Metal

An exhibition of Japonisme by Lee Baker 

Temporary Art Project (TAP), Old Water Works, North Road, Southend On Sea SS0 7AB

10th - 26th March 2010

Metal present Toku chan likes to look up in the newly opened artist-led studio and gallery TAP in Southend – a previously empty building that we have refurbished in partnership with CoExist collective and Essex & Suffolk Water.

Toku chan is an anime character created as the alter ego of the artist.  It is through Toku chan’s eyes that Lee Baker presents us with his exhibition of lush visuals, animation, music and toys.  The result of a fascination with Japanese art and its ability to simultaneously influence and absorb western culture, Toku chan inhabits an exclusively positive world populated with brightly coloured thoughts.  Japanese culture has been a fascination for Baker for many years, from Utamaro Hiroshige and Jakuchu, with their influence on C19th European artists, Art Nouveau, Manga, Japanese film, Textile Design, Graffiti, British Engraving and Pop Art all find their way into his work,  as well as influences from modern Artists such as Takashi Murakami and Yamaguchi Akira.

Working outside his established discipline of music composition and production (he is best known for his production work with James top 10 album ‘Hey Ma’, 2008 and ‘The Night Before’ release date April 2010) Lee has been supported by Metal, to develop his ideas visually, and present them within a gallery context for the first time.

Exciting collaborations with award winning animator, Kidda and costume designer Holly Murray have resulted in specially commissioned contributions to the exhibition.

Lee Baker
Best known for his work in music, Lee has produced the last two James albums – ‘Hey Ma’ in 2008 and ‘The Night Before’ due to be released in April this year. He has written with a diversity of solo artists including national beatbox champion Beardyman, and break beats artist Kidda. He is currently working on a solo project with Rose Dougall from the Pipettes.  He has composed music for television, with credits including the rebranding of ITV2 and the BBC’s award-winning Arena documentaries.
Prior to this he made his mark as a scenic artist working at both the National Theatre and the English National Opera. He designed the sets for several of the late Ken Campbell’s solo shows, most notably The History of Comedy part 1 – Ventriloquism, performed at the National theatre in 2000.

Kidda
An acclaimed animator whose work, ‘Teddy Bear’, is currently on tour with the British Animation Awards 2010, Kidda has been collaborating with Lee to produce a short animation which takes place in Toku chan’s synthetic world. Titled ‘Toku chan likes colour’, this short will be set to a piece of music created by Toku chan himself.

Holly Murray
For this exhibition Lee is also collaborating with sculptor and costume designer, Holly Murray, to re-create a Toku chan as a soft sculpture. Holly has previously created numerous costumes for contemporary dance, opera and theatre, including work with Glyndebourne, Oily Cart Productions and Liz Aggiss.