Nigel Ip

In an exciting collaboration between Oliver Projects and Sims Reed Gallery, Drop Shadows places Katherine Jones’ prints and paintings in an organic dialogue with the terracotta sculptures of Temsuyanger Longkumer. Both artists have a long-standing interest in the natural world.

Set within the bibliophile spaces of Sims Reed Gallery, there is a feeling of having entered a kunstkammer or cabinet of curiosities. Temsuyanger’s prickly sculptures dance along the windowsills and occupy niches in the bookshelves. They feel like living creatures come to life, inspired by the microorganisms that inhabit our world. Some of these are coated with tiny, protective metal pins, reminiscent of the surface of a cactus, and others covered in scales. The anthropomorphism is more directly prominent by the presence of humanoid feet. While some appear huddled together like a forest, others are disembodied and alone, like a lone tree trying to find new soil to grow its roots.

Meanwhile, Katherine’ s paintings represent a daring new venture for the printmaker. Their tightly-cropped compositions hone in on nature’s details and minutiae. At times, their bright colours and transparencies flirt with realms of abstraction and mark-making. Other times, it’s like looking at a false-colour image, reconfiguring our brain to look at familiar plant life in a different light. A large diptych in the opening room even manages to envelope our senses with its depiction of flower petals, yet it also feels like we’re about to be swallowed up by a Venus fly trap.

This little exhibition is equal parts weird and wonderful, and a bit disconcerting. In fact, it’s a bit like Alice in Wonderland, filled with odd creatures and environments that never seem to be quite what you think they are. I don’t know how to react to them, but it feels like nature’s giving me a warning. The installation is actually quite terrifying the more I think about it. You really have to experience it in person.

Drop Shadows runs between 1 and 14 March 2024 at Sims Reed Gallery, London, https://www.oliverprojects.com/