© Sid White-Jones - House Bulletin cover.
© Sid White-Jones - Editors note.
Whilst the Kettle’s Yard house was temporarily closed in 2024 for the installation of new heating and cooling systems, Inga Fraser (Senior Curator of the House & Collection) and I visited various university sites that house works from the wider collection and photographed them in these surroundings - inspired by Louise Lawler, one of the pivotal members of The Pictures Generation.
During these visits we were greeted by the works of Hans (Jean) Arp, Henri Gaudier-Brzeska, Gerard Hemsworth, Elisabeth Vellacott, Alfred Wallis Ethelbert White and more.
As we moved through offices and administrative sites, it struck me that whilst not aiming to create a curated, cohesive environment like the Ede’s had at Kettle’s Yard, there was similarity between these office installations and the domestic displays of Kettle’s Yard for how both refuse to conceal the ordinary.
One of the photographs below which provides an example of this, depicts two prints from Hans Arp’s Soleil Recerclé (1966). This was printed in the second edition of the Kettle’s Yard House Bulletin, which explores the role music played in the lives of Jim and Helen Ede, and the many musicians, composers, and artists they welcomed into their homes over the decades. It also reflects on the rich history of performances and collaborations that have long been — and still remain — part of Kettle’s Yard’s story.
© Sid White-Jones - Prints from Hans Arp’s Soleil Recerclé in University meeting room, 2024.
© Sid White-Jones - An Arrangement of Pictures, page 15.
This image was printed alongside the following text:
“An Arrangement of Pictures: Like the artist Louise Lawler (b. 1947, lives and works U.S.A.) we are fascinated by how artworks are recontextualised when on display in homes or exhibitions. Lawler collected her photographs of art in domestic and institutional spaces in a book called An Arrangement of Pictures. In this series of newly commissioned photographs, we follow works from Kettle's Yard's collection on loan around the University of Cambridge and elsewhere. Our second in this series shows Hans Arp's 1966 Soleil Recerclé print portfolio, on display in a University meeting room.”
The House Bulletin is a publication available to those who become a Friend of Kettle’s Yard.
The Friends of Kettle’s Yard were established in 1984 to provide financial support Kettle’s Yard. The community of Friends helps to conserve the house and collection, present ground-breaking exhibitions, develop exciting learning and community projects and make art accessible to all while also developing your own interest in art. More about the Friends of Kettle’s Yard can be found on their website here.