A NEST OF CORRESPONDENCES
EVENT: A NEST OF CORRESPONDENCES
DATE: 25th July 2022 - 8th August 2022
TIME: 10.30 am - 5.00 pm Mondays-Fridays
VENUE: SWEDENBORG HOUSE
ARTIST/S: MARTIN COTTIS
PRIVATE VIEW 6PM - 9PM 25 JULY
Special Saturday Opening 11am - 6 pm Saturday 6 August 2022
We are delighted to announce a new exhibition of works, A Nest of Correspondences, by artist Martin Cottis opening on Monday 25 July 2022, with a private view from 6.00-9.00 pm. Martin’s sculptures and carvings of birds, fishes and riverine life take on board Swedenborg’s influential theory of correspondences, that the physical universe is a reflection of a spiritual one, an idea important across the Romantic, Symbolist and Surrealist movements. Birds, for Swedenborg, signify thoughts, whilst fishes signify facts and types of knowledge.
Book your place to attend the opening of the exhibition, with drinks reception, on the evening of Monday 25 July 2022, which will take place alongside the Swedenborg Society’s AGM. There will also be the opportunity to explore Swedenborg House and a final chance to see last year’s exhibition The Story of Swedenborg in 27 Objects.
A Nest of Correspondences will then remain open on Monday-Fridays 10.30 am – 5.00 pm until Monday 8 August 2022.
“People always do a double-take when they see a work by Martin Cottis. They look – and then they look again, leaning in for a closer view perhaps, or walking around to get another angle. First, there’s the exquisite elegance of line and form. The poise of shapes suspended on the cusp of imbalance. And then… curiosity, puzzlement, even fascination come to the fore. How do these fusions of the organic and the manufactured appear so natural? Then do a triple take. What’s the story behind that? Cottis’s own story includes a lot of water (he’s a long-time boat-dweller), and an enduring admiration for the art of Joan Miró and Alexander Calder. That all makes sense when you look at his work – but it won’t stop you from doing double-takes”— Sanjoy Roy
MARTIN COTTIS worked as a drummer and keyboard player in a number of bands in the late 70s & early 80s. He moved onto a narrowboat and ran a business carrying coal and other cargoes from the Midlands to London. He graduated from Saint Martins College of Art in 1992. He worked alongside Liz Leyh the ‘community artist’ responsible for the Milton Keynes concrete cows, amongst many other things, and who taught Martin to carve. Martin has worked as a public / community artist for several years with commissions for: British Waterways; HMS President; Inter-Action; the Brunel Museum; and many schools, youth clubs, etc. He has exhibited work in London, Manchester, Brussels, Ghent and Rotterdam.