I have to admit I’d never heard of Sophie Ryder before but I am on the mailing list for Lakeside Arts which covers Djanogly Gallery (based on the University of Nottingham campus) and I was intrigued by the photos of her work so I made a mental note to go visit and as is often the case with these things didn’t actually get around to it until it was in its last week (it closed on 12 March).
Ryder is known for her large scale sculptures of animals including her own invention called the Ladyhare and the classic minotaur future. This exhibition focused on some of her smaller pieces, which gives you an idea of just how large her bigger sculptures must be! They are stunning and one of the things I was most intrigued by was the inclusion of extra details in the sculptures like cassettes and smaller sculptures within bigger ones.
I didn’t take any photos of the drawings on display, mostly of her own dogs which were incredibly lifelike, but what I did photograph were her wire drawings – these were created by manipulating a mesh of twisted wires to create flattened images on the wall. They were brilliant and I was able to get very close up to them to admire the skill involved in creating such a large piece of art.
Some of my other favourites included this minotaur seeing itself in a mirror and this minotaur with the Ladyhare.
A bit odd yes, but lovely and I’m glad I made the time to visit. You can find some more photos here.
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