'The subtle joy of a moving painting' - the AJ reviews 'Openness'

London, 6 December 2007

"Open Gallery is exhibiting in Sketch's gallery and restaurant space in London's Mayfair. 'Openness' features 360 degrees of silent video paintings by artists such as William Raban, Hilary Lawson, Sanchita Islam, Isabelle Inghilleri and Alex Bettler.

The works in 'Openness' balance stillness and movement; In Inghilleri's Thin Ice, a barely frozen lake ripples, then stills; in Lawson's Temporary Forest, a fire crackles as logs slowly burn and collapse. The films are streamed by an ingenious piece of specially designed software, which plays the works in a random order, loosely linked by themes and altered by the time of day.

The lack of narrative in the films is both disarming and meditative, just as Lawson, Philosopher and founding artist of the Artscape Project, intends. The video paintings are intentionally devoid of editing and the cameras never so much as shiver. Each shot runs for something between three and twenty minutes of real time.

The philosophy behind these works can be explained by the group's founder. Lawson is currently the vice-chair of the Forum for European Philosophy, and his philosophical theories on closure are closely linked to the exhibition's theme of 'Openness'.

In the clutter of Sketch, moments away from the Mayfair restaurant's infamous 'pod' bathrooms, it is difficult to appreciate the unfolding beauty of these video works and their window onto the natural world. If you can block out distractions, these paintings that move are well worth a long look and the subtle joy they inspire."

Christine Murray, Architects Journal