Alice Channer’s Sculptures: A Fusion of Industrial Processes and Geological Materials

In the world of contemporary art, Alice Channer, a London-based artist, is making waves with her unique approach to sculpture. Born in 1977 in Oxford, UK, Channer’s work is a fascinating exploration of the relationship between materials, bodies, machines, and industrial processes.

Her upcoming exhibition, “Heavy Metals / Silk Cut,” is set to be displayed across two buildings of the Kunstmuseum and the Kunsthalle Appenzell from July 2 to October 8, 2023. The exhibition will feature new works, including an architectural intervention, and provide an overview of Channer’s sculptures, drawings, and installations from the past decade.

Channer’s sculptures are a testament to her innovative use of industrial processes and geological materials. She casts and bends metals, folds fabrics, and draws with cigarette ash, revealing the hidden dimensions of the material world. Her works often include natural elements such as shells, fingers, or stones, transformed through synthetic processes in professional manufacturing facilities.

One of her notable works involved the vacuum-metallisation of spider crab and brown crab shells, a process typically associated with the paint coating or chemical industry. The resulting pieces juxtapose the organic and the artificial, the biological and the industrial, weaving the traces of production processes into the language of her sculptures.

Channer’s work is not just about the aesthetics of mechanical shaping; it also highlights the fragility of our ecology. Her sculptures, while seductive, are also fragile exoskeletons that point to the delicate balance of our natural world.

Alice Channer’s journey in the art world has been marked by significant milestones. She graduated from Goldsmiths College, London, with a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art in 2006 and from the Royal College of Art, London, with a Master’s degree in Sculpture in 2008. Her work has been exhibited at prestigious events such as the Liverpool Biennale, UK (2021); 55th Venice Biennale, Italy (2013); and Glasgow International, UK (2010).

In addition to her solo presentations at various international venues, Channer has also realized works in public spaces in Joshua Tree, California, US (2022); the University of the West of England, UK (2021); and for Artangel, UK (2021).

The exhibition “Heavy Metals / Silk Cut” is curated by Stefanie Gschwend, director of Kunstmuseum / Kunsthalle Appenzell. A comprehensive monographic catalogue, published by DISTANZ Verlag, will accompany the exhibition. It features essays by Rosanna McLaughlin and Zoë Gray, an experimental text by Daisy Hildyard, and an interview by Stefanie Gschwend with Alice Channer.