Derma

Baró Galeria is pleased to present Derma, an online exhibition by British artist Toby Christian (b. 1983 Boston, Lincolnshire). The exhibition comprises two new bodies of photography and sculpture, and extends Christian’s uniquely imbricated practice that spans an extensive range of process, where works stem episodically from his ongoing published writing. The umbrella title of this new exhibition, Derma, evokes that part of our skin beneath the outermost layer, formed from dense and irregular connective tissue, which cushions the body from exterior stress and strain.

A series of small photographs show various compositions of unidentified insect markings in marble dust. Taken through the single small window of Christian’s dedicated carving garage in South East London, these traces of beating wings, trailing abdomens and clogged feelers range from the calligraphic to the percussive, through each clouded ground. From the delicate descenders of Climber (2020) to the thrashing train beats of Falling Throwing Leaves (2020), these works immediately echo Christian’s renowned series of experimental works made from washed chalk and short fragments of cotton string on painted board. Drawn in the atmospheric dust of marble originally mined in Pietrasanta, these photographic slideshows harvest sporadic manoeuvres in an unintended indoor trap, documents themselves now presented behind layers of frame and screen.

Alongside these photographs, a series of new carvings reimagine forms for taking care of the body, where pliable ergonomic containers are rendered in solid stone, weightily anchored. Traditionally the favoured translucency of marble lent it to representations of human skin – here, that quality is transposed and applied to forms which appear softened or swelling. Notably, this presentation sees Christian’s first exhibited carving in limestone. More suggestive of yellowing plastic than its pristine counterparts, Bud (2020) proposes a muted interpretation of in-ear listening apparatus, where faint shreds of ancient fossils reverberate around the surface.

The tactile images and objects of Derma resonate with previous works from the artist's versatile output. Christian’s Appendages (2007-) present various carved digits that have the appearance of being hammered from a larger, unseen original. A more recent series of small-scale works in marble speculate on the formal lineage of computer mice, and the advancing accommodation
of a labouring hand through time. Derma is an online exhibition that proposes works which
also relate the body – here, memorialising cleansing acts through stone, and flight
through photography.

Toby Christian lives and works in London. Recent solo exhibitions and performances include Repeller with Good Gear, for Studio Audio, commissioned by AICA-UK (International Association of Art Critics) in collaboration with PEER, London (2020), Burners, Alessandro Albanese, Milan (2019), Old School New Body, Celine, Glasgow (2019), Trippy Scroller, PEER, London, (2018), The News, Swimming Pool, Sofia, curated by David Dale, Glasgow (2017), and Railing, Whitechapel Gallery, London (2017). His books Measures (2013) and Collar (2017) are published by Koenig Books, London, and his forthcoming book Commuters will be published by them in Spring 2021.

• http://www.tobychristian.com
• https://barogaleria.com/exhibition/derma...
• https://www.artsy.net/viewing-room/baro-...