CHECKPOINT

Whilst artist in residence at Gæsteatelier Hollufgård, Denmark in June, Andrea Gregson made two new works for the ArtPark, in situ for one year until 2018. One of the works Checkpoint is placed on the border of Glisholme Forest and the E20 a super highway linking Fyn with Jutland and Sjaelland . The sculpture has an inside space, is a portal with two viewpoints, of the forest and the road; sited to reflect upon the deafening hum of the motorway. Designed for a person to stand inside (absurd with their lower body only visible), sketches of objects from the immediate area are pinned to the walls. The drawings record views of cars, bird feathers, pylons, leaves, plants, bark scars and initials carved in trees.

Checkpoint can be seen from the road and the far end of a tree-lined vista referencing the strategic placement of sculpture in 17th century European landscape gardens. It transfers the dilemma of the road onto the artwork and the paradox of this place. Glisholme forest used mainly for leisure; jogging, walking and cycling, is simultaneously destroyed by the movement of cars and goods on the super highway. The sculpture acts as a folly for our times, for our toxic geological era, the Anthropocene. Korssting (Cross Stitch)

Close to Checkpoint, is another work, Korssting, a 6 metre curtain located at a broken section of the forest, punctured by a row of dead trees and the bellow of the motorway. The curtain articulates the form of the wind like a colossal sail brokering the mood of the surrounding forest. The translation of the hand sewn text reads, “The one who stays silent, gives consent”, taken from a sampler given to the artist whilst in Denmark. The gift of this object represents being present, not staying silent. The needlework using the dimensions of the billboard is a subtle act of defiance, re-appropriating this decorative motif to question our relation to nature. The text gently disrupts the noise of the road, leaving its residue of words, embroidered in the minds of those who read it.