Forma

The Whole Fantasy (with holes)

Forma is pleased to be working with Benedict Drew on a new project The Whole Fantasy (with holes) that will unfold through 2019. Starting with digital works, music and a takeover of Forma’s website and social media, Drew will develop a growing body of work experimenting with painting, film, installation and musical compositions. As the project develops Forma will respond to Drew’s practice, creating opportunities for audiences to engage with this new body of work. 

The Whole Fantasy (with holes) will explore contemporary narratives in our political climate, here in the UK and globally. Launching on March 29th, the original Brexit day, Drew will question what is fuelling a nationalist and populist turn in the UK, with parallels internationally across Donald Trump’s  US Presidency, and recent elections in Brazil and Europe; asking  how a “false memory” of a country is mobilised by certain entities and political movements to justify extremism and rejection of the other. Drew will consider how cultural distribution and communication channels are appropriated, corrupted and reshaped to craft fantasies that are shared and (mis)remembered. 

Drew will approach these complex subjects by wrestling with the means of cultural production that surrounds them. This includes the media broadcasts that underpin such narratives; the language used to advocate for them; the way words and ‘truth’ have become malleable tools but also how architecture and design can become complicit in forging these fantasies. By investigating how such oppressive forces gain agency, Drew will uncover a homologous cultural space where the subject can survive, thrive and dream up a resistance. 

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The Whole Fantasy (with holes)

Benedict Drew
From 29 March 2019

Forma is pleased to be working with Benedict Drew on a new project The Whole Fantasy (with holes) that will unfold through 2019. Starting with digital works, music and a takeover of Forma’s website and social media, Drew will develop a growing body of work experimenting with painting, film, installation and musical compositions. As the project develops Forma will respond to Drew’s practice, creating opportunities for audiences to engage with this new body of work. 

The Whole Fantasy (with holes) will explore contemporary narratives in our political climate, here in the UK and globally. Launching on March 29th, the original Brexit day, Drew will question what is fuelling a nationalist and populist turn in the UK, with parallels internationally across Donald Trump’s  US Presidency, and recent elections in Brazil and Europe; asking  how a “false memory” of a country is mobilised by certain entities and political movements to justify extremism and rejection of the other. Drew will consider how cultural distribution and communication channels are appropriated, corrupted and reshaped to craft fantasies that are shared and (mis)remembered. 

Drew will approach these complex subjects by wrestling with the means of cultural production that surrounds them. This includes the media broadcasts that underpin such narratives; the language used to advocate for them; the way words and ‘truth’ have become malleable tools but also how architecture and design can become complicit in forging these fantasies. By investigating how such oppressive forces gain agency, Drew will uncover a homologous cultural space where the subject can survive, thrive and dream up a resistance. 

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​Benedict Drew

Born 1977 - Lives and works, Whitstable / Margate, UK

Benedict Drew works across video, sculpture, music and their associated technologies. He creates large-scale installations, often concerned with ecstatic responses to socio-political anxiety. Solo exhibitions include The Trickle-Down Syndrome, Whitechapel Gallery, London;KAPUT, QUAD Gallery, Derby; Walker Gallery, Liverpool; THE ANTI ECSTATIC MACHINESand Heads May Roll, Matt’s Gallery, London.
 
Drew’s work has been exhibited internationally including at Adelaide Festival, Australia; Lofoten International Arts Festival, Norway; and in Hayward Touring exhibitions British Art Show 8 and Shonky: The Aesthetics of Awkwardness. He has been commissioned to create video works for public spaces including Art on the Underground, London and Focal Point Gallery, Southend and his installation KAPUT (2015) was acquired by the Arts Council Collection. Drew has released several records, including Crawling Through Tory Slime(MANA Records) and the upcoming The Ughhh Ballads (Bloxham Tapes) and regularly collaborates with other artists and musicians. Benedict Drew is a lecturer in Fine Art at Slade School of Fine Art and is represented by Matt’s Gallery, London.