The Lost Object, "Finder/Builder" Solo Show at Stolenspace Gallery London
“Finder/Builder” is The Lost Object’s title for an upcoming show at Stolenspace Gallery. The title speaks for itself. Hyland Mather, also known as The Lost Object, finds is going to give us his perspective on the way he sees beauty in the, often humble, discarded found objects.
My knowledge of artists who practices this certain genre is limited. And I am guilty of giving a dissatisfying snap judgement whenever I see one. I have to admit, I did not immediately like The Lost Object’s art at first. But after careful examination… it began to grow on me. The more I look at the artworks, the more I like them. He has a good way of incorporating lines that contrast side-by-side vertical and curves. He anchors strings on to nails connecting them like dot-to-dot to form polygons. The colors are balanced. The texture of the wood are carefully picked and smartly layered on each one. For me, these are the reasons why it brings in that romantic feeling of a perfectly composed and balanced assemblage.
I spoke to Hyland about his upcoming show which he unveiled his process, and his favorite piece in it.
Interview by Mark Changco.
Art by The Lost Object.
Tell us about “Finder/Builder”. How do you find objects to use?
Finder/Builder is about making new art from discarded or ‘lost’ objects with the use of contemporary tools. The best way to talk about it is to give examples. I’m making a series of cardboard collages. For example, made essentially from trash, ripped up boxes, materials gathered direct from the street or out of the bin. I then laser print onto the cardboard collages using further collaged ‘abandoned’ imagery I have gathered and assembled. This is supposed to give the finished pieces the feeling of a ‘contemporary eerie artifact’, or an ‘archaic newness’ juxtaposition thing.
Another example, something less ‘high-tech’. I have built all the metal bases for my ‘lost object’ wooden sculptures from metal gathered out of a recycling bin at my homie’s steel fabrication shop. Even though it is total trash to him, I grind, and smooth and round and essentially ‘soften’ these to look refined… almost ‘product’ like.
It is an almost romantic feeling I get for the objects I find and work on. I apply a kind of weird spiritualism to the materials… I like to think of them as having a first ‘life’. After they have outlived their usefulness and they are thrown away; abandoned, discarded or lost, they are rediscovered by me, and made somehow new again… but not too new (they have to maintain a kind of ‘artifact’ feel for me). I like to think of the lost objects themselves as ‘stoked’ that they are becoming something else. It’s really silly to apply this kind of romantic or emotional stamp to inanimate objects, but I don’t care. It’s a fun feeling in my head.
You mentioned, in the show statement, that you use a zen-like approach for this show and you’re taking a step further by incorporating the binary system.
When I’m being good for myself, I go to Zen meditation in the mornings. Though, I’m probably an Anarchist if I needed to apply a dogma to my life, Taoism is a philosophy I really enjoy. Zen plays a big part in my large scale street pieces. Zen masters before the 20th century did not generally consider their painting or calligraphy to be ‘art’ but rather just part of their practice. I like that thought very much. When I make my large scale paintings, or lost object installations there is a real Zen feel to the whole process for me for several reasons. First, I find my process very meditative and secondly aesthetically; I am always trying to find a ‘balanced’ feeling in my work. I rarely start with a fully formed plan when I make, and I only know a piece is finished when it feels balanced.
The way that Zen is involved in the new works for Finder/Builder and the way that binary ties into it, is all about my more fervent use of software and computer hardware driven tools. These modern systems are largely binary, and binary was invented by Gottfried Leibniz in the 17th century as a result of his introduction to the I Ching (A very old Chinese masterwork which depicts the universe as a progression of contradicting dualities… the Taoist would later call this concept Yin and Yang). For me though, a further extension, a more personal extension is in finding a way to use these ‘high-tech’ tools in a way that has the same Zen-like process effect that I enjoy when making large scale street or installation work. So far, I think I’m finding it. I have become very good ‘friends’ with the laser cutter, and I am learning how to sort of ‘draw’ with her. The biggest problem actually is that, once I fall into the meditative creative state I love so much, my time will be up, and I have to hand over the laser cutter to the next person. Boo hoo.
What sets this show apart from your previous ones?
This more intense marriage of hand-crafting and high-tech tools .
What is that one piece that you anticipate to show to your audience? Why?
Not really one piece per se, but a fully formed idea. I will be presenting an array of pieces made in different materials, but with luck, the audience will feel an overall balance in this exhibition. An aesthetic balance of color and composition, a balance of new tools and hand-craft, a balance of old lost objects in new shapes and forms.
“Finder/Builder” will have an opening reception on Thursday, April 6, 2017 at 6-9PM. And the show will run ’til the 23rd of April.
To find out more about available works contact: lauren@stolenspace.com
StolenSpace Gallery
17 Osborn Street
London
E1 6TD
+44 (0) 207 247 2684
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