Biophilia with Abigail Booth & Max Bainbridge at Make Hauser & Wirth Somerset

For the exhibition Biophilia, artists Abigail Booth and Max Bainbridge examine the complex relationship and innate affinity of humankind with the natural world at a time of critical change. Reflecting on how their own psyches continue to be shaped by interactions with plants, trees, and interconnected ecology, both artists draw upon deeply personal narratives formed by their physical encounters with nature. In light of their recent move to rural Somerset, this new body of work contemplates the transitional experience of finding yourself surrounded by the unfamiliar and the ways in which we seek out a sense of belonging through the tactile memory of making.

As the landscapes of their imagination collide with a total immersion in nature, the resulting works are a direct response to a new and evolving sense of place, while retaining the intimate connections of their past. By teasing out the inner voice of the plants, wood, and other natural materials the artists‘ work with, they reflect on the powerful influence of the natural world, its ability to shape our understanding of who we are and our future within it. The inner life of the tree, or the quality of light in a colour locked within a plant, asks the viewer to question what they thought they knew and allows nature to have direct influence over the way we interact and perceive our environment.

Both artists have received funding from the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust (QEST) to further their respective skills through one-to-one training with master craftspeople, helping to support Britain’s cultural heritage and sustain vital skills in traditional and contemporary crafts. The new work they have been developing over this period will feature in the exhibition at Make Hauser & Wirth Somerset.

2019 QEST Winch Design Scholar Max Bainbridge has undergone the first part of his scholarship in professional chainsaw training, enabling him to learn the process of safely felling and processing trees in their entirety. Working in this way has allowed him to strengthen the site-specific nature of his practice and has made it physically possible to source and work with whole trees for the first time. By seeking out trees that have come to the end of their natural life, he has been able to work on a much larger scale as well as using an entire tree across a series of sculptures. 2020 QEST Jenifer Emery Scholar Abigail Booth has worked under David Cranswick RA, a master in traditional painting materials and techniques. Under his mentoring, she has learnt in-depth processes of extracting and purifying pigments from nature, mixing and applying natural paint mediums, preparing traditional grounds and the philosophy of natural colour as it relates to history, landscape and place.

In celebration of the exhibition Abigail and Max will join QEST CEO Deborah Pocock LVO for a live conversation in the Radić Pavilion within Oudolf Field at Make Hauser & Wirth Somerset on Saturday 24 July, 3-4pm. The artists will share insights into their individual experiences working with QEST and the wider support available for contemporary craftspeople in the UK, as well as new processes and concepts behind the works on view at Make Hauser & Wirth Somerset this summer. The talk will conclude with an open Q&A.

Tickets cost £5.00 and include a welcome drink. Click here to register.

Biophilia is on view at Make Hauser & Wirth Somerset 17 July – 4 Sept 2021. Explore the exhibition.