SWAY, HAMPSHIRE.- Art Sway presents today Gayle Chong Kwan - Terroir and the Pathetic Fallacy, on view through June 14, 2009. Terroir and the Pathetic Fallacy is a large-scale installation inspired by ArtSway’s rural location, incorporating sculpture, photography and sound work, of an imaginary tourist resort which plays upon pagan myths and weather elements, made out of inert edible vegetables.

‘Terroir’ is an imaginary and all-encompassing tourist resort, populated by people whose real character is disguised through vegetable outfits and masks. A world of horrific beauty and pagan characters created out of inert materials into a landscape based upon the architecture and design of palaces of dictators and presidents. ‘Terroir’ is a themed resort of ‘naturalistic pantheism’, which explores, celebrates and critiques architectures of power and constructed by ridiculous and inert vegetables. The installation will feature large-format photographic wrap-around images of the resort accompanied by portraits of the characters that inhabit this themed resort. Sound work will include secrets of this imaginary resort, as told by the characters.

The work reflects developments in contemporary tourism, which harness aspects of weather and climate and will reflect the system of cloud classification, created by Luke Howard (1772-1864). The title of the exhibition refers to the ‘Pathetic Fallacy’, whereby an authorial voice alters weather conditions to reflect the mood of the action, situation or narration.

The new work to be shown at ArtSway is a tourist resort centred around a tower, which references nearby Sway folly as well as obelisks, which are a ubiquitous feature of Rome and an essential part of the Grand Tour tourist itinerary. The resort is made out of meat and vegetables, based on myths of the Mandrake and Barometz (which straddled the vegetable and animal kingdoms). Three photographic ‘versions’ of this tower reference the cultural connections with the Grand Tour, providing three alternative views, as with the ‘Three Graces’ or possible perspectives or background contexts of the work. The photographic works and small sculptural tower is accompanied by a sound work of an weather system in the resort, featuring storm and rain and wind elements but created out of recordings of vegetable and meat cooking and preparing.

Terroir and the Pathetic Fallacy is part of a touring project entitled The Grand Tour. The tour is a programme of new work by Gayle Chong Kwan presented at mac, Birmingham; Arts Co., London; Cittadellarte - Fondazione Pistoletto, Biella, Italy and ArtSway, Hampshire. Supported by Chinese Arts Centre, UK and funded by Arts Council England.