It is interesting to see in Veronica Bolay's current exhibition at the Vanguard Gallery, how the context or reading of artwork can alter significantly even though the subject matter remains constant.
On the one hand there are pastel studies of old stonework and rusty corrugated sheds recorded without interpretation or significant arrangement. This means that essentially unremarkable subject matter remains, well, unremarkable.
Alternatively, the same subject matter and media are infused with greater character when the artist devises alternative ways of constructing the images. For instance, the masking of details behind a shroud of pastel seems to propose narrative potential, where the building could well be hiding some hideous secret. Further to this, a shed positioned precariously within a composition conveys an unsettling isolation or loneliness. While in other works, Bolay uses the shed itself as a motif set into the landscape, clashing with the shapes and colours of the sky and surrounding fields, suggesting decorative or pattern-like qualities.
Elsewhere, Bolay removes any architectural reference, focusing instead on natural landscape scenes. These are particularly atmospheric. Bolay brings character to the medium by layering a variety of marks and textures. In Winter Shower, the pastel is used to create an expressive interpretation which gives a convincing impression or stylisation of falling rain.
Runs until October 31st