The Weight of Words opening party

Thursday 6 July 2023

18:00–20:00

Henry Moore Institute, Leeds

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Part of The Weight of Words

A small metal boat, painted blue but very weathered, with rusted metal showing underneath where the paint has flaked off. It is filled with matches standing upright; their heads have been lit and extinguished.

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Several small, handmade metal boats in formation, all weathered and different colours. Each is filled with matches standing upright; their heads have been lit and extinguished.

In the centre of a large room, a large, open-framed wooden structure is draped with numerous t-shirts, each with writing of some kind on them.

Photograph of a motion flap-board (a type public sign system once commonly found in stations or ports before digital signs became widely used). The sign hangs from the ceiling on two slender chains. There is a bay window behind the sign, and a relief sculpture of an angel on the wall to the left. The sign has two lines of text; both are deliberately misspelled. The top one reads 'SHUT MTOUH' and the bottom one reads 'WRODS CMOE FROM EARS'.

A curved piece of polished metal, resting on a round wooden base on top of a cylindrical plinth.

You are warmly invited to join us for the opening of our new exhibitions The Weight of Words and Egon Altdorf.

All welcome, free entry, drinks will be served. The opening will feature a performance by artist Shanzhai Lyric.

In The Weight of Words, an intergenerational array of contemporary artists and poets from around the world pursue poetry by sculptural means. Each explores the profound connections between the plastic and linguistic qualities of words, in ways that range from humorous to haunting.

Egon Altdorf features three of the artist’s steel sculptures, along with a selection of his woodcuts and prints. They show both the strength of Altdorf’s design and printmaking skills, and the clear influence of the British artists he met during his time in the UK.

Photograph of a person holding three books in one hand, wearing a long sleeved white top with writing on the torso. The photo is framed to only show the person from sternum to waist, drawing focus to the words on the shirt and the spines of the books.

Shanzhai Lyric, 'DREPM THE WOELD' 2018. Courtesy the artist and INIVA/Stuart Hall Library. Photo: Sirui Ma.

Shanzhai Lyric, 'BURN THIS CLOTH AFTER YOU HAVE WEAR IT', part of the installation 'Endless Garment (hedge)' 2023

Special event: performance by Shanzhai Lyric

BURN THIS CLOTH AFTER YOU HAVE WEAR IT
19:00

Poetic research unit Shanzhai Lyric will read a new passage in their unfolding poem, composed from their archive of found poetry-garments especially for this occasion. Drawing upon themes of nostalgia, nationalism, and nature, the reading accompanies their installation Incomplete Poem (hedge), which considers the hedge as a boundary line that establishes the edge of private property.