Hyper Spaces: José Manuel Ballester, An Te Liu and Lynne Marsh

Oakville Galleries at Centennial Square, 2011–2012

In response to the white-cube, uniquely cavernous space of the Centennial Square location of Oakville Galleries, this group exhibition explores urban architecture and public space through the lenses of tension and anxiety. With a quasi-science-fiction approach, these artists turn the familiar space of the metropolis into unsettling, parallel worlds where dislocation and estrangement takes centre stage.

José Manuel Ballester, An Te Liu, and Lynne Marsh each conjure unsettled spaces, micro-worlds on the cusp of transition. In all instances, they are triggered by public architecture, from the epic scale of a German sports stadium to a conference centre in China to the gallery itself. Each of these artists fabricate a view of reality where nothing is certain, suggesting the psychological impact of all public architecture, however muted the desired effect.

Publication: Pdf download available through Oakville Galleries