Visual Arts

Two thought provoking exhibitions are on display at the Wolverhampton Art Gallery from 15th September to 10th November.

Lion by Richard Billingham

The first, Zoo by Richard Billingham is a major solo exhibition of video works and photographs which has been commissioned and produced by VIVID, Birmingham.

Filmed in zoos across the UK, Europe and South America, the project explores the impact of confined spaces on animal behaviour in acutely observed detail. By focusing on the psychological space of the zoo enclosure, the series also captures the complexities of the viewing relationship between captive animals and their public audience.

Inspired by Dudley Zoo

The project's origins lie in nostalgic memory, as Billingham was initially inspired by childhood visits to Dudley Zoo in the 1970s.

The public zoo came into existence when animals began to disappear from ‘social life’ in England during the process of urban industrialisation in the nineteenth century.

Zoo features both rare and more commonplace animals and questions the paradox at work in the loss of the animal's natural habitat, with its preservation in an artificial environment.

Panda by Richard Billingham

Billingham was born in Birmingham in 1970 and achieved international recognition after a series of his photographs depicting his family were published in the book Ray’s a Laugh in 1996.

In 1997 he was awarded the Citibank Photography Prize and his work was also included in Sensation: Young British Artists from the Saatchi Collection at the Royal Academy. He was also shortlisted for the Turner Prize at Tate Britain in 2001.

Freianlage by Andrew Bracey

The second exhibition, Freianlage, is a collection of tiny animals accompanied by their own tailor made environments.

The exhibition brings together a series of existing works and specially created pieces, which appear in surprising and covert positions around the gallery.

Like visitors to a zoo, Bracey invites viewers to uncover artworks in and around the existing displays and architecture.

Freianlage is a German term meaning open enclosure; the phrase was coined by Carl Hagenbeck who pioneered the first zoo in which animals were able to roam un-caged in a simulated natural environment.

Influenced by Hagenbecks work, Bracey set about making his own collection of animals painted on to a variety of materials and objects found at Wolverhampton Art Gallery, where they are free to roam. 

Richard Billingham: Baboons & onlookers

A kaleidoscope of butterflies made from pages from expired art journals, polar bears in a jam jar, a tiger painted on a dart head and more miniature scale paintings can be found on doorstops, charcoal boxes and in other unexpected places around the building.

Zoo and Freianlage are both showing until 15th September to 10th November.