ArtHouse Jersey Pop Up returns with photographer Will Lakeman

 ArtHouse Jersey is delighted to announce the next in their series of Pop Up exhibitions at Greve de Lecq Barracks, this time with local photographer Will Lakeman.The showcase will take place over the weekend of Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 May 2021 at ArtHouse Jersey’s HQ and Will will be on hand to talk visitors through any questions they may have about the work on display.

For this pop up Will Lakeman will be showing photographs from his ongoing project that explores the relationship between everyday places and their strange echoes in our subconscious. Many of the images are of real locations, but he either photographs them at unusual times (often at night) or lights them with intense colours, manipulating the scenes to enhance what he perceives as the latent background weirdness of everyday life.Will works as if he is making scenes for a film. The images are often empty of human subjects - stages set for the actors to return. He tries to explore that quality of empty spaces which is often reflected in our dreams. The ‘human subject’ in this case would be the dreamer.

Of this concept Lakeman says ‘Many people describe dreams where we insert ourselves in familiar locations, often changed by illogical additions, or in shadowy, cavernous structures that hint at some subconscious drama.’ The most obvious example to Jersey people will be his work in progress on Fort Regent Leisure Centre.

Will is less interested in showing the actual building (fascinating as it is from a local and historical perspective) but more in holding up a mirror to our distorted memories of the place.In order to achieve this he will be showing some work that he is making by manipulating images of the old swimming pool from the 80s and 90s, and also hopes to offer a sensory game - COVID restrictions permitted.Will often works with artificial intelligence to produce more directly dreamlike images, generated by the re interpretation of thousands of source images that he creates himself and feeds into an AI model. This can produce recognisable shapes, but also an intense hallucinatory vision that is closer to abstract painting. He has produced a series of prints that originate from photographs taken underneath the sea, but also images of local buildings and the Battle of Flowers funfair.For this Pop Up show Will has also produced some photography zines which will be on sale on the day. These zines more directly tell a story, or perhaps hint at one. Like all of Will Lakeman’s work, they are designed to be eerie, colourful and entirely open to interpretation.

Of hosting this ArtHouse Jersey Pop Up exhibition Will Lakeman said “I’m thrilled to have this opportunity to show some of my current projects. It’s a great space at the Barracks and the seaside location is appropriate as a lot of my work begins life underwater. Social media is great but film and photography really benefits from a physical production, so that you can enjoy the images printed out large, and in full colour. It also gives me a more direct opportunity to try and sell you stuff - in this case some photozines that I have put together especially for this show. I also want to engage people to share their own memories of some of the locations I have made images from, especially the former swimming pool at Fort Regent. If you almost drowned at Pluto’s Playtime I want to hear all about it.'

ArtHouse Pop Up: The Will Lakeman edition’ takes place on Saturday 22 & Sunday 23 May 2021 at ArtHouse Jersey’s HQ, Greve de Lecq Barracks, 10am to 5pm both days.

*** PLEASE NOTE There will be no onsite parking but there is parking available two minutes walk away. We will be following COVID19 regulations by implementing social distancing and monitoring the number of people in the space at any one time.