LARRY BANE INSTALLATION ART

I had this event 'pencilled in' for quite some time, but strangely enough, it was not well attended. I imagine Bane couldn't have cared less. The 'enfant terrible' of the Ulster art scene in the late 70s had metamorphosed into the 'eminence grise' of the late 90s, and seemed indifferent to fame. During the exhibition he was living as a semi-recluse in North Antrim.

A few months before the retrospective I interviewed Larry at his ocean front home. We sipped Bushmills whiskey, listened to the sleety rain that hammered the windows, and gazed out the windows at the giant Atlantic breakers pounding the tumble of chalk and basalt rocks at the foot of the cliff. He was silent and gloomy for a while, but a trio of Black Bushes allowed him to open up. The full text is available here.

I returned to North Antrim in early summer the following year. I spent most of a sublime June afternoon touring the exhibits. I was overwhelmed by the sheer potency and latent sensuality of the works. Judge for yourself and enjoy!

I saw this piece - The Sleepers - in Venice some years ago and remember wondering what all the fuss had been about in London the preceding summer, when Larry withrew the piece after some 'argy bargy' with a leading critic. Clarity is written all over this work. I mean, for heavens sake, if you cannot get the message here! The work is confrontational on several levels, not the least of.which is choice of material: patinated fibreglass on an aluminium frame, surmounting a sloping pediment of opaqe plastic spheres. The texture? Dare I say it: rock-like. The work reminds one of a pair of giant rocks embracing on a beach! Bane is grasping at a duality that is NOT inherent in the choice of material.

Community This work speaks to a mastery in the handling of materials. At first glance it purports to be an excercise in hyperbole, abeit in the guise of simplicity. However, the seemingly careless juxtaposition of differing materials (papier mache and fibreglass) poses a conundrum, and, at the same time, and at a deeper level, reassures. The conundrum, of course, is the violence that has riven the two communities in Ulster since time immemorial. The deeper meaning relates to dissension within the artist himself. Like the Ulster conflict, it remains unresolved; troubling for the man, but inspirational for the artist.

Bane has invariably been attached to ambiguity, and in this piece (I-Me-Thou) the ambiguity is, well, unambiguous. Yet - and I may be wrong here - the motives are suspect. Yes, three carefully crafted objects nested within an enclosing (but not claustrophobic) structure send the obvious message. But the piece invites us to probe deeper, with surgical precision. It works on two levels. At level two (I hesitate to say the deeper level) we are confronted by a paradox, for the material has a rock-like quality that speaks to a hidden (and, dare I say it, subversive) agenda. We grasp for meaning, in vain. We drown in the imagery. Easy to see why this piece easily took the prize at Vancouver in '94.

"Event" is on the grand scale. It is known that Bane spent several months on the piece (with some help from assistant Sherman Boates), became dissatisfied, and finally abandoned his herculean labours. Events on the mainland (the election of Margaret Thatcher if you must know!) prickled his conscience, and work was recommenced. Dark objects precisely positioned on a quasi-horizontal basal structure speak to a mastery of materials. The question of some substance internal to these mysterious dark objects engages the intellect; the minutely textured basal material seduces the senses.

Some artists manage to incorporate a sub text in their work. In this piece - Object 2 - Bane engages our curiosity with multiple sub texts, providing we can subdue the initial emotional reaction. Object 2 incorporates a frame-like structure juxtaposed against objets trouve. A mesh embedded within the larger structure is the catalyst of engagement. However, the surrounding rock-like objects (patinated fibreglass over carved foam) address several sub texts simultaneously.

The plea introduces a note of sentimentality that strikes an akward pose in the first years of the new millenium. A heavily textured branch-like object strikes a reclining pose, dominating our field of view. It is framed by ominous dark- and light-toned structures with the massif, rock-like appearence so emblematic of his work. And yet...The plea does find echoes on the contemporary scene! Here I am thinking of work by the Belfast school recently exhibited in New York.

Untitled Sometimes I have to wear my 'intellectual hat', usually when I encounter a piece of great complexity that almost defies analysis. Such is the case here. Strands of multi-coloured plastic embedded in clear resin convey an highly emotive message that will overwhelm the faint hearts. But press onwards, into the harshly illuminated intellectual plane, and you will experience Larry's vision of a civilization in crisis.

Regarding Temples, R.H. Whips III wrote in the Dartmouth Review of Art: " In this piece Bane melds a mood of pathos and fatalism with an outpouring of optimism. In the foreground, pillars of fibreglass heavily encrusted with minute resin balls have been airbrushed with emerald green and prussian blue. In the background, a gloomy interior invites exploration. It waits in vain." There is little to add, except that Temples is on the grand scale (3 metres high) and rewards careful viewing.

Connections is an iconic piece that resonates on multiple levels. Metallic layers, literally bolted together, are juxtaposed with grooved cylindrical objects. Thin tubes converge at the centre of the piece where a rude protuberance demands our attention. Several issues are addressed simultaneously: the use of metal rather than patinated fibreglass speaks to broad societal issues of diversity and equity; the structure of the piece, and the dissonant note introduced by the blocky background ensemble, constitute an appeal for greater tolerence of dissent.