9th March – 6th April
Eilidh Morris encourages their self-conscious to work through automatic art-making and expressive use of colour. The creative practice of making imagination art relies on honest self-representation and a belief that there are no real accidents in terms of content. A psychological element is always present and brings greater introspection on completion of a drawing or painting. Eilidh describes it as imagination art and hopes to evoke conversation and fascination through the dream-like chaos that unfurls on canvas.
‘In Defence of Excessive Sleeping’ is a collection of artworks reflective of Eilidh’s varied artistic styles. The title refers to Morris’ mental health and the positive effect ‘excessive sleeping’ has on the imagination. Perhaps it is okay to sleep for 15 hours if the result is a burst of curious invention. Each piece tells a different story but all were created in a very emotive and fluid artistic process using paints, pro-markers and POSCA pens. This includes autobiographical portraits such as “Maple Cabin” based on a trip to Canada, and “Paisley 2014”,the latter of which blurs a line between memory and nightmare. Also included are creations which exist wholly in a fantasy realm, such as “It’s Waking Up,” which depicts a huge ‘King Worm’ arising from its slumber in a deep, dark cave, and “Theia”, an imagined portrait of a powerful cosmic being.
Eilidh recently brought their multi-coloured imagination to life with the design and painting of a large, unicorn-themed rhino sculpture in Hamilton’s “The Big Stampede” public art trail in summer of 2017. This was eventually auctioned in aid of Glasgow Children’s Hospital Charity. Also in 2018, Eilidh’s graphite piece “Spinal” was published in North-east Scotland’s Magazine of New Writing, “Pushing out the Boat”, and the illustration “Hyper-Stimulation” was featured in mental health charity Subconscious’ pop-up exhibition in San Francisco to help raise awareness and eradicate stigma associated with mental illness.
“In Defence of Excessive Sleeping” is Morris’ first solo exhibition.
Eilidh Morris was one of the many talented artists who were part of our group exhibition 2018 Showcase, and we are extremely excited to have them back for their very own solo show!
Be sure to check out more of Morris’ work by following these links:
www.eilidhmorris.com
www.eilidhmorrisart.etsy.com
www.instagram.com/eilidhmorrisart
www.facebook.com/eilidhmorrisart
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