Chance, Order, Change 13
(Milton Park A) 1980
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'The elementary methods of construction are related to the elements of life, the forces of life . . . Life is variable and inevitable, recurrent and developable. For the individual it is essentially tragic.'
Whether working as a painter or as a sculptor, Kenneth Martin (1905-84) saw his art as a product of time. He resisted any idea of the artist as the 'Almighty', pushing things around at will, and preferred to initiate a sequence of events and observe the changes and eventual outcome. Fascinated by the way movement can create form, he constructed mobiles which combined the implied movement of spirals with actual revolution. Frequently he used given systems such as the Fibonacci series or pendulum permutations but in the late '60s he introduced chance as an active partner in the rules he set for each work. This exhibition combines the Chance and Order paintings and drawings of his last fifteen years with the earlier Screw Mobiles and other related works. Together they demonstrate Kenneth Martin's position as one of the liveliest and most inventive constructive artists of the 20th century.
The exhibition is presented in collaboration with Annely Juda Fine Art, London.
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