Michael Dean and Melanie Gilligan
24 January–10 May 2015
De Appel arts centre
Prins Hendrikkade 142
1011 AT Amsterdam
The Netherlands
Hours: Tuesday–Sunday 11am–6pm
T +31 (0) 20 6255651
info [at] deappel.nl
De Appel arts centre is presenting the first solo exhibition in The Netherlands by the British artist Michael Dean, titled Qualities of Violence. Dean is exhibiting his latest works in consoles designed in response to the exhibition spaces. During the same period you can see The Common Sense, a new film project by the London- and New York-based Melanie Gilligan. This three-part film was created as a result of a unique collaboration among de Appel arts centre, De Hallen Haarlem and Casco, Office for Art, Design and Theory.
Michael Dean
Qualities of Violence
Michael Dean produces sculptures and photographs, performances and publications—without exception works that call up diverse associations. One critic wrote, “They evoke torture, salt licks, laughter, charcuterie.” Dean primarily uses industrial, democratic materials, and some years ago discovered the plasticity, sturdiness and simplicity of concrete. Initially he used it primarily to produce heavy, physical casts of folded photographs, but more recently he has been making all sorts of seemingly natural forms, which rather often are reminiscent of body parts: a muscle, a tongue or a limb. In his work he tacks between the abstract and the figurative, between a sometimes legible sometimes illegible visual language.
Courtesy Herald St, London, Mendes Wood, São Paulo and Supportico Lopez, Berlin
Publication on sale:
NOW LEAVES, Michael Dean
Published by Book Works and Wysing Arts Centre in association with de Appel arts centre and Extra City Kunsthal.
Melanie Gilligan
The Common Sense
The Common Sense, the new film by Melanie Gilligan, is a science fiction miniseries, based on the future, large-scale use of a new technological application, The Patch. This is a device, a sort of prothesis that makes it possible to experience the feelings and physical sensations of another person directly. How does this affect the form of interhuman relations? Gilligan fantasizes about a wholly new and different way of relating to one another. She raises questions about the fact that we are already limited by our technological dependency on the smartphones, iPads, etc., which presently define our way of living and communicating.
The Common Sense is being exhibited successively in the three institutions, in the form of a mini-drama series. The first installment was shown in Casco, with background material. De Hallen Haarlem focused on a story line centering on the social unrest after The Patch breaks down, and in de Appel arts centre the society regains its structure and order. In the film the two story lines ultimately come together in a collective epilogue, which is to be seen in de Appel arts centre.
The Common Sense by Gilligan is a co-production of Casco Office for Art, Design and Theory, de Appel arts centre and De Hallen Haarlem.
The project The Common Sense is financially supported by Dommering foundation, Mondriaan Fund and Fonds 21.
More information about the project can be found here.
Exhibition programme de Appel arts centre 2015
Melanie Gilligan: The Common Sense
Michael Dean: Qualities of Violence
24 January–10 May
Curatorial Programme 2014–15 final project
23 May–28 June
Opening: 22 May, 6–9pm
Michael E. Smith
11 July–30 August
Opening: 10 July, 6–9pm
gerlach en koop: choses tuées
12 September–8 November
Opening: 11 September, 6–9pm
Prix de Rome 2015
21 November–17 January 2016
icw Mondriaan Fund
Save the date for the celebration of 40 years de Appel arts centre and 20 years Curatorial Programme: 23–29 November, more information about the programme will follow soon on our website.
