studio job at carpenters workshop gallery

studio job at carpenters workshop gallery‘crane lamp’, 2010 bronze, light fittings 163 x 162 x 39 cm edition of 6 + 1 AP

studio job carpenters workshop gallery, london march 18th – may 8th, 2010

the belgian-dutch studio job has designed two new works: ‘crane lamp’ and ‘wrecking ball lamp’, specifically for their show at the carpenters workshop gallery, london.

the ‘crane lamp’ is a floor-standing bronze structure. an enforced cord runs through the core of the sculpture to a hanging light and shade. the lamp is indicative of studio job’s attention to detail – small bulbs light the boom point from which the jib hangs. the crane is an ancient invention with a long history of industrial use. in this case, studio job has miniaturized it into an ornamental design object.

‘crane lamp’, 2010 bronze, light fittings 163 x 162 x 39 cm edition of 6 + 1 AP

‘crane lamp’, 2010 (detail) bronze, light fittings 163 x 162 x 39 cm edition of 6 + 1 AP

drawing of ‘crane lamp’, 2010

‘wrecking ball lamp’, 2010 bronze, light fittings 60 x 64.5 x 29 cm edition of 6 + 1 AP

‘wrecking ball lamp’ is cast from solid bronze, which continues with the industrial theme. a bulldozer forms the base, while the ‘wrecking ball’ is the light source, showcasing studio job’s subtle humor.

‘wrecking ball lamp’, 2010 bronze, light fittings 60 x 64.5 x 29 cm edition of 6 + 1 AP

swinging the ‘wrecking ball’ bronze, light fittings 60 x 64.5 x 29 cm edition of 6 + 1 AP

‘wrecking ball lamp’, 2010 (detail) bronze, light fittings 60 x 64.5 x 29 cm edition of 6 + 1 AP

drawing of ‘wrecking ball lamp’, 2010

alongside the new light works, studio job will exhibit five pieces from their ‘industry’ series, which use depictions of traditional and contemporary iconography. the bold silhouettes are executed in white bird’s eye maple which has been inlaid within an indian rosewood setting. here, animals and insects mingle with industrial buildings and tools, and the viewer is forced to recognize the dichotomy between the natural or organic, and the manmade or destructive. the images are presented as if they have been fossilized, with a sense that both will have their downfalls which will forever be embedded within history.

industry screen, 2009 indian rosewood, bird’s eye maple matt polyurethane coating 185 x 220 x 5 cm edition of 6 + 2AP

the ‘industry’ series offers an ironic commentary that not only the natural and man made are oppositions, but that they are very much cohabitants of the twenty-first century. each piece is finished with reference to the seventh-century marquetry methods of andre-charles boulle (1642-1732). though studio job has used laser technology to cut each of the veneers, they have continued the hand-crafted process in the careful arrangement and application of each piece. they have employed each object of the series as a ‘canvas’ in which to construct a modern day moment mori; a plethora of visual metaphors which act as signifiers either of bucolic nature or mass-destruction which is associated with industrialism.

industry cabinet, 2009 indian rosewood, bird’s eye maple matt polyurethane coating 170 x 120 x 50 cm edition of 6 + 2AP