Art at 33 – Dominic Welch

Art at 33 – Dominic Welch

ART AT 33 is a changing sculpture exhibition, showcasing a varied programme of artwork in the reception of 33 Davies Street.  The exhibition has been designed to introduce different types of sculpture, techniques and artistic language to tenants and visitors of the building, helping to create an enjoyable and stimulating space. Working closely with Grosvenor and Stow and with the tenants of 33 Davies Street, we are delighted to present work by Dominic Welch, our tenth artist to exhibit.

Welch’s distinctive repertoire of shapes – moon-discs, planetary spheres, candle-flames, plant shoots or primeval sea creatures – have become archetypal forms that resonate in the collective unconscious. The four elements – earth, water, fire and air – are invoked in the most unlikely of materials, the density and weight of stone transformed to apparent lightness. His creations appear to float, flicker, or balance on a point, ready to take to the air. They are talismanic shapes, images to dream on.

The stillness and purity of Welch’s pieces belies the energy and physicality required in their making, but this is reflected in the contrast of strength and softness that the work conveys. The materials are heavy, yet Welch imbues his work with impetus, uplift, and a sense of resurgence.

Welch does not make maquettes from which to enlarge his forms, but works spontaneously on the uncut block, drawing, doodling in charcoal or tracing with his finger in the dust to discover the shape within, then cutting and refining the shape by instinct. The taut, sleek shapes of his sculpture, poised on the point of a curve, seem to defy gravity. The stones he uses are dense and massively heavy, but his sculpture is all about impetus, uplift resurgence. His forms are both sensuous and spiritual, inviting contemplation.’