Super Nature

Galerie ISA is proud to present ‘Super Nature’, an exhibition bringing together the work of three talented artists; Daniel Crews-Chubb, Conrad Shawcross and Michaela Yearwood-Dan. It is curated by Jane Neal.
The idea of the Earth’s strata having its own life and energy - even peopled with mythical characters - fits well with Crews-Chubb’s (b.1984 Northampton, UK) work. His practice collates the iconic forms of gods, beasts and nudes that initially appear to have been derived from ancient civilisations and displayed in cave paintings, friezes and ceramics, but his work also continues a conversation with modernism, its monumental protagonists and with what the artist describes as ‘the age-old’ tradition of the still life. As inspired by artists such as Van Gogh, he sought to make this genre his own. Crews-Chubb’s images layer up as one supersedes another, but as his work is process-driven, there is also a strongly archaeological element to his practice - reinforced by Crews-Chubb sanding and scraping, collaging and reworking his patient - but very giving - canvases.
Conrad Shawcross (b. 1977, London) is known for creating sculptures and installations that foray into the borderlands of geometry, physics and metaphysics and engage with philosophical conceits. He has reimagined art in the public realm and expanded its dialogue with architecture. The artist’s beautifully ethereal ‘Fracture’ sculptures engage as much with absence and negative space as they do with actual form. The plant-like pillars fan out at the top before tapering in or turning, softly - eluding to notions of expansion, growth, entropy and disappearance. Shawcross has succeeded in evincing the often contradictory state of man and the world, and that of man amidst nature.
Working predominantly in paint and collage, Michael Yearwood-Dan (b.1994, London) is developing a striking repertoire of sumptuous, vividly coloured works that draw from a rich seam of influences, observations and experiences. The artist purloins from both the realms of Fine Art and Pop Culture and supports her practice with an impressive array of cultural signifiers including millennial culture, blackness and feminism, carnival, text messaging, acrylic nails, gold jewellery and deliciously lush and inviting flora. Continuously evolving, Yearwood-Dan’s work pulses with energy and shines with strength. Her paintings’ tropical palette of herbaceous greens, watery turquoise, guava pinks, and sunny golds recall the colors of Caribbean carnival and nod to her heritage.
'Super Nature’ is an exhibition about talent, perspicacious thinking, thoughtful reflections, rich histories and the wonders of a world which is endowed with its own amazing ‘super nature’ - one that continues to inspire, excite and enthrall.