Goldish will run 23th May – 5th June

I love the Centrespace gallery, tucked away down Leonard Lane, a narrow twisting alleyway just off Corn Street. Just walking there is quietly exciting – it makes me think of medieval times, of Bristol as an ancient, organic city. If you haven’t been there yet, you really should, and ‘Goldish’ is the upcoming show I am most looking forward to this May.

Artist Sarah Cocking won the BAS ’07 Centrespace prize with a strangely beautiful self-portrait made entirely of sticking plasters. Now she and her contemporary Alice Hodge have joined forces to put on ‘Goldish’.

Sarah and Alice form the arts partnership CLEAN – they work together as cleaners to fund their artistic projects and they also use their cleaning work as artistic inspiration. Their work is artful and amusing, using everyday objects in new ways – their works include pieces called ‘Bin Bag Balloon’ and ‘Iron-burned Clothing’. They describe the aim of the exhibit as being “to portray grime as gold, and vice versa.”

Visitors to ‘Goldish’ can expect an interesting and playful experience. The exhibit will be in two halves, the traditional gallery space showing a series of paintings entitled ‘Dirty Work’ and a second, behind-the-scenes area, filled with a miscellaneous collection of sculptures and art pieces, including paintings in rust, remixed garden statues and a ‘Victorian Argos catalogue’!

‘Goldish’ will pull everyday forgotten objects out of their hiding places and turn them into artworks that challenge our concept of beauty. Centrespace, one of Bristol’s hidden treasures, is the perfect setting. It’s places like Centrespace and innovative and exciting events like ‘Goldish’ that make Bristol such a great place to live. There’s a lot happening out there if you know where to look – I suggest you start on Leonard Lane.

www.centrespacegallery.com

Anna Freeman