An experimental space with a mission to bridge social and cultural gaps within the field of contemporary art, by working with and providing resources for under-represented artists.
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Marcus Jefferson
Bootings
Basel Social Club
9-16 June 2024
Close to Restaurant Predigerhof
Predigerhofstrasse 172, 4153 Reinach
Main Entrance
Dubackerweg 2, 4103 Bottmingen, Switzerland
Sunday to Saturday: 11am - 11pm
Sunday June 16th: 11am - 3pm
Full Programme and details can be found here
Preview of works can be found here
Press Release
Through mainstream media we are constantly being packaged and sold a glamourised version of the stories being told through hip hop, road rap and drill. Marcus’ works visualise not only that which he hears in these lyrics but also that which he has lived through growing up in Camden. By bringing the works Bootings (2024) and Cling&Vas II (2024) to a field in Basel the works take on new meaning and begin to exist outside of the origins of their materials.
Bootings (2024) is a site-specific work consisting of a patch of fake grass to be displayed in the field. The idea of bringing “our field” to “your field” seeks to merge two worlds - the concrete jungle of inner-city London and the luscious greenery of Basel nature. The word ‘field’ has multiple meanings - traditionally, an area used for cultivation; a place for battle, sports or science, but in inner-city culture the word connotes “hood”. The word “field” was popularised through underground street music coming out of the city Marcus was born and raised in. Marcus,therefore, is not just a spectator, but someone who comes from this modern-day “field” - an artist cultivated in London’s concrete jungle. Often astroturf is used in supposed “green areas” such as football pitches in and amongst council estates. This plays with the idea of being sustainable vs being environmentally friendly, Bootings confronts this idea with its placement within the natural greenery of Basel’s countryside. The irony of bringing a synthetic element into nature is obvious, the green field becomes a “non-green field” and parallels the experiences of creators of colour entering traditional arts spaces.
Bootings will be displayed alongside Cling&Vas II (2024). Another site specific work; Cling&Vas II consists of multiple layers of vaseline and cling film.
Within a domestic setting cling film and vaseline are typically used to protect food objects from the elements and as a means of lubrication. Outside of this domestic sphere they are also used to protect different objects, to then be lubricated… The multifunctional aspects of these materials act in a similar way to the astroturf, different words and objects have different meanings depending on your lived experiences. The materials are both weather resistant and due to the flexible nature of their assembly will ensure that the integrity of the surroundings will remain intact.
About the artist
MARCUS JEFFERSON (b. 1991)
BLACK MALE FROM QUEENS CRESCENT, CAMDEN TOWN.
LIKE GRIME, TRAP & DRILL LANGUAGE IS SHARED AND CAN BE INTERPRETED IN MANY DIFFERENT WAYS. MARCUS’ WORK IS A RESPONSE TO THIS INNER CITY OUTSIDE BEHAVIOUR THROUGH THE MANIPULATION OF HOUSEHOLD, DOMESTIC AND EVERYDAY ITEMS/MATERIALS UNTIL THEIR FUNCTION IS BEYOND ITS ORIGIN.
Previous exhibitions include
Lucas Dupuy invites Uk Connections, TickTack, Antwerp (group)
Selected Press
Berghaus - Meet Marcus Jefferson
Art Newspaper - London Gallery Weekend - Critics top picks by Ben Luke
Financial Times - London Gallery Weekend flies the flag for art in the capital by Melanie Girlis
Another Magazine - Six Young Gallerists Shaping London’s Thriving Art Scene, by Koye Odenjinmi Elephant Magazine - The Ultimate London Gallery Weekend Itinerary by Phin Jennings
Spittle - London Gallery Weekend Special