COLCHESTER.- The Roman history of Colchester is the inspiration for an exhibition by artist Lilah Fowler at Firstsite this summer.

London-based Lilah Fowler makes artwork that examines the effect and consequence of technology on our contemporary landscape, revealing how the ‘natural’ and the ‘man-made’ are interwoven in a state that she refers to as 'nth nature'.

For her first solo exhibition in a major public art gallery, Fowler is planning an innovative display that combines her own sculptures with museum objects from the collections of Colchester and Ipswich Museums. Taking Roman pots as an example of ancient technology, Fowler looks at how both analogue and digital technologies are shaped by the natural environment—the clay pot being literally built out of it, and digital technologies relying on rare earth minerals and data centres that pump out huge quantities of heat and power. These relationships will be explored in an intricate and colourful installation that combines sculpture, video and sound.

Key to Lilah’s practice is her associative time travel across cultures and eras, in which she links disparate objects and ideas to make observations on the present. At Firstsite she draws upon the Berryfield Mosaic (circa AD150), which is permanently installed in the floor in the centre of Firstsite, to look at past and contemporary approaches to conveying information—the mosaic tiles being an analogue precursor of the digital pixel.

Lilah Fowler says “The title of the exhibition is based on Shannon Mattern’s book ‘Code and Clay, Data and Dirt: Five Thousand Years of Urban Media’. The book does a kind of deep mapping of space by juxtaposing the historical and the contemporary—a similar method to my research for the show, which involved looking at things like Roman pottery and various weaving techniques, to see how they reflect on our current ideas of infrastructure, landscape and technology, and to see what might happen when we merge these perspectives.”

A highlight of the exhibition will be Fowler’s large-scale textile pieces, which are woven with unique patterns produced from a bespoke algorithm, as well as using algae fabric dyes made in collaboration with a biochemist. These algae dyed pieces will fade throughout the show, as the chlorophyll that makes them green dies.

Firstsite Director Sally Shaw says, “Lilah Fowler’s work combines analogue and digital processes from cultures throughout history to examine the relationship between technology and nature and how this influences our landscape today. Colchester is the perfect place for her to explore this – with an eventful past that spans from the Roman Empire, to the English Civil War and beyond, the collision between evolving technology across the ages and the natural environment can been seen across the town, creating a place steeped in history yet bursting with innovation. This combination of the contemporary and the past is also at the very heart of Firstsite; the juxtaposition of the beautiful Berryfield Mosaic, alongside our radical artistic programme in our award-winning building produces a unique creative experience. We are delighted that through our partnership with Colchester and Ipswich Museums, more of Colchester's fascinating history can be seen and shared this Summer as part of Lilah’s exhibition."

Lilah Fowler (b. London, UK) Lilah’s work examines the common, mutable languages that inform how we interpret our surroundings. Sculptures, images and other elements draw on sources that include the planning of natural and urban environments and their architectural design values, combining into responsive and intricate installations. Recent works have involved collaborations with biochemists, quantum physicists, computer programmers, mathematicians and weavers. For the body of works produced in this exhibition she has spent several research periods in the South West of the USA, the Lake District and Dungeness, UK, including residencies at Montello Foundation, Nevada, USA (2016) and Joshua Tree Desert Highlands, California, USA (2013). Recent exhibitions include ‘nth nature’ at Galerie Gisela Clement, Bonn, and Assembly Point, London; ‘Bauhaus’ at Frauenmuseum Bonn; 'Sie Machen Was Sie Wollen’ at Varna City Gallery, Bulgaria, curated by Melange, Cologne; and ‘PURE LIGHT’ at Vasarely Museum, Budapest, curated by Dora Maurer. She is currently Artist in Residence for Waltham Forest London Borough of Culture 2019. Lilah Fowler is represented by Galerie Gisela Clement.