Blue, Red and Green by Gary Power
This innovative piece tests the boundaries between art and architecture.
The piece
Blue, Red and Green has been built in-situ in the stairwell of the Architecture Building at Newcastle University.
Crafted from Plaster of Paris, this Newcastle art piece appears to be simultaneously firmly attached and peeling away from the brick wall beneath.
Power’s work shows a commitment to the value of the handmade. It exemplifies the contribution that an artist’s personal perspective can bring to broader philosophical and perceptual issues.
The intent
Gary Power said of his art installed at Newcastle University, “Blue, Red and Green defines the boundaries between art and architecture, as well as testing them.
“The two large plaster forms appear to be literally peeling away the surface of the walls, exposing the brickwork underneath and blurring the differences between the two.
“As the viewer moves past the piece, an intimate sense of space is evoked as the exposed brickwork is investigated. This is in contrast to the larger sense of scale created by the two forms as they loom over you.
“Coloured pigment was used to link the work to the existing adjacent Victorian stained-glass windows [created by Richard Hatton] using a fresco technique”.
The artist
Power studied at Reading University and at Chelsea College of Art. He lived in the North East for many years, teaching at Sunderland University, but now lives in Cumbria.
He continues to work across drawing, painting and sculpture, investigating how the materials and processes associated with contemporary art can be used to investigate ideas in the spirit of personal enquiry and research.
