Exhibition Opening event: Thursday 1 July, 6pm-8pm

Working through Solid Air is a homage to the legacy of British musician John Martyn’s music. After first hearing his 1973 album Solid Air at eighteen his songs have provided a soundscape to the creation of many of Munday’s studio-based artworks.

Martyn’s songs tackle the classical themes of love and loss but deal with them in an autobiographical way that is not only unflinchingly honest, but also poignant and universally affecting. The exhibition directly responds to specific song titles; the works are not explicitly referential but instead take a similar form to a “riff” in musical improvisation. Each work capturing the mood of the song in question and alluding to the lyric content, albeit obliquely.

The title song from the eponymous album, Solid Air, was written for Martyn’s close friend Nick Drake (who would die eighteen months after it’s release), to quote John “It was done for a friend of mine, and it was done right with very clear motives, and I’m very pleased with it, for varying reasons. It has got a very simple message, but you’ll have to work that one out for yourself” This exhibition has been created with the same intentions…

Special Event: Artist In-Conversation – Ian Munday & Ralph Crane
Saturday 17 July, 1pm

Image: Father Time, 2021
Image by Peter Whyte Photography.