Hell comes to London - to the tunnels under Waterloo Station. Sophie Jackson investigates.
Lazarides Gallery has taken over the labyrinthian Old Vic Tunnels, located behind Waterloo, for the admirably ambitious Hell’s Half Acre. The vast maze of tunnels have been transformed into a representation of the nine circles of hell, a disturbing modern take on the nature of evil and its visual indicators. The Old Vic Tunnels is an ambitious venue to fill and to render interactive and energetic, but on this front Hell’s Half Acre does not disappoint. Decay and destruction are in the air and the scent of the dank tunnels only serves to enhance the experience. With hanging objects, installations, video work, sound and painting surrounding and forcing the viewer to interact, each area has its own personality.
Sixteen artists have been involved in this mammoth project including superstar taxidermist Polly Morgan, Doug Foster, Boogie, David Choe and Ian Francis. The sense-assaulting result is described by gallery owner Steve Lazarides as, “a vision of our hellish society under coalition rule, inspired by Dante’s Inferno”. The exhibition has all the classic indicators of hell and evil with skulls, insects, animals and sadism littered throughout the many rooms. Upon arrival, a large-scale projection of a snarling, growling bulldog greets visitors with the hostile sound bouncing off the cavernous space. In order to pass through you must walk through the mouth of the animal, and so enter into hell.
Then sculptures of young Aryan women cocooned in cellophane – souvenirs of sadism suspended from the rafters – are juxtaposed with fast moving imagery of destruction, death and war screened behind them. Sadism and brutality are common themes throughout the exhibition, often specifically directed towards women, with multiple images of rape, murder and female vulnerability. Women here seem just the victims of patriarchal aggression and madness. With only one woman in the sixteen-strong artist line-up, a focus on masculine evil and a male-dominated hell seems to have been the trend.
The representations of war and military force are inciteful and provocative. Suspended rows of metal ships occupy one space, apparently to depict the strength and power of the Armada fleets, pushing forward with manic aggression. Military images of patriarchy and pomp are rendered ridiculous as regal colours clash with the unnecessary evil they represent.
However violent and overwhelming this interpretation of hell on earth may be, there is cause for optimism and delight as the show reaches its final stage. The final installation involves visitors walking through a haze of water, creating a rainbow ,before entering into an overwhelmingly bright room, lit white by the force of an enormous crystal sculpture. As white clouds of smoke billow round the room, we're forced to shield our eyes from the brightness, entering into heaven. Spectacular in every sense of the word, it's a great shame Hell's Half Acre is only open for a week.
Sophie Jackson
Hell’s Half Acre is at Old Vic Tunnels until 17th October 2010.
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