White Knight

White Knight is presented out-of-sequence. The viewer’s reticence to cross the rough stones of ‘Communal Area’, or to approach ‘Casa Sesemann’ and endure the gaze of the gallery staff beyond, are intriguing first impressions. Whilst these discomforting sensations soon fade, it is only when one views ‘Farbenlehre’, hidden away in Gallery Two, that one begins to comprehend White Knight’s thematic ambitions.

The work, ‘Colour is not object bound!’, comprised of an arch made out of leaves, tentatively suggests a theme – the formulaic applied to nature – but this is not entirely compatible with the other sculptures. Furthermore, the scruffy podium does the piece no favours. ‘Farbenlehre’, on the other hand, is a compelling study of the people involved in one project, naturally supplying the viewer with multiple angles from which to contemplate this exhibition. The notions of a ‘communal project’, colour formally and informally applied, as well as humanity’s relationship to architectural contexts, overrule the disparate sensations of viewing the opening sculptures, but one does wonder why it is not presented first.

‘Full Firearms Workshop’ is something of a coda, featuring actors within a claustrophobic space, which again widens the application of this exhibition’s focus on context and architecture. Unfortunately, the placement before a window is unforgivable, unnecessarily distorting the film.

In summation White Knight’s interventions, though seeking to challenge the ‘white cube’ space, would be little without the context of the two films, which are regrettably presented almost as an afterthought. Therefore, the viewer's experience feels interrupted, while numerous programme mistakes and sloppy presentation further undermine the exhibition’s aspirations.