126 presents:
In all things
Eamon O'Kane
June 13th - July 7th 2012
Preview: Saturday June 9th - 7pm
Image courtesy of the artist
In all things
For his most recent exhibition artist Eamon O´Kane has chosen to focus on the chemical element Carbon. O´Kane has produced a series of charcoal animations and constructed a site-specific installation of new charcoal wall drawings and sculptures examining the molecular and crystal structure of carbon and other elements. Carbon is the 15th most abundant element in the Earth's crust, and the fourth most abundant element in the universe by mass after hydrogen, helium, and oxygen. It is present in all known life forms, and in the human body carbon is the second most abundant element by mass (about 18.5%) after oxygen. This abundance, together with the unique diversity of organic compounds and their unusual polymer-forming ability at the temperatures commonly encountered on Earth, make this element the chemical basis of all known life.
The work in the show also draws on the legacy of Frederich Fröbel (the inventor of the Kindergarten) and the effect of his education techniques on society, especially in relation to the development of creativity. Fröbel originally trained as a crystallographer and then he designed the educational play materials known as Fröbel Gifts, or Fröbelgaben, which included geometric building blocks and pattern activity blocks. These simple wooden blocks and shapes have inspired many artists, architects, mathematicians, engineers and designers such as Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier, Piet Mondrian, and Charles Eames. Who were all were educated in early childhood using Fröbel Gifts. In addition the works in the exhibition relate to his childhood home in Co. Donegal including the history of this house, which has been central to the artists practice for many years. In this exhibition the artist brings together all the disparate aspects of his art practice together under one theme.
Eamon O' Kane (b. in 1974 in Belfast, Ireland. Lives and works in Bergen, Norway and Odense, Denmark).
O’Kane studied at National College of Art and received MFAs from University of Ulster and from Parsons School of Design, New School University, NY. Solo exhibitions include Rare Gallery, New York, USA; Crawford Art Gallery, Cork, Ireland; ArtSway, New Forest, UK; Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris, France; Economist Plaza, London, UK. He has participated in e v+ a, Limerick seven times including 2005 when he received an OPEN e v+ a award. He is recipient of awards including the Taylor Art Award, The Tony O’Malley Award, The Pollock Krasner Foundation grant and a Fulbright Award. His artwork is in numerous collections worldwide including Deutsche Bank; Burda Museum, Baden Baden, Germany; Sammlung Südhausbau, Munich; Aspen RE, London; Rugby Art Gallery and Museum Collection.