Modern Irish artist Robyn Ward hosted a celebrity-packed dinner on 5 October 2023, in assist of Most cancers Analysis UK on the eve of the opening of his immersive solo exhibition Strolling within the Darkish.

Excessive-profile company from the worlds of movie, TV, theatre, music and modelling mingled on the invitation-only occasion at The Outdated Session Home, Clerkenwell Inexperienced, London, which raised a whole lot of hundreds of kilos for the charitable trigger.

Supported by his shut pal and collaborator Robbie Furze of English rock band The Large Pink, Ward is dedicating 100 per cent of the revenues from the occasion to Most cancers Analysis UK which funds prevention, prognosis and therapy of most cancers. It’s a trigger near each their hearts, as they each have had members of the family affected by the illness.

Robyn Ward has efficiently raised cash for quite a lot of totally different charitable causes through the years, and was inspired to help Most cancers Analysis UK by Furze — who launched The Pamela Ann Basis in reminiscence of his mom, who has been battling the illness for quite a lot of years. The pair have beforehand supported occasions in assist of Teen Most cancers Belief, however that is the primary time they’ve labored creatively collectively. It’s anticipated it is not going to be the final, because the pair have plans to take Strolling within the Darkish to different international artwork festivals together with Artwork Basel in Switzerland, Miami and Hong Kong. 

Strolling within the Darkish, which loved a extremely profitable and much-praised run in New York earlier this yr, will run till 15 October 2023 alongside the world-famous Frieze London artwork truthful, which sees the world’s high traders, critics and artists descend on the capital. 

Curated by inventive director Shai Baitel, Strolling within the Darkish options 22 massive painted canvases and 6 freestanding sculptures impressed by Ward’s personal nomadic way of life pushed by a necessity for each escapism and avoidance. 

The principle exhibition area will comprise Ward’s artworks of summary compositions and combined media sculptures, whereas within the basement of Strolling within the Darkish, guests will have the ability to expertise pitch-black darkness, reflecting the deep subconsciousness of the artist and his artistic course of. 

Furze has written an authentic composition for the immersive aspect of the exhibition, which is able to see guests discover Ward’s paintings within the darkness by means of miner’s headlamps. 

Ward says, “Robbie has composed one thing lovely which hyperlinks the work and the music collectively in an unbelievable manner. Will probably be as if individuals are really exploring my very own unconscious within the darkness, which makes Robbie’s soundtrack such an necessary a part of the expertise. It actually brings my feelings to life.”

Furze provides, “I like creating atmospheres and soundscapes and I wish to suppose that my music creates an virtually meditative impact, so you possibly can respect Robyn’s work much more by enhancing the entire expertise, working with it relatively than distracting from it.”

Born in Eire and raised in Northern Eire, Ward takes his private expertise of destruction, chaos and the breakdown of society and relates it to each historic and modern-day international battle. Strolling within the Darkish appears to be like on the themes of migration and traumas — each nationwide and private — and asks questions like, “Why do folks roam?” & “What’s the aftermath of perpetual motion?”

Ward himself left Dublin when he was 5 years previous, transferring to Belfast the place he lived till he was 18. He shares, “From 18 to 25 I don’t suppose I spent greater than seven or eight months in a row in a single metropolis. I feel that, mixed with by no means actually being settled in Belfast, led me to guide fairly a nomadic way of life.”

Ward has labored underneath many pseudonyms and totally different collectives all through the years. He has exhibited on the Museo Tamayo and the Museo Nacional De Arte in Mexico Metropolis, with work included in quite a lot of key auctions and exhibitions in New York, London, Los Angeles, Paris and Hong Kong, amongst others.

Baitel says, “To embark on Ward’s artwork journey and see the subtlety of this ubiquitous psychological stress manifested in his work requires an openness to experiencing catharsis this impactful — of seeing one’s life in all its tensions and contradictions mirrored via the artist’s creation.”

“Just like the abstracted nature of Ward’s artworks, a nomadic sensibility typically abstracts the deeper causes for such roaming. His work begets questions round what precisely Ward is veiling via his travels. Just like the act of strolling at nighttime, viewing Ward’s work requires one’s eyes to regulate to see what would in any other case not be detected.”

“In Ward’s work there’s vitality, a degree of brightness, that exhibits the flexibility and chance to emerge from and embrace the shadow.”

Strolling within the Darkish might be open by appointment between 11am to 6pm each day from 7-12 October 2023, no appointment is required from 13-15 October 2023.

Exhibition Particulars:
Strolling within the Darkish, Knotel at Outdated Classes Home
23 Clerkenwell Inexperienced, London EC1R 0NA

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