MA Show, Holden Gallery, Manchester School of Art

Thursday, 25th October.

I attended the opening of the MA Show which took place at the Holden Gallery which is situated in Manchester School of Art. I was immediately surrounded by visual inspiration that took the form of installations, photography, illustration, textile work (both for fashion and for a gallery setting) and many others.

I have already seen a few exhibitions featuring Rachel Goodyear, including an exhibition at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park last year. In this particular show, I really liked her clever use of laser-cut paper in conjunction with her beautifully illustrated, macabre drawings. In addition to this, I also found her porcelain models of birds, encased in glass to be very delicate and intriguing.

Her choice of media shows a delicate side to her work, showcasing it's beauty and quality in crafting, however this is juxtaposed against the eerie and quite disturbing images, often portraying animals as humans and growths pertruding from the bodies of animals and humans.

Debbie Sharp's installation of windows was another piece that stood out for me. The thing that I found interesting was the fact that Debbie is studying photography and this installation piece featuring sound work, animation and drawing seemed quite far removed from typical photography work. There was a clear attention to detail, a small inscription in dust on a hanging window, fingerprints could also be found in the dust. Also, the eerie sounds played into the dark installation were also interesting and often startled the viewers that were looking at the piece.