Steppes is a collaborative exhibition from ESP and Two Queens. ESP members Emilie Atkinson, Leah Carless, Alice Gale-Feeny, Georgie Grace and Brian J Morrison present works that use rhythmic actions, tessellating veneers and sensuous materialities in attempts to deconstruct and reassemble the working mechanisms behind everyday encounters. The artists will introduce their practices and the works in the exhibition, and will be joined by Two Queens directors Daniel Sean Kelly and Gino Attwood to discuss the broader themes within the show. All are welcome to be part of the conversation. This event is part of ESP Away Day: Leicester.2queens.com Emilie Atkinson graduated with a BA in Fine Art from The Slade School of Fine Art in 2014 and was awarded the The Lim Ai Fang, Woon Foundation Sculpture and Painting Art Prize for recent graduates that same year. Recent exhibitions include ESP Useful Editions at Production Show: Building/Developing/Testing, Eastside Projects, Birmingham (2017), KUKURUZ, AirSpace Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent (2016), Exposition, Unit 9, Clermont-Ferrand (2016), Do You Hear What I Hear? A.I.R. Gallery, New York (2016) and Die Distanz zwischen Dir und Mir, Freies Museum, Berlin (2015). In 2017 Emilie was selected for Master Class 2017 at the Zabludowicz Collection, London and was awarded a Radical Sabbatical Residency with ESP and University of Birmingham. Leah Carless (b. 1982 Stourbridge, West Midlands) studied Fine Art at Birmingham City University (BA, 2013) and Sculpture at Royal College of Art (MA, 2016). Leah has recently exhibited work in group shows at KH7 artspace, Aarhus, Denmark, Copperfield Gallery, London, Camden Arts Centre, London and Blyth Gallery, London (all 2016). She was also selected for Bloomberg New Contemporaries 2016, Bluecoat, Liverpool and ICA, London. Alice Gale-Feeny (b. 1989 Brighton) lives and works in Nottingham. Solo exhibitions include: ‘Getting to know’, Nottingham Castle Museum and Gallery, 22nd October 2016 – 12th March 2017; ‘Close Attention’, Space One, Seoul, South Korea, 2015, and ‘HairWashCarWash’, Two Queens, Leicester, 2014. Residencies and awards include: STORE, unfixed location, London 2015-16; Summer Lodge, Nottingham Trent University, 2016 and 2013; The Drawing Board, Primary, Nottingham, 2015; Testing Ground: The Masterclass, Zabludowicz Collection, London, 2013. Group exhibitions/screenings include: Sunscreen, a commission for EM15 at the 56th Venice Biennale, curated by Candice Jacobs, 2016; ‘Playing with Space’, curated by Laurence Bradby, various locations, 2015; FOAM, curated by Matt Jenner, ATTIC, One Thoresby Street, 2014; NN Contemporary Open, Northampton, 2014; ‘Appropriate Response – New Artist Moving Image’, Zabludowicz Collection, London, 2014; Cultural Embassies, Vetrinj Mansion, Maribor, Slovenia, 2012. Performances include: Hatch: Scratched, New Art Exchange, Nottingham, 2013; Hatch: Hazard Festival with Katherine Fishman, St Annes Square, Manchester, 2012. Curatorial projects include: ‘Ground’, co-curated with Oliver Tirré, Turf Projects, Croydon, 2016 and ATTIC, One Thoresby Street, Nottingham, 2015. Georgie Grace studied Philosophy and Social Anthropology at the University of Cambridge before completing her MFA at Cambridge School of Art in 2012. Solo presentations include the SPUR commission ‘A wonderful future where you have back up copies’ (2015); ‘Recognise Predators, Recognise Prey’ (2014) at g39, Cardiff, and ‘This time of day can be dangerous’ (2014) at Eastside Projects as part of Jerwood Encounters: 3-Phase. Georgie received a Jerwood grant with Kelly Best for their research project ‘Do Without’ (2016), was selected for Testing Ground: Master Class at Zabludowicz Collection, London (2016) and curated ‘The horizon is the point of no return’ (2016) for Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge. Group presentations include: ‘Shadow Optics’ (2016), Lubomirov / Angus-Hughes, London; ‘Inner Landscapes of Time’ (2015), Upstream Gallery, Amsterdam; ‘Tenderflix’ (2014), ICA, London; The Manchester Contemporary (2013) with Aid & Abet; ‘Minits-4’ (2012), Flat Time House, London; Outpost Open: Film (2012), Outpost, Norwich, and on tour. Brian J Morrison is a Belfast born artist, based in Birmingham. He is a member of Studio Capri, an artist run studio group, and has exhibited works in the UK, Ireland and Europe. Brian represented England at the Standpoint Futures Residency, London in 2015 and was awarded a solo exhibition at the Warsaw Photography Festival Poland in 2016. He is currently showing work as part of a four-week public arts programme based at The Shoe Factory, Norwich.
