Dumfries arts centre Cample Line is showing the first solo exhibition in Scotland by Tonico Lemos Auad, showing new work by the London-based Brazilian artist. Auad’s work focuses on physical expressions of belief, and the value and significance conferred on objects from everyday life such as cloth, stones and plants, often encompassing notions of architecture and landscape, and subverting the traditional techniques associated with crafts such as embroidery, woodcarving and stonemasonry.
For this exhibition, Tonico brings together six new sculptural works made from oak, douglas fir and baltic pine beams reclaimed from buildings disused or scheduled for demolition, adding what the artist describes as a ‘poetic layer’ of significance through additional interventions, reflecting both the venue’s heritage as a mill, and his longstanding engagement with architecture, landscape and human interaction. Together with textile works, weaving is introducing as an integrating theme, achieving a site-responsive aspect to the installation which although large in scale, betrays intriguing detail through close collaboration close with specialist craftspeople.
