Ashley is an emerging, queer, South African artist, based in Glasgow. Their practice
spans performance, video, sound, installation, production and curatorial work. Ashley is
interested in the body language of tension and catharsis, and evokes the musicality and serious playfulness of gesture to consider its functions as method of self-soothing and symbolic activation. Through fragmented and speculative narratives, she initiates opportunities for ceremonial and meditative contemplation of object as site for emotions, dreams, connection, and memory.

Oli Turner, the photographer of Ashley’s work, is a visual artist from Yorkshire, currently based in Glasgow. Her practice is rooted in landscape, place and memory, shaped by journeys into remote and rural environments. Working with photography and sculpture, she explores continuities between past and present, where ecology, ritual sites and human experience intersect, offering spaces for reflection, belonging and reconnection.

See Ashley and Oli’s work as part of our conceptual photography open call, STAGED, curated by gallery intern Noa Ferder. The participating artists each examine how a still image can hold the tension of a performed moment, and carry liveness through composition, gesture, and construction. We create a space where photography is a site of performance, where the still is activated. We invite visitors to experience photographs that sit somewhere between rehearsal and outcome: the making of the image exists within the captured still, allowing the still to continue to perform in the act of being seen.

SFG: Can you elaborate on the significance or symbolism of the chosen title for your work?
AS: This work is a documentation of the character that formed the basis for a long term project, An Archaeologist I am Destined to Be, that consists of a series of performance, video and sound works. The formation of visual and linguistic motifs is a very important aspect of my creative process, where writing and performance go hand in hand. The title of this work comes from a line in a poem that I wrote throughout this project, which informed and was informed by my performances. Exhibited in isolation from this, I wanted this title to bring the image back into its performative origin by offering the viewer a soundtrack for the performed gesture through onomatopoeic language, while allowing the gesture and metaphor of sharpening a tool to be considered in and out of its original context.

SFG: Will your next project be a continuation of your current style or are you experimenting with something different? Can you share a glimpse of your next project?
AS: I think my previous and current work has had a serious or sincere undertone, often being quite heavy and emotional dealing with subject matters of grief, love and memory, manifesting in long-format videos and sound works. However, for my next project I’m taking on a more playful and humorous approach with quite a sharp camp, ironic tone looking at the relationship between straight men and fish through a queer lens! You can expect some drag/cabaret style hijinks!

SFG: Are there any upcoming events or additional information you would like the audience to know? 
AS: I have an exhibition coming up at the end of February with Spare Room Gallery, where I will be showing some new sculptural and performance work that has developed through the ending of the work that I have displayed at Six Foot Gallery. You can also keep an eye out in April for some fishy fun at Stereo!

SFG: Oli, Can you walk us through your creative process?
OT: My work is rooted in our connection with the natural world and I think my process reflects that. It ranges from stillness and peace to momentum, chaos and destruction. And for me that is all part of the process of making work. I spend lots of time walking, watching, listening, often in remote environments. This is where I find stillness for the ideas to come, and the chaos and momentum builds before a work unfolds.

SFG: How did your artistic journey start?
OT: Completely by accident. I was into craft as a kid but never thought I would go to art school. I followed the breadcrumbs and ended up… here !

SFG: How has your photography practice changed over time?
OT: I would say it’s become a lot more free. I used to spend a lot of time forcing work and I have learnt if it’s not flowing, search somewhere else, even if that means using a different medium. I have learnt not to back myself into a box and to just follow where my curiosity lies, which for now is with the stones…!

STAGED runs at Six Foot Gallery until 24th February 2026. Connect with Ashley and Oli on Instagram: @candleshortofashrine @piccalily_