Y CANU CHALKYDRI // MALAPHORS
Comissioned by Chapter, Cardiff, 2020
Mon 1 January 0001 - Sun 31 January 2021
https://www.chapter.org/whats-on/art/lightbox-malaphors-y-canu-chalkydri/6011
Selected from nearly 150 applications to our open call, we are delighted to present Y Canu Chalkydri, a new commission by collaborative duo Malaphors, artists Megan Broadmeadow and Abi Hubbard.
Malaphors have created an artwork that responds to the imminent re-opening of Chapter; a greeting and invitation for the people of Cardiff and Wales to cross the threshold of the building once more.
Chalkydri are angelic creatures who intone messages to the birds, signalling the beginning of the dawn chorus. The tableaux invokes a rich world of magic-infused symbolism that references a new chapter in the way that we communicate and see our world, and others beyond; a focus on the hope of new beginnings.
The central figure, is the Iris goddess, who in Greek Mythology exists at the centre of the rainbow. In Y Canu Chalkydri she is nurturing a mystical ecosystem and guiding the life force surrounding her. Gender-fluid Cherubim - part human, part cloud - extol a message of glee and optimism towards a shifting and evolving society. Whilst at the same time, their protruding headdress bear a resemblance to the envelope proteins present within viruses, hinting that they may not be all that they seem….
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About Malaphors
Malaphors is the collective name of artists Megan Broadmeadow and Abi Hubbard.
Megan Broadmeadow makes immersive exhibitions which include video (recently in VR) sculpture, performance and digital installation technologies. Her recent solo exhibition SEEK PRAY ADVANCE was an episodic sci fi extravaganza, which was presented at Southwark Park Galleries, London, Green Man Festival, Wales and Quad in Derby (2018-19). Other recent solo exhibitions include: Carnifal Y Mor, National Eisteddfod Wales (2018); Astro Raggi, Plymouth Arts Centre and Mercury 13, Galeria Melissa, London (both 2015). In 2015-16 she was the Mark Tanner Sculpture Award Winner with the resulting show being held at Standpoint, London.
In 2019 Megan guest curated LLAWN, a large visual and live arts festival in Llandudno, and set up D UNIT project space in Bristol. She is currently co-producing SPUR - a six-month digital residency for 2020 graduates from across the UK - www.spur.world
www.meganbroadmeadow.com
Abi Hubbard studied for her BA (Fine Art) at Nottingham Trent University and in 2019 she received an MA from The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
Hubbard has a multidisciplinary approach, hybridising tropes of science fiction and the esoteric to interrogate notions of our contemporary identity and the projection of our future selves. The work acts as a viewing portal, glimpsing into a possible utopian future where mutants are beautiful, and society is based on values of connection and equality.
Recent group exhibitions include: Brunswick Club Projections and D UNIT Studio Shows (both 2019); Aliens of the Art World, Centrespace, Bristol (2018); Travellers of the Earth, Wuhan, China; Nottingham Castle Open (where she obtained the Axisweb prize); Sunscreen at the Venice Biennale, and Staging the Artwork 2, Article Gallery (all 2015).
www.abihubbard.co.uk
Comissioned by Chapter, Cardiff, 2020
Mon 1 January 0001 - Sun 31 January 2021
https://www.chapter.org/whats-on/art/lightbox-malaphors-y-canu-chalkydri/6011
Selected from nearly 150 applications to our open call, we are delighted to present Y Canu Chalkydri, a new commission by collaborative duo Malaphors, artists Megan Broadmeadow and Abi Hubbard.
Malaphors have created an artwork that responds to the imminent re-opening of Chapter; a greeting and invitation for the people of Cardiff and Wales to cross the threshold of the building once more.
Chalkydri are angelic creatures who intone messages to the birds, signalling the beginning of the dawn chorus. The tableaux invokes a rich world of magic-infused symbolism that references a new chapter in the way that we communicate and see our world, and others beyond; a focus on the hope of new beginnings.
The central figure, is the Iris goddess, who in Greek Mythology exists at the centre of the rainbow. In Y Canu Chalkydri she is nurturing a mystical ecosystem and guiding the life force surrounding her. Gender-fluid Cherubim - part human, part cloud - extol a message of glee and optimism towards a shifting and evolving society. Whilst at the same time, their protruding headdress bear a resemblance to the envelope proteins present within viruses, hinting that they may not be all that they seem….
About Malaphors
Malaphors is the collective name of artists Megan Broadmeadow and Abi Hubbard.
Megan Broadmeadow makes immersive exhibitions which include video (recently in VR) sculpture, performance and digital installation technologies. Her recent solo exhibition SEEK PRAY ADVANCE was an episodic sci fi extravaganza, which was presented at Southwark Park Galleries, London, Green Man Festival, Wales and Quad in Derby (2018-19). Other recent solo exhibitions include: Carnifal Y Mor, National Eisteddfod Wales (2018); Astro Raggi, Plymouth Arts Centre and Mercury 13, Galeria Melissa, London (both 2015). In 2015-16 she was the Mark Tanner Sculpture Award Winner with the resulting show being held at Standpoint, London.
In 2019 Megan guest curated LLAWN, a large visual and live arts festival in Llandudno, and set up D UNIT project space in Bristol. She is currently co-producing SPUR - a six-month digital residency for 2020 graduates from across the UK - www.spur.world
www.meganbroadmeadow.com
Abi Hubbard studied for her BA (Fine Art) at Nottingham Trent University and in 2019 she received an MA from The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.
Hubbard has a multidisciplinary approach, hybridising tropes of science fiction and the esoteric to interrogate notions of our contemporary identity and the projection of our future selves. The work acts as a viewing portal, glimpsing into a possible utopian future where mutants are beautiful, and society is based on values of connection and equality.
Recent group exhibitions include: Brunswick Club Projections and D UNIT Studio Shows (both 2019); Aliens of the Art World, Centrespace, Bristol (2018); Travellers of the Earth, Wuhan, China; Nottingham Castle Open (where she obtained the Axisweb prize); Sunscreen at the Venice Biennale, and Staging the Artwork 2, Article Gallery (all 2015).
www.abihubbard.co.uk