Blow Up

2021

Set of 10 serigraph printed helium balloons, assorted colours, white ribbon, pigmented plaster, wax

Dimensions variable
Paying homage to Albrecht Durer’s satirical proposal for a monument to the German peasants rebellion (published in Treatise on Measurement, 1525), Blow Up realises Durer’s unrealisable monument in a way which plays with dual roles of the artist as a passive observer and a creative agent, without reconciling the two.

Durer’s part propaganda part pedagogical illustration acts as a source of inspiration for exploring monumentality and social sculpture in the context of political unrest. Images are lifted from the proposal and printed onto colourful helium balloons - exposing visual representations of a peasant, a cockrel, a milk churn and other items from a peasant’s world to a degree of chance in their scale and arrangement.

This work was previously shown at Graduate Show, Holden Gallery, Man chester (2022) FLK2, Carlton Club, Manchester (2025) and Holy Fool, Farce Gallery, London (2025) where balloons were disseminated to audience members.