‘Stuff’ solo show by Leon Ellis Jakeman 27 May – 20 June 2010
Liverpool based artist Leon Ellis Jakeman returns to The Egg for his second Solo show following the success of his debut solo show there ‘Funded by Feeling’ in 2006. Curated by HeadSpace and Leon.
With familiar feelings from past shows Jakeman brings you new works extracted and updated from his life journey so far………. ‘STUFF ’
At a young age from 0-18 years ‘Jakeman’ was ‘Dilley’. Experiencing trauma’s on different levels in somewhat dysfunctional surroundings he built barriers and self-taught coping mechanisms to ‘get by’ blocking and pushing down feelings deep inside that would in later life erupt.
Nearly two decades later his journey has seen many successful ‘highs’ and extreme ‘lows’, however it is only now that some form of balance is being reached and maintained by the energetically charged artist. Having experiences battling with addictions to alcohol, drugs, sex, and other obsessional escapism’s (‘STUFF ’) He now uses himself as his own material/content cathartically exploring, sharing and expressing the Good, Bad and Downright Ugly within.
After going back to his roots searching for a hands on creative connection, he began to ‘pick up’ and ‘play’ with material once again as he did when he felt ‘lost’ as a child, exploring the physical aesthetics with his inner emotion – which in turn led to the self-taught inter-disciplinary artist gaining a place in the final year for a fine art degree in which he was awarded a 1st.
Jakeman states –
‘The human condition provides a fundamental source of inspiration within my work. ‘Our’ individual actions and mutual interactions, strategies, and patterns of behaviour offers a matrix of expression that allows me to investigate, display and transmit feelings. I ‘break-down’ my ‘compulsive’ complexity, simplifying my message by means of arrangements and statements. This provides a fertile ground for the exploration of communication, relation, of verbal and non-verbal language. The ‘physical’ sensory aesthetic of the work is critical and operates in parallel with the relevance of my original mental state and thought processes. I use my work and subject matter to question my/our development and exploration within the pattern of life itself. Ultimately I study coping mechanisms, strategies, and patterns within life and our collective moments of ‘interface’. Using memories of space, time and surroundings I address and communicate the everyday pressures and issues that interplay within existence, through wordplay, emotional provocation and human interaction.’
‘STUFF ’ = a simple word, that in a joking sense I use quite often to not have to explain my absolute being, ways and mannerisms. Although the word itself stands alone simple, it actually has hidden underneath complexities that are personal to each and every one of us. It is a vague, secretive slang word that can cover a wide area of collections, belongings and physical/mental ‘private’ conditions, a general ‘folder’ that has untold information and hidden details.
Personally, I hear it all the time through rehabilitation, therapy and recovery – ‘that’s their stuff’, ‘going over stuff’, ‘projecting stuff’, ‘magnifying stuff’ and so on……………………..I look forward sharing some of my ‘STUFF’ with you : )
Leon Ellis Jakeman
www.space13.co.uk
Redtube – Leon Ellis Jakeman