Ambrosine Allen 'After the Ascent'

A m br o s i n e A l l e n ‘ A f t e r T h e A s c e n t ’

Ambrosine Allen’s complex and elaborate collages are created with tiny paper
cuttings taken from discarded encyclopaedias – raw material imbued with
evidence of mankind’s scientific, mythological and historical enlightenment. These
fragments are then painstakingly assembled into majestic invented and imagined
landscapes. Terrains evolve, layer by layer as more and more cuttings are added. A
development of tectonic geology occurs and new geographies take shape.
Underneath each finished work sits multiple alternate renderings – the channels and
tributaries of flowing water, discarded conurbations, swirling skies, and the rise and
fall of the evolving topographies.
The undertaking is extraordinarily lengthy with each piece taking several months
to complete. The final image existing only as a result of the turmoil and
transformation of it’s construction.
The resultant landscapes are both familiar yet alien. Human traces are scattered and
buried, nature seizes and conquers. ‘After the Ascent’ offers us a potential evolution
shaped by the magnificent capabilities of the natural world in riposte to the egotism
of human endeavour.
Are these vistas to be viewed as foreboding visions or do we witness a panorama
of reawakening and renewal? These works go straight to the heart of a prescient
anxiety concerning our harmony with this world that we inhabit.
Joseph Clarke | 2015
Mountain Study at an Elevated View
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 23.5 x 62 cm
2

Retreating Glacier
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 57 x 67 cm
5

Mountain Study with Passing Storm
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 54.5 x 95 cm
6

After Bagetti : The Towering Wall of a Mighty Cavern
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 65 x 96 cm
9

Facing the Torrent
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 20 x 8.5 cm
10

Downward with the Entire Mass of Water
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 27.5 x 27.5 cm
13

Moon: After Drilling, On the Tundra, Over Water
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 5.5 x 5.5 cm each
14

A Study of Volaire: From the Shore Looking East
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 46 x 34 cm
17

An Account of Fire, Up Close and Far Away
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 20 x 12 cm each
18

Observation of the Mountain at Dusk
collaged paper globe with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 43 x 23 x 18 cm
21

Upon Reaching the Open Air
collaged paper globe with archival UVA filter matt varnish | 22 x 22 x 10 cm
22

The Secrets of Wastewater
paper collage with archival UVA filter matt varnish, paper, plaster and wood | 33 x 43 x 16 cm
25

Ambrosine Allen was born in 1982 and raised in rural Suffolk.
In 2005 she completed the MA Fine Art Drawing course at Wimbledon
School of Art and has lived and worked in South East London
ever since.
Upon graduating she was selected for the Jerwood Drawing Prize in
2005 and has continued to exhibit widely in the UK and Internationally.
Her first solo show, ‘Compendium to the New World’ in 2012 was a sell
out and she was included in Quintessentially’s Generation Next: YBA
Spirit feature on artists to watch.
She exhibited widely with All Visual Arts, including flagship shows
Metamorphosis: the Transformation of Being in 2012 and Viewing
Room 2013 at The Crypt, No.1 Marylebone, London.
She has work in numerous private collection in the UK, Switzerland,
Germany, Stockholm and America.
‘After the Ascent’ is her first solo exhibition at Millennium.

Published by Millennium to coincide with the exhibition ‘After the Ascent’ by Ambrosine Allen
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