300 miles to smile and weep by Helen O’Leary (photograph © Ian O’Leary)

Absense: third knock-out show in a row at Zoom Arts Gallery

You have until 4.30pm this Sunday – 14 August – to visit this extraordinary installation at Zoom Community Arts Gallery. HOT’s Erica Smith sings the praises of this installation piece – the third of three excellent exhibitions by women artists in this tiny, accessible, white cube gallery.

Since mid-July, the Zoom Gallery by Warrior Square station, has hosted three consecutive stunning exhibtions by women artists. The current installation is by Helen O’Leary – a three-dimensional artist who uses textiles as her primary medium. In 2019 I saw her series of embroidered hassocks (prayer cushions) about Brexit. The choice of embroidery as a slow and exquisite medium, combined with the beauty of each cushion and the biting commentary about Brexit etched these pieces into my memory.

Similarly, her current exhibition is unforgettable. 300 miles to smile and weep consists of 64 delicately knitted gloves which represent the 64 journeys she made to visit her mother in a care home over a period of five years. A label describing a memory of happier times is attached to each glove. This installation is accompanied by a more recent piece called Still Guilty – 64 gloves hand-knitted from silver-plated copper wire – each one attached to a label which records a guilty memory from the visit.

Helen O’Leary dress hanging on a door. Photograph by Ian O’Leary

The majority of the gallery walls are hung with baby gowns – some vintage ones in various stages of decay, some newly created ones with photographic imagery printed on to the cloth, and some ghostly knitted ones – sketches of christening gowns that might never be worn.

Helen says: “I generally work in three dimensions, starting with a mixed media work I make from layers of materials, then carefully paring back the layers and adding details. I love working with used textiles so I can add to the history they bring with them. I like working with wire which I frequently weave to form body shapes and work into – and then allow to rust.

“I have spent my life renovating Victorian houses and a 300 year old cottage. The relationships I have had and still have with my children, and their friends, the complications of family life and the contrast between happy and sad times that inevitably come to families all play a part in my work.”

This is a very intimate exhibition which sits beautifully in the tiny gallery space. A perfect visit for anyone who has spare time to wait if their train is delayed, or who, like me, is simply drawn in through the doorway on their way home.

O’Leary’s exhibition is the third of three consecutive exhibitions by women artists at Zoom which have caught my attention and dragged me through the door. Embroiderer Agnes Chevalier creates landscapes which fool your eyes into believing they are photographic because of the textural and tonal detail. She is equally able to create two- and three- dimensional pieces. Each one has a magical quality.

2-dimensional and 3-dimensional textile pieces by Agnes Chevalier.

The first exhibition in this recent run of shows by women creators was by collage artist Anna Bachene. Her work is colourful and playful – she develops mythical narratives using rich imagery. All three artists are stalwarts of the Zoom community of artists.

Anna Bachene collage from her July exhibition at Zoom Arts Community gallery

If you missed the exhibitions by Chevalier and Bachene, keep an eye on the Zoom Arts Facebook page to find out when they are exhibiting again. If you haven’t seen Helen O’Leary’s exhibition, I recommend you visit the Zoom Gallery at St Leonards Warrior Square Station between now and Sunday 14 August from 11.30am–4pm.

You can find out more about Helen O’Leary’s work on her website.

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