Join photographer and artist Jack Whitefield for an MPF gallery takeover and short talk.

Jack will install some large-format drawings from his series KEUNYSER in response to the MPF exhibition – ONE YEAR! Photographs of the miners’ strike 1984 – 85 – and give an overview of this work.

In KEUNYSER, large drawings are created using Seacoal unintentionally caught and brought ashore by fishermen at his local harbour in the Southwest coast of England. The work is an act of labour, meticulously charting marks on paper through repetitive motions as the coal is rolled, pushed, pulled, and rubbed, tracing the material’s path of inevitable decay. The work evolves into a ritualistic performance, that is recorded into limited edition publications, which will be available at the event.

For the artist, coal symbolises contradictions. Once a driving force propelling human civilization, it now casts a shadow over the systems it once fueled. The transformation of deindustrialisation is especially evident in Cornwall, Whitefield’s birthplace and current workplace, where the post-mining landscapes reflect the complex legacies of industry.

Curator of the MPF exhibition Isaac Blease will introduce the talk and the MPF show. Followed by an open discussion with Jack about the work and a book signing.