Making Connections

Void Gallery,

Derry

Apr-May 2024

Void Gallery Graduate Award Exhibition

​My MFA degree show included multiple ceramic spheres that the audience could move around the installation. I wanted to continue to encourage a level of physical engagement with my ceramic work for the Void Graduate Award and after consideration decided to focus on jigsaws.

The jigsaws were developed from ideas around play derived from Children's Games by Bruegel the Elder, including a jigsaw with a detail from the painting. 'Gesture' shows the BSL alphabet and Permaculture related to the other exhibition running in the gallery at the same time.

The exhibition was set up with tables at a variety of height for improved inclusion and accessibility. ‘Transform’ is a heavy relief jigsaw designed to make the work work accessible for people with visual impairments. More research is required around this around texture, colour and tone.

 The wall plinths were made in the studio but the black table was inherited from my uncle. A dining table has often been a multifunctional space for gathering, eating, working and playing at.

Gallery wall with paintings and descriptions, display tables with boxes and items, and a small stand with informational material.
A jigsaw puzzle of a world map showing the continents and oceans in green, brown, and blue colors. The puzzle is assembled on a white background.
A fragment of ancient pottery with blue painted figures and scenes, featuring humanoid and animal shapes, titled 'Gesture'.
A wooden puzzle depicting three children playing outdoors, with one sitting at a table, one standing with a stick, and one painting on an easel.
A jigsaw puzzle featuring a cartoon of a smiling, talking cartoon speech bubble with a face and headphones. The background is green, and the puzzle includes drawings of ringing phones with the word 'RING RING' written multiple times.
A colorful jigsaw puzzle depicting a heart-shaped design with a cross inside. The puzzle features shades of blue, green, and yellow, with the heart and cross prominently centered.
A puzzle with a floral pattern featuring red and pink flowers, green leaves, and a blue border.
A completed 3x3 jigsaw puzzle with a floral design featuring hibiscus flowers and green leaves, framed with a blue border.
A jigsaw puzzle with a colorful, artistic design related to permaculture. The puzzle features words and images embedded in vibrant, abstract artwork.
A puzzle image depicting a butterfly with colorful wings, set against a red and pink background, with green foliage and white flowers in the corners.
Colorful jigsaw puzzle featuring alphabet letters from A to Z, with various illustrations including a car, heart, bird, butterfly, and sunflower. The puzzle is titled 'Educate' and has a mostly easy difficulty level with some tricky areas.
A puzzle titled 'Risk' with a difficulty level of 'Fairly difficult'. It features illustrations of snakes and ladders on a blue background. The puzzle encourages not to rely on the squares.
A puzzle piece map of Earth showing continents in green and oceans in blue, assembled in a circular shape.
An indoor art exhibition with framed colorful images of the Earth, sky, and nature on the walls. Several wooden tables and shelves display puzzle pieces and related materials. The room has a gray floor and white walls.
A wooden table displaying torn, colorful ceramic pieces with a red cloth and an open wooden box filled with similar paper pieces and colored ceramic jigsaw pieces. The box has a picture of a butterfly on the inside of the lid.
An art exhibition room displaying puzzle-themed artworks and puzzle pieces on tables.
An art exhibition room with white walls and light grey flooring, displaying posters of Earth with different themes such as climate and permaculture, and various wooden tables and boxes holding puzzle pieces and informational materials.
A wooden table displaying colorful broken pottery jigsaw pieces across its surface. An open wooden box with a butterfly drawing on the inside lid sits on the table, containing red fabric and some pottery pieces. The background is plain and off-white.
An art exhibit in a gallery with wall posters displaying images and descriptions of Earth, with small wooden tables below holding boxes and small framed artwork.
An art exhibit room with framed artwork on the wall, wooden display tables, and open wooden boxes with red and yellow cloth inside.
A wooden table with scattered puzzle pieces, a wooden box with red fabric lining, an informational card with a colorful illustration, and a plain beige wall in the background.
Display of open wooden boxes containing puzzles and small objects on a black table, with a plain wall and floor in the background.
Art display with three posters on the wall, each showing a puzzle image with titles and difficulty levels, and wooden tables with scattered puzzle pieces and open puzzle boxes.
An art gallery wall with three colorful art pieces labeled 'Educate,' 'Gesture,' and 'Transform,' each with difficulty levels and descriptions. Below, there is a small wooden table with an open box of puzzles and a framed picture on the floor.
Colorful puzzle pieces scattered on a wooden table next to an open wooden box with a drawing of a butterfly on the inside of the lid.
Colorful puzzle pieces scattered on a wooden table next to an open wooden box with a red cloth inside, containing a printed description of the puzzle titled 'Life' and its artwork.
An indoor exhibition with three framed posters on white wall and three wooden tables with puzzle pieces and open boxes, likely part of an educational or puzzle activity display.
People working on a partially assembled jigsaw puzzle on a wooden table.
Two people are working together on assembling a jigsaw puzzle with a picture of a cartoon character on a wooden table, in an indoor setting.
A person wearing glasses and a black jacket with a fleece collar is crouching down on the floor, working on a puzzle on a wooden table. The puzzle pieces are scattered across the table. There is a wooden box on the right side of the table with some p
People assembling a puzzle on a wooden table, some puzzle pieces are visible, with a box and printed guide in the background.
People working on assembling a mosaic of broken ceramic pieces on a wooden table.
Colorful ceramic puzzle pieces arranged on a wooden table, with a person's hand placing one piece, and a red fabric-lined box filled with more puzzle pieces next to it.