Open: Mon-Sat 10am-7pm, Sun 12-6pm

3 Hanover Square, W1S 1HD, London, United Kingdom
Open: Mon-Sat 10am-7pm, Sun 12-6pm


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Will Martyr: You Gave Me Paradise

Unit London, London

Thu 27 May 2021 to Sat 10 Jul 2021

3 Hanover Square, W1S 1HD Will Martyr: You Gave Me Paradise

Mon-Sat 10am-7pm, Sun 12-6pm

Artist: Will Martyr

You Gave Me Paradise, Will Martyr's third solo exhibition with Unit London, explores the relationship between memories, people and their environments, examining how our surroundings impact our emotional states, as well as our desires.


Installation Views

Installation image for Will Martyr: You Gave Me Paradise, at Unit London Installation image for Will Martyr: You Gave Me Paradise, at Unit London Installation image for Will Martyr: You Gave Me Paradise, at Unit London Installation image for Will Martyr: You Gave Me Paradise, at Unit London

You Gave Me Paradise sees Martyr develop his practice to incorporate figures, a transition he has been thinking about for many years. This body of work continues to depict the rarefied yet universally familiar locations of rest and relaxation that were so prominent in Wanderlust (2017) and Fathoms (2018), however the inclusion of figures imbues the pieces with an increased sense of humanity. In this exhibition, Martyr reflects on the beauty and strength of intimate relationships, charting how they evolve and grow stronger over time.

In Martyr’s past two exhibitions the works depicted sleek, modernist interiors set within expansive landscapes that were simultaneously seductive yet impossibly utopian.

Martyr has kept these alluring locations in the work, yet his attention has now turned to a more personal experience. Looking at his own personal relationships, the artist is meditating on the joy of sharing a life, and how it feels to combine your hopes and aspirations with another’s.

You Gave Me Paradise has an overwhelming feel of warmth and compassion. In placing figures throughout the works, Martyr is introducing companions into his previously uninhabited worlds.

The surroundings remain indelibly seductive, but are almost obscured by the close, relaxed and unguarded human presence. The figures include elements of narrative in the work, and increase their ability to act as surfaces for the projection of hopes and memories, allowing the viewer to project onto the piece, escaping into a stylised world with whoever they wish. These works were made following a year in which human connection was drastically restricted; they offer a vibrant sense of hope and resilience, one that chimes with our current enhanced desire to connect with others.

Courtesy of the artist and Unit London

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