Blind Alchemy at the Royal Standard

Blind Alchemy is the second in a series of collaborative projects between artists Rachel Adams and Ian Giles. One of the pursuits of the alchemist, turning lead into gold, lies in the no man’s land between scientific procedure and magical reaction. Turning nothing into something is a key part of both artist’s practices.

That’s a real Moonshine Machine bubbling away in the gallery – turning potatoes into liquor, there is no finished product though as that is only the first part of the process.

Although Rachel is based in Edinburgh and Ian is in London the two collaborate well. They visited Royal Standard last year to plan the exhibition which will transfer to Studio Warehouse, Glasgow in March.

There are a few installations with the loop being a recurring sort of motif as in the rung which is seen on fire in a video and also in its cold post-burning state.

Rachel’s sculptures made from crumpled paper are very effective – they look really heavy and solid.