Turn to Return: Helen Sear and Robert Darch in Conversation with Ken Grant

Join us at the opening of where exhibiting artists Helen Sear and Robert Darch will be discussing their work on display and wider practice with fellow photographer, Ken Grant. At the end of the discussion, there will be time for audience questions and a chance to explore the gallery.

Exhibition opens: 11:30am

Event time: 2-3pm (tickets are only required to attend the talk)

Turn to Return brings together two series of work, ‘Within Sight’ by Helen Sear and ‘The Island’ by Robert Darch, both exhibited here for the first time. Sear’s series was made whilst repeatedly walking the same mountain passage in Majorca and Darch’s work was made in response to Britain’s vote to leave the European Union in 2016. On the surface, the series are disparate both visually and in subject matter. However, when presented and interacting within the exhibition space, further similarities become apparent.

Sear’s ‘Within Sight’ was created during the month of December 2019, whilst she was artist in residence at CCA Andratx. The series consists of black and white images of dense but delicate pines alongside images focused on large boulders manipulated into bold colours.

Darch’s series, ‘The Island’, is a reaction to Britain’s leave vote in 2016. It was shot over a period of 17 months, and comprises both monochrome landscapes and portraits. The series reflects Robert’s anxieties, hopes and fears about this decision, which will affect generations for years to come.

When combined in the gallery, both series ask us to question the way we see reality and the routes we take forward. Join us to find out more from the artists themselves.

Helen Sear’s practice focuses on the co-existence of human, animal, and natural environments and is rooted in an interest in Magic Realism, Surrealism and Conceptual Art. Her photographic works became widely known in the 1991 British Council exhibition, De-Composition: Constructed Photography in Britain. Sear was the first woman to represent Wales with a solo exhibition at the 56th Venice Biennale 2015. She was recently voted one of the key 100 women photographers practicing globally by The Royal Photographic Society: Hundred Heroines. She was visiting professor at the Royal Academy Schools, London between 2014 and 2019.

Robert Darch is a British artist-photographer based in the South West of England. He has published and exhibited widely and his photographs reside in public and private collections. His practice is motivated by the experience of place, in which the physical geography and material cultures of places merge with impressions from contemporary culture that equally influence perception. He holds an MFA with distinction in Photographic Arts and a MA with distinction in Photography & the Book from Plymouth University. He also has a BA with honours in Documentary Photography from Newport, Wales. Darch is an Associate Lecturer in Photography at Plymouth University.

Ken Grant was born in Liverpool in 1967. Since the 1980's he has photographed in the city and engaged in sustained projects both in the UK and in wider Europe. A monograph of the Liverpool pictures, The Close Season, was published by Dewi Lewis Publishing in 2002 followed by No Pain Whatsoever and Flock in 2014 and A Topical Times for These Times in 2016. His most recent book, Benny Profane, was published in 2019 by RRB Publishing. Ken Grant's photographs are held in important collections of photography, including those of the Museum of Modern Art, New York, the Folkwang Museum Essen, the Parr Foundation and other international public and private collections. A substantial overview of his work is held by the Hyman Collection of British Photography.

This will be an in-person event held at Centrespace Gallery, Bristol. For the safety of all visitors and staff, numbers for this event are capped at 25 people.

Tickets are free for this event, however we would be very grateful if you supported us by making a voluntary donation with your purchase. Bristol Photo Festival is a community interest company and all proceeds will support our future work for people in and around Bristol.

Centrespace is accessed via Leonard Lane. It has a wheelchair ramp and disabled access toilets.

This exhibition has been made possible with support from Spectrum and Arts Council England.

Header photo from ‘Within Sight’, 2019 © Helen Sear

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Centrespace, 6 Leonard Lane, Bristol, United Kingdom