Helen Couchman, Epoch Exhbition

  

As well as the Suki Chan exhibition at the Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art, there was also a collection of works by Helen Couchman. A fine art graduate, Couchman's work focused on her time living in Beijing from 2006 - 2012.  Whilst there, she created a number of works, embracing printmaking, photography, drawing, collage, installation, performance pieces and a traditional Chinese technique - woodblock printing.

One of Couchman's installation pieces which was carefully cut up to be transported to other locations.

I was particularly interested in Couchman's photography and printmaking work, which focused on using traditional techniques and photographing workers constructing the Bird's Nest stadium for the 2008 Olympic Games. As the title of the exhibition suggests, Couchman's work over her time living in China attempts to capture and define a period of time in Beijing's history and in her own artistic career and life. 

A series of photographs from the exhibition.

I really liked this series of photographs, in which Couchman placed three mirrors. The result is a slightly disorienting set of images where you can see different angles and views from all around the camera lens, not just what's in front of it. I loved the idea of getting more out the photos and adding another layer of insight into the world around the artist. In one of the mirrors you can see Couchman's foot, which gives a really subtle link between the artist, viewer and the work itself. As well as this, I thought this set of photos in particular linked really well with Suki Chan's installations as they both explored photography and achieving different angles from one lens. 

Overall, I had a fantastic evening at the Centre for Chinese Contemporary Art. It's not a place I would have been likely to come across without having been invited so I was really lucky to be able to go thanks to a family connection, but now that I know about it I'll definitely be keeping an eye on exhibitions there in the future. Especially as it is a gallery that exhibits specifically Chinese based or influenced work, you are certain to encounter something new  and exiting if you visit.