Steven Krahe
Doo-Dads
Tinned Food
and Fags
14 - 28 October
The much anticipated exhibition of paintings and drawings by Steven Krahe, has at its core – something which is – and always has been at the very heart of art – and that something is the careful observation and consideration of the ordinary – paying respectful attention to the unsung object – interrogating the less conspicuous, applauding the unapplauded.
If you are looking for a category, then these works all march under the banner of StillLife – whether it be the Tinned Food of thought and memory, or the “Fags” circa 1970s - Cigarette packets – from a time prior to plain packaging and health warnings– and then of course on to the Doo-Dads.
Doo-Dads is the more urbane, the more sophisticated way to say Thing-a-ma-jigs, Watcha-ma-call-its or Whoozie-whats-its and it’s worth noting that Doo-Dads, apart from having no particular descriptive boundaries, might appear anywhere or at anytime. They often dwell in plain sight, but can also be found at the bottom of a wardrobe or quite often in that rarely opened kitchen drawer – the drawer where we find the broken torch, the charger for something long forgotten, old birthday cake adornments and some tarnished bits of brass which may once have functioned as plumbing.
All this, Steven brings to light and to life - in the indefatigable and playful Krahe way.
