WORKING STONE MAKING COMMUNITIES
The C o l l e c t or s Axe s : Pa ul M usgr ove
Conversations With Magic Stones The Collectors Axes by Paul Musgrove
16.06.17 30.09.17 The Orkney Museum Tankerness House Kirkwall Orkney
“The Collectors Axes” by Paul Musgrove A collection of prints, glass & bronze objects Copyright “The Artist” 2017 In collaboration with the project “Working Stone, Making Communities” Copyright Prof Mark Edmonds 2017 Design & Layout by Paul Musgrove Created in InDesign by Adobe Inc. Typeset in MS Reference Sans Serif All images are copyright of “The Artist” 2017
Conversations With Magic Stones
The work in this catalogue was commissioned as part of an exhibition entitled “Conversations with Magic Stones”. The show marks the conclusion of a three year project exploring the significance of prehistoric stone tools in Orkney, at the same time tracking how stone tools have been “collecting people” from prehistory down to the present. We put the show together to explore the place that stone tools have occupied in our imaginations from prehistory until now, working closely with curatorial staff at The Orkney Museum, Stromness Museum and the Pier Arts Centre. Each venue explores a different aspect of the material : Prehistory, ethnography, the social history of collecting and the influence of prehistoric artefacts on 20th century artists. Paul Musgrove’s work speaks to each of these themes. With a tangible depth and subtle feel for the documentation of material, his prints bring the passions and the practices of antiquarians into sharp and evocative focus. The casts add further weight, bringing home how collecting back then (and even now) said as much about the standing and renown of collectors as it did about the past. Presented as objects of wonder and desire, in display cases which have many late 18th and 19th century parallels, the casts remind us that just as they did in prehistory, finely made stone artefacts were good to think with as well as good to use. Some may have even had names.
Mark Edmonds
The Collectors Axes
“Mathieson & Son - Tool Maker” – Bronze cast Axe “The Duellists Axes” – Pair of cast glass Axes “Axe in a Box” – Bronze cast Axe “Dorothy’s Ruby Axe” – Cast glass Axe in ruby glass “The Boxed Set” – Cast glass Axes in clear & ruby “A Matched Pair” – Pair of cast glass Axes “Big Axe” – Screenprint in eight colours “Three Axes II” - Multi-plate drypoint & carborundum print “Three Axes” - Multi-plate drypoint & carborundum print “Axe I” - Multi-plate drypoint & carborundum print “Pool Stone” – Photogravure etching “Please Return To” – Photogravure etching “Blade” – Photogravure etching “Double Back All” – Digital collage archival print “Flints etc.” – Digital collage archival print www.musworks.co.uk
Edition of 10 Edition of 10 Edition of 10 Edition of 15 Edition of 15 Edition of 10 Edition of 10 Edition of 30 Edition of 30
www.musworks.co.uk infogalleryten@gmail.com