Richard Woods: Inclosure Acts

Richard Woods has built an international reputation for his signature architectural transformations, paintings and sculpture that fold the history of the decorative arts, functional design and graphic language into intoxicatingly witty plays with image and surface.

His architectural interventions are chiefly concerned with the re-surfacing of existing structures, proposing an absurd twist on the cult of home improvement and DIY aesthetics.

For Chapter, Woods has created ‘Inclosure Acts’ a new work that is inspired by both the history of the building – sited as it is on a former cattle market – and by the Acts (1604-1914) that radically transformed open fields and common land in the countryside.

Wall-based works reference the suburban in a series of monoprints. Based on hard-edged renditions of Mock Tudor decoration, the paintings are suburbia meets Neo Geo — the past made future.

In the Caffi Bar Woods’ works ‘Bad Bricks’ are beautifully simple sculptures made from wood and resembling cartoon bricks. Their vibrant colours, bright white mortar and thick black edges offer a joyous celebration of the most mundane of building materials.

Biography
Richard Woods was born in 1966 in Cheshire, UK and was educated at Winchester School of Art and Slade School of Fine Art. He lives and works in London.

In autumn 2014 Chapter collaborated with Woods to produce ‘Cardiff Rebuild’ a work in the grounds of Cardiff Castle as part of Cardiff Contemporary.

Woods has exhibited extensively internationally and significant recent projects include major commissions at the University of Bath (2014); A Maze for Yorkshire, Wakefield (2013); Public Art Fund and Lever House, New York (2010) and collaborations on a wide range of furniture with Established & Sons.

Woods has work in major collections internationally including The Saatchi Collection, London; Frank Cohen Collection, Manchester / Wolverhampton and Jumex Collection, Mexico.

He is represented by Works I Projects. With thanks to The Alan Cristea Gallery, London.

Exhibition open:
Tuesday, Wednesday,
Saturday & Sunday 12–6pm;
Thursday & Friday 12–8pm;
closed Monday