ben turnbull ‘a nightmare on greek street’
at: lazarides gallery, london, UK
from: now until august 22, 2008

there are still a couple of days left to see ben turnbull’s latest offerings at the lazarides gallery, london. for the show ‘a nightmare on greek street’ the british artist has created a body of work that is described by the gallery as:

ben turnbull 'a nightmare on greek street' - 2 L: bring me the head of saddam hussein, 2008 – fibre glass  R: self portrait, 2008 – acrylic on canvas

‘a call to action – shocking and interactive. using found objects, toy props and americana, he has constructed
a world  of nightmares that begs us to get involved, to come out from behind the safety of the sofa and play
with the work. turnbull uses old-fashioned mould-making techniques, hand carved woodwork and a
hunter-gatherer’s approach in hoarding vast quantities of beloved children’s toys for a concept that ultimately
wants to reach out and re-teach what’s been forgotten.‘

ben turnbull 'a nightmare on greek street' - 3 DOA series 1 – dismembered man, 2007

‘turnbull takes our notion of what we’re led to believe and destroys it. ‘who ya gonna call?’ is a huge container
in the shape of 911 holding hundreds of mini super heroes. they are the debris, the ash and dust representing
the death of hope. captain america, the most potent US propaganda tool, literally takes matters into his own
hands in a human-sized work entitled ‘bring me the head of saddam hussein.’

ben turnbull 'a nightmare on greek street' - 4 DOA series – bomb blast man, 2007

ben turnbull 'a nightmare on greek street' - 5 who ya gonna call?, 2008 – mixed media

ben turnbull 'a nightmare on greek street' - 6 L: every home should have one #8 – mixed media                R: chance, 2008 – acrylic on canvas‘this new exhibition reveals works that draw on turnbull’s interest in the world’s violent, paranoid side; school shootings, death by underground, bio chemical attacks, executions. linking current events with recognisable pop cultural references he welcomes you to the dark side – apocalypse now. in 2007 turnbull had a solo show at lazarides gallery entitled ‘US Vs them’, in which toys that stood as a cipher for the disposability of the public were a major feature of the works. pieces in that show were a route through to this new body of work that comments on the acts of horror committed every hour of each passing day’ LG

if you cant make it to the show you’ll find a review here and some photos here.

more

lazarides gallery: http://www.lazinc.com