In Hall of Hours, Robert Powell’s first solo show for Edinburgh Printmakers, the artist invites us to examine a less standardised version of time. Through a series of prints and a large-scale city sized clock, Powell invites us to understand time as something that is experienced rather than measured. Taking inspiration from medieval Books of Hours which depicted the day sliced into different epochs of reflection and activity – this multimedia exhibition invites audiences to think about the passage of time, how we organise time, and how we structure knowledge to proof it against time.
The result is an intensely rich and detailed exhibition which sees Powell’s unique visual language question time’s role in our urbanised and digitalised world. The centrepiece of the exhibition is a 4m high clock made of a series of prints and spinning discs around a copper disc. Each moment in time is depicted by different scenes replacing numerical forms in the clockface whilst a series of prints adorn the body of the clock evoking Albrect Dürer’s The Triumphal Arch of Maximilian. The exhibition expands on Powell’s animated work Chronoscope, originally created for the refurbished Music Hall in Aberdeen. A sound installation work alongside a series of hand etched hanging copper bells and a series of individual prints will complete the immersive nature of the exhibition. Visitors to the exhibition will also have the opportunity to take part in a daily bell ringing session at 12 noon each day the exhibition is open, and details of a programme of related workshops and activities will be announced shortly.
Robert Powell is an Edinburgh-based visual artist whose multidisciplinary practice focuses on printmaking, but extends to sculpture, video, and text. A graduate of Edinburgh College of Art and longstanding studio member of Edinburgh Printmakers, Robert Powell has exhibited widely at home as well as throughout Europe, North America and the Far East. In his career thus far he has been the recipient of several awards including the 2008 John Watson Award, the 2011 Benno Schotz Award from the RSA and the 2013 SSA Engramme Printmaking Exchange prize.
Known for his detailed, scholarly works, Powell creates paintings, prints, and installations with a darkly satirical vision recognisable to readers of François Rabelais’ Gargantua and Pantagruel, Menippean satire and the self satirizing The Anatomy of Melancholy by Robert Burton. Powell’s encyclopedic works also draw the works of Breughel and on Wimmelbilderbuch, the German term for teeming picturebooks, most recently popularised by the Where’s Wally series. Those familiar with Ovid's Fasti, and the idea of particular times having particular qualities and characters will also find resonance with Powell’s works.
Speaking ahead of the exhibition artist Robert Powell said:
“When my young son turned one he developed an obsession with clocks and seeing this I was reminded what magical objects they are. They measure time but because time is such an ineffable thing they actually seem to embody it. There’s a crossover between the inexplicable and inexpressible and the physical, tangible world. From the iPhone to renaissance automata or the Astronomical Clock in Prague there’s something quite fascinating about them. So thinking about time as something that is experienced rather than measured I wanted to create this guide through time, a vast human driven clock drawing from medieval manuscripts like the Book of Hours.
Creating these works I have been mindful of the effect of climate change on time, the sense of history following along a particular telic trajectory to an end point in the future. Of the seasons being put out of joint so there are no more natural markers of time, and the fear that the end of the clock is imminent.”
Edinburgh Printmakers CEO Janet Archer said:
“Hall of Hours is an epic undertaking by the artist Robert Powell and we are delighted that the scale and ambition of his work can be fully realised in this solo exhibition. The intricate detail, exploration of the human condition and rich layers of visual storytelling will demand repeated visits as audiences see and discover ever more layers and nuance in the artists’ work.
This solo exhibition also showcases the potential for using the medium of printmaking as a starting point for a multifaceted exhibition featuring sculpture, animation and sound installation.”
Mark Daniels, Executive Director New Media Scotland said:
“Back in 2014 our Alt-w Fund first supported Robert’s practice to create ‘The Thinking Machine’ with Hadi Mehrpouya. This veritable box of delights opened our eyes to Robert’s practice and when Aberdeen Performing Arts provided the opportunity to support his practice again, we jumped at the chance. ‘Chronoscope’ dramatically scaled Robert’s capacity for world building, and now at Edinburgh Printmakers our journey through time has a whole new momentum.
Robert Powell: Hall of Hours supported by New Media Scotland’s Alt-w Fund runs from 1 August to 2 November in Gallery 1 at Edinburgh Printmakers and is part of the Edinburgh Art Festival (7 - 21 August). Hall of Hours is a new body of work that expands on the themes contained within a previous work, Chronoscope, an animated clock co-commissioned by Aberdeen Performing Arts and New Media Scotland’s Alt-w Fund with investment from Creative Scotland in 2022. Robert Powell and Edinburgh Printmakers have continued to collaborate with Mark Daniels at New Media Scotland to realise this new exhibition.
