Sy Hackney’s Dripwork captures something about the enterprise of life in all its ambiguity, which somehow, on canvas, is translated into simple, coherent and lucid terms. It is not until, upon looking away and back to ‘reality’, that the overwhelming obscurity of existence comes flooding back.

The work is carried out against a backdrop of unique social situation. The artist lives in a communal Arts centre in East London, (The 491 Gallery) the doors of which are always open, providing a non-stop refuge for a myriad of different people and personalities, all of whom are offered appreciation, and time and space in which to experiment with their own diverse artforms, ranging from music to yoga to photography. However, a communal space such as this, completely void of social prejudice, makes for rather intense living conditions, and privacy is scarce. This is echoed in the work, which, by providing creative relief from the non-stop influx of people and their abstractions, absorbs and then resonates with a sense of this exceptional lifestyle.

< back to Artists