. Moreover, in the spatiality and temporality of the Loft Space programme, it derives further notions of the socio-cultural and urban lives of people and society. The art by Sweeney is an immensely profound piece and leaves the viewer introspective even sometime after. The exhibition continues until 14 April 2007. Further information on the upcoming projects at the Loft Space, contact Jo Derbyshire (Curator of Loft Space Project) on aprilskies1204@aol.com or 07946353251. Viewing is by appointment (www.joderbyshire.co.uk). The programme of the Loft Space curated by Derbyshire continues with: 22
April 2007 - 28 April 2007
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