Simon Periton
In a departure from his familiar paper-cut-outs, Simon Periton has produced a length of barbed wire hand-crafted in opaque, coloured glass, the sharp barbs rendered useless through their fragile beauty.
“Somewhere along the way I became enchanted by the ephemerality and useless qualities of art works. I began making delicate decorative doilies – something essentially throwaway, possibly beautiful, difficult to keep. Always thin like a veil, a screen, a barrier. I had in my head an idea for a beautiful sculpture – a length of barbed wire made out of fine bone china or porcelain. A symbol of our obsession with property and ownership handcrafted in a traditional material. It would be a monument to Englishness. At first I thought this could be cast, fired and decorated afterwards. But somehow all this seemed a bit frivolous. It might appear nostalgic or romantic. Glass comes as a rod that can be heated, twisted and wound like wire. Here was an immediacy I liked. Glass is the epitome of fragility.”
“Barbed wire is practical, utilitarian. It is designed for use rather than beauty. Made in glass its practical use is denied. It becomes house trained. The hazards associated with its use turn upon its owner who must now take care of it. Handle with care – the fragile object.”
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Simon Periton
A Sunken Owl Prunes, 2009
Edition: 65
Materials: Screenprint on 300gsm Somerset textured paper
Size: 76cms x 59cms
Launch price: £450 plus VAT
In 2007 Simon Periton painted Unknown Pleasures, a work on glass. A Sunken Owl Prunes -an anagram for Unknown Pleasures – began with the same image flipped horizontally to face the other way. The two works then part company. With the painting on glass the image was built up in layers on the back of the glass and in reverse. When this is turned around you are presented with a shiny glass surface across the whole image making the surface of the painting the focus of attention.
The process of screenprinting also builds up an image in layers but constructs the image by adding layers one on top of the other. In this respect Simon feels that there is a greater degree of accuracy in achieving a successful result:
“The process itself seemed to allow me more control which I enjoyed. By adjusting the intensity of colours I was able to bring out a depth in the image which painting on glass didn’t seem to allow me. The matt varnish on the barbed wire contrasts with the overall gloss surface of the image and draws attention to the surface, making the barbed-wire grid seem like a leaded window, which was an aspect of the original painting on glass that I particularly liked. “
