REading stones, Linseed projects,
Shanghai, China, 2023
Reading Stones (Charlotte Edey, David Flaugher, Justin Fitzpatrick, Paul Levack, Alexandra Metcalf, Jack O’Brien, Cezary Poniatowski, Hamish Pearce, Gal Schindler)
Venue Linseed Projects, Shanghai, China
Date November 7 - December 28, 2023
Curated by Ginny on Frederick
Press Release
Reading Stones
LINSEED (Shanghai) and Ginny on Frederick (London) are delighted to collaborate and present the group exhibition “Reading Stones” at the gallery space of LINSEED in Shanghai from November 7 to December 28, 2023, featuring artists: Charlotte EDEY (b.1992, UK), David FLAUGHER (b.1986, USA), Justin FITZPATRICK (b.1985, Ireland), Paul LEVACK (b.1992, USA), Alexandra METCALF (b.1992, UK), Jack O’BRIEN (b.1993, UK), Cezary PONIATOWSKI (b.1987, Poland), Hamish PEARCH (b.1993, UK), Gal SCHINDLER (b.1993).
Considered to be the first instrument used to create an enhanced sensory experience; reading stones, also known as reading pebbles or reading rocks, refer to small polished stones or gems that were historically used as aids in reading or magnifying text. Originally created from ground beryl and rock, these stones were employed before the invention of magnifying or reading glasses, and placed directly on top of written texts to magnify the letters or images for clarity.
Assembling the multidisciplinary works by these nine artists, Reading Stones asks the viewer to perhaps become a reading stone of themselves. Expanding from the carpet structures of Cezary Poniatowski to the hallucinations of Alexandra Metcalf’s drawings; in looking closer at each work within an expanded view of still life, or still lives, each artist starts to claim part of a wider history that too can be traced back to ancient times.
The Chinese Ch’an Buddhist master Qingyuan Weixin of the Song Dynasty famously stated: “Before I had studied Ch’an for thirty years, I saw mountains as mountains, and rivers as rivers. When I arrived at a more intimate knowledge, I came to the point where I saw that mountains are not mountains, and rivers are not rivers. But now that I have got its very substance, I am at rest. For it’s just that I see mountains once again as mountains, and rivers once again as rivers.” Asking for close examination — to believe what you see, believe not what you see, then believe what you see — has never been more crucial. Reading stones, as objects, offered a magnification (before invention) in parallel to the experience and journey Qingyuan Weixin describes of enlightenment.
As we attempt to look at still life beyond the direct influences of history, we are continuously repeating the same question asked of us by Qingyuan Weixin: Is the mountain really there? This question of perception, even if you don’t need to use a reading stone, still stands. Expansion is needed. The works on view prompt us to reassess the familiar, unpack the inherent complexities in the ordinary and ultimately renegotiate our relationships with the objects, bodies and lives around us.