A Tale of Two Cities

A Tale of Two Cities
A solo exhibition by James Lomax

Opening Reception: 13 November 2024, 6-8pm

View list of works

Exhibition text by Nick London

Exhibition text by Ava Alvarez

The gallery is delighted to announce 'A Tale of Two Cities' a solo exhibition by James Lomax. The exhibition expands upon Lomax's recent exhibition at HMP Grendon, a Category B men's prison that operates a unique psychodynamic therapeutic model. Lomax's exhibition at HMP Grendon was on view to residents of the prison only, and was the result of an Artist Residency undertaken there earlier this year.

The exhibition includes a new series of concrete casts, which Lomax refers to as ‘still lifes’. The compositions echo motifs from the photographs and found sculptural objects which further the artist's investigation into absence, communication and loss. 

Having previously drawn inspiration from abandoned packaging and shop hoardings, during the aftermath of a global pandemic and the continued national cost of living crisis Lomax has found himself photographing empty shop fronts where traces of the deepening crises were evident. Unopened letters piling up on doormats became an observation which Lomax documented and returned to after his time at HMP Grendon when the power of communication - and the power held by those who had the freedom of it - took on a new meaning.

At dusk everyday throughout the exhibition, four street lights will turn on. Their golden glow saturates colour out of their environment and out of the surrounding artworks. Through the use of the lights Lomax creates an immersive environment where the same reality can be viewed from an entirely different perspective. These lamps are reminiscent of those that Lomax remembers while growing up. Phased out from British streets, these lamps are also still used across a number of prisons in the UK.

To echo this duality, Lomax has invited two writers, with whom he has been in regular discussion about his work, to contribute texts in response to the exhibition. One by Ava Alvarez, an art historian, performance artist and PhD student of Neuroaesthetics who has previously written about commerce, fashion and art, and their natural crossovers. The other is written by Nick London, a writer and contributor to the national newspaper for prisoners ‘Inside Time’. Nick is a former resident at HMP Grendon who wrote the text that accompanied Lomax's exhibition there during his Artist Residency.

Sid Motion Gallery is helping to build a library of Art Books for the residents at HMP Grendon who use the Art Studio and Gallery there. All donations of books are very welcome, and will be collected throughout the exhibition.

Image: James Lomax at HMP Grendon, Photo by Tod Jones

Artist Biography

James Lomax (b. 1991, UK) lives and works in London. Lomax graduated from the Royal Academy Schools, London in 2022. He has undertaken residencies at Ikon Gallery, The New Art Gallery Walsall, The Henry Moore Institute and Studio Block M74 Mexico City. Most recently, he was the Artist in Residence at HMP Grendon, a Category B men's prison that operates a unique, psychodynamic therapeutic model.

Lomax's selected exhibitions include: 'Take a Seat', LAMB Gallery, London, UK (2024); 'Chester Contemporary', curated by Ryan Gander, Chester, UK (2023); 'Unbound Material', Sid Motion Gallery, London, UK (2023), 'Unprecedented Times', Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, Birmingham, UK (2022), 'Absurd', OHSH Projects, London, UK (2022), 'Modern Relics', Fold Gallery, London, UK (2022), and 'Flatten & Collapse', Recent Activity, London, UK (2022).

With thanks to Small Beer Co.