HER exhibition at Huddersfield Art Gallery has gone down well with visitors and now artist Dr Jill Townsley has been shortlisted as a finalist for the Laguna Art Prize in Venice.
The international jury of the seventh Arte Laguna Prize has selected 110 finalists who will exhibit their works at the Arsenale, the Telecom Italia Future Centre and the Romanian Institute of Venice from March 17 to March 31.
Of Jill’s work, it is her sculpture Till Rolls that has been short-listed to go to Venice.
The piece is currently on display as part of her exhibition at Huddersfield Art Gallery and will have to be reconstructed when it gets to Italy.
Till Rolls is a painstaking assembly of thousands of paper till rolls – creating a strange cityscape.
Jill is senior lecturer and course leader in contemporary art and illustration at the University of Huddersfield.
Her exhibition in Huddersfield is titled Sisyphus, a reference to The Myth of Sisyphus (1942) by Albert Camus where he concludes that happiness can be found in the simple repeated action of labour.
Jill’s show demonstrated just a similar dedication towards repeated actions of labour.
The show in the town’s public art gallery brought a strong response from visitors.
“I didn’t understand how awesome the till rolls were until I saw them in person,” said one gallery visitor.
“I dropped my bag when I saw it. Wonderful work,” said another.
There’s a chance to hear Jill talk about the exhibition at Huddersfield Art Gallery on Thursday of next week, that’s March 21 at 1pm. All welcome.
