Steel City artist Melville is bringing his latest exhibition, The Symptoms of Social Observation, to beloved city centre boozer Fagan’s next month. True to form, the artist’s unfiltered collage approach will capture how pockets of society rail against multiple grievances with the modern world. Ahead of opening night, we caught up with the main man to find out a bit more.
What inspired The Symptoms of Social Observation?
When people ask what my work is or how would you describe it in a few words, I’d never know what to answer to it. But one thing that did stick was the idea that my work was, in the purest form, a social observation. I think I’d mentioned it in a few interviews, and it just described it perfectly. The symptoms idea was literally exploring the effects of life, being able to show the hardships, warts and all.
How does this exhibition reflect the progression of your work? Are there any key themes that have evolved over time?
With progression, I feel the confidence and knowledge I’ve built has made me able to continue to focus in on what I want to achieve and to be able to navigate the way in which my work is heading in. The more you believe in yourself and being able to deliver your messages through your work, it kind of elevates you to push on more and more. Stylistically, the work is better than it ever was – it’s still raw and gritty. But I’m always wanting to try new approaches to be able to influence my work.
Can you tell us more about the new accompanying video with Bloodshot Inc?
The new video is where we left off with our last one, which featured in the we love what you’ve done with the place exhibition last year. There’s going to be a mix of older video styles, as well as more spoken dialogue. It fits in well with the themes of the exhibition itself, wanting to mix old and new works together like what I’m doing with the artwork. We’ve filmed parts of it in Fagan’s, which should add personal touches to the night.
Why did you choose Fagan’s as the venue for the exhibition? Does the pub’s history or atmosphere influence it?
I’d met James, one of the owners of Fagan’s, at the Kneecap afterparty. We got chatting, he’d looked at my work and offered me the chance to do some kind of exhibition at the pub. Personally, I feel Fagan’s is a cultural hub. There’s lots of history and character in the place. It just seems to be a favourite pub for people regardless of who you are or what you do. It was an opportunity too good to not do.
Pubs in general are one of the main influences in my work, as they are so pivotal to the social aspects of modern life. Growing up as a kid in and around them or on a Saturday heading off to the working men’s as a late teen with my parents, it was always intriguing and fun.
You mentioned exploring how the world is going at the moment and how people cope with stress – how do these ideas come through in what you do?
Life is shit at the moment, and it has been for a long while. Social, economic and governmental issues seem to have accumulated into this big furnace of hate and sadness. The themes of my work do regularly explore the side effects to these issues and how we deal with these problems. Whether it’s through drink, drugs or whatever your vice or coping mechanism is. I don’t know if my work helps the situation, but it always needs to be documented.
What can people expect from the opening night?
Hopefully, a fun night! Most importantly, if you’ve never been to an exhibition I want it to be an enjoyable experience for everyone. As a working-class man myself, there’s a stigma with art shows and people can be put off by the idea of having to go to one. There’ll be music from True Fiction and Guinness too, so there’s something for everyone to enjoy! Art shouldn’t be pretentious.
What do you hope people take away from this exhibition?
Hopefully, people have something to think about when they go away. It’s never too late to start something creatively if you’ve always held back. Most importantly, people enjoy it and have a headache in the morning.
What’s next for you after this? Do you have any future projects in the works?
There’s plenty in the works – a few I can’t share right now. But hopefully just getting up to more chaos and creating new work!
The Symptoms of Social Observation opens on Thursday 3 April, with an opening party from 7pm ‘til late, and will be on display throughout the month.
