‘Elsewhere’ is Bethlem Gallery’s summer show, guest curated by artist Beth Hopkins. Work from seven contemporary artists will occupy the gallery and landscape at Bethlem Royal Hospital. Works that are playful and highly personal and political, interrogate the notion of power and control over public space, its boundaries and limits. ‘Elsewhere’ is part of This is Croydon – London Borough of Culture 2023 and includes work from three artists from Turf Projects Croydon.
Bethlem artists; Corinne, Eddie, Max Reeves and Sue Morgan. Turf Projects artists; Daisy Young, Hoagy Houghton and Pear Nuallak.
‘Elsewhere’ is founded on the curatorial question ‘What do we gain when we think about elsewhere, and what do we learn about here?’. It explores the spaces people create, and directions people set off in, and proposes spaces of radical openness.
Addressing concerns around public space, artists’ works in ‘Elsewhere’ explore ideas of a queer utopia built in collaboration with a childhood friend, and a pastoral folk vision of a hoped-for future, where land is not owned by a privileged few but is freely accessible to everyone. ‘Elsewhere’ is curated by Beth Hopkins, a visual artist and researcher. She has worked with Bethlem Gallery since her solo exhibition, ‘Traces’ in 2017.
Beth Hopkins said: “Bethlem Gallery exists in a state of elsewhere, geographically with it being outside London, and psychologically. Set on the grounds of Bethlem Royal Hospital alongside the Bethlem Museum of the Mind, for many it represents the otherness of severe mental illness. When visiting a threshold is crossed, simultaneously entering the gates of an NHS hospital and the free space of an art gallery. Some may feel trepidation, ‘Am I allowed here?’ or sometimes, ‘Will I be allowed to leave?’ Imagining yourself elsewhere can be a way to escape the realities of here, whether it is because of lockdown, life under section in a hospital or being housebound due to your health.”
‘Elsewhere’ shows artists using creativity as a tool to survive. The theme is explored in different materials, from kites and paper cups, to exquisitely detailed drawings of miniature worlds, film and photography.
Eddie’s interventions include drawing on the ward blackboard daily adding and rubbing out areas and starting again. During ‘Elsewhere’, Eddie will work on a large blackboard in the gallery drawing in the same way he does when on the ward. Moving the blackboard around the landscape, editing and reworking the work in chalk and coloured pens.
Daisy Young looks for inspiration within the hospital grounds finding new motifs, colour pallets and textures. She explores this using fabric, and stitching to create a series of colourful kites that signify memories of childhood, open spaces and play. They are placed up high in the trees to look as though they have been accidentally lodged there.
Corinne is currently bedbound and has been for five years, “This ‘Period Survival Quilt’ is influenced by ‘Daisyland’ a magical place myself and my imaginary friend Daisy created to escape a dramatic childhood”. Corinne’s quilt will be displayed on a bed that moves between the gallery and the landscape outside.
Other works include Max Reeves’s documentation about the 2022 Englefield Right to Roam protest, Pear Nuallak’s multi-sensory works and Sue Morgan’s detailed diagrammatical drawings of her explorations on ‘elsewhere’.
Sophie Leighton, Director, Bethlem Gallery said: “Elsewhere navigates the big themes of public and private spaces both inside and outside, in our minds and in the world around us. For this exhibition which is during Croydon Borough of Culture, artist-curator Beth Hopkins has selected artists exploring how places make us feel. This exhibition reflects careful collaboration between individuals, institutions and practices on the theme of ‘Elsewhere’ and we are excited for you to come and see the range of works in our unique green space on the edges of Croydon at Bethlem Gallery.”
A programme of events including workshops, a residency with Turf Projects at Wandle Park and across Croydon, a symposium and a Morris dancing parade will explore the themes of the exhibition, and the link between nature and mental health. Taking place within the gallery and on the grounds of Bethlem Hospital, events will run throughout the show.
Bethlem Gallery, Bethlem Royal Hospital, Monks Orchard Road, London, BR3 3BX. 27 May to 9 September
Nearest Station: Eden Park
Opening times: Wednesday to Saturday 9.30am to 5pm,
Admission: FREE
For more information visit www.BethlemGallery.com
