Folding Neon
Richard Sweeney
30.11.2011 - 10.01.2012

Richard Sweeney (born 1984) was invited to explore his ideas in neon for the time during a short residency at Neon Workshops. Sweeney adopted a spirit of experiment and sensitivity to the material, resulting in a series of unique, hand formed neon pieces. His practice combines the disciplines of design, photography, craft and sculpture, as he seeks to maintain an experimental, hands-on approach, utilising the unique properties of often mundane materials to discover unique sculptural forms.

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The Neon Universe
28.09 - 19.11.2011

The Neon Universe showcases a piece of work by each of the four tutors of the recent workshop by the same name: Matt Dilling, Shawna Peterson, Julia Bickerstaff and Richard William Wheater. The exhibition is free and view by appointment only.

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Will Be
Tim Etchells

(edition 2/3)
28.07 - 21.09.2011

In this two part neon work, components are installed facing each other, on directly opposite walls. The first part of the piece features the phrase THE FUTURE WILL BE CONFUSING in letters of different colours, whilst the second part features an identical set of letters dispersed over the whole opposite wall. The second part of the installation is arranged 'nonsensically' so the already confusing colour mis-match of the first sign becomes, in the future, at the other end of the space, a kind of unreadable explosion of language.

Tim Etchells approaches his work from a performance and writing background, and is concerned with themes of liveness and presence, with the unfolding of events in time and place. Etchells has led the performance group Forced Entertainment, based in Sheffield, sicne its inception in 1984. He was selected for the long list of the Northern Art Prize 2011.

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I'm Electric, You're Electric
Richard William Wheater

25.05 - 04.06.2011

This latest work by the Wakefield born artist was commissioned by Manchester Craft and Design Centre, and showcased there between February and April 2011.

I'm Electric, You're Electric questions contemporary perceptions of neon glass by introducing us to its past, as an industrial material, and demonstrating its possibilities as a modern creative medium. The work was made using neon elements with hand blown and found objects.

Dena Bagi - Manchester Craft and Design Centre

Wheater regularly works with glass and neon through performance and installation. Interest in the topical discussions surrounding our relationship with the natural environment has dictated his material choice in previous works, though he remains consistently loyal to an interest in glass and light.
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