This overview may be a bit of a conflict of interest (since I am a Slade alumni), but I’m going to be as objective as I can. I went to the Slade degree show twice, once on the night of the private view and once again on the weekend when it was easier to experience the work without people air kissing in front of it. All in all I found the show quite "nice". It was much more reserved than many other degree shows where you find artists pulling out all the punches to be noticed (saying that I’m not too sure which kind I prefer). One thing that I did notice was an influx of pared down geometric forms that made an appearance in almost every room, starting off with a giant minimalist tower on the front grounds of the entrance.

The video work was strong with the likes of Sepideh Saii’s performance/ video work. Saii inserts herself literally into the big screen in place of characters that are superimposed via projection onto her body as she acts out the scenes with them. These futile acts of filmic or character idolatry was extremely exciting to witness especially when Saii’s actions mimicked the characters so well that she was lost in the projection completely. Kristin Sherman’s work was equally as exciting with an installation in the basement. Sherman has constructed a forced viewing room so to say. The room was filled with a large platform with a number of holes cut out to view the work from. One would need to crouch and find hole to stick their head through. The video was almost like a learning video with action’s corresponding to numbers. When numbers are read out the actors on screen would alter their movements in specific ways. Whilst the actors recite learned behavior the audience is learning the code to their behavior.

Kjartan Abel’s constructed waiting room for time travel was also a quirky piece. It provided time travelers secure locations to land. In theory a traveler could land in a wall or appliance. To rectify this Abel has created, ports so to speak; one already in Greenwich and the hope to expand throughout the world. As a conceptual piece of art Landing Space is ingenious since it grounds the viewer in the moment as well as projecting them within time and history. It operates by freeing the mind mometarilly like other well known pieces of conceptual art such as “Column of Air”.

Now for a shameless Slade plug… I’ve always enjoyed the Slade degree shows. They really have an environment that promotes experimentation. The one thing that always comes across from the graduating artists is a real professional sense of a developed practice.