Roll up, roll up!...
Chris Edwick
“Roll up, roll up!” is a series of 6 improvisations that have found a source of inspiration in the theme of the circus.
Essential elements of the composition have been allowed to move freely and playfully as in a kaleidoscope echoing the performers in a great circus show, creating 6 unique configurations.
The beautiful art of the circus poster with its unique style of typography and attention seeking declarations are also lovingly referenced. These great announcements, sometimes bizarre, like “musical donkey!” sometimes funny like “clown juggling!” have been incorporated for the simple pleasures to be found in words and lettering. There is a direct reference and reminiscence of the Beatles’ song “For the Benefit of Mr Kite” which also found a direct source of literary pleasures in the poster art of the circus and turned it into one of their most whimsical songs by simply singing the announcements on the poster.
“At the heart of all my painting is a love of the emotionally heightened moments of experience when life seems rich and vivid. Those childhood visits to the circus are a perfect point of reference. “Dumbo”, “The Greatest Show on Earth” or more recently, the Beatles inspired “Love” by the Cirque De Soleil all inspire but the Rolling Stones “Rock and Roll Circus” is a personal favourite that outshines the others.
Mick Jagger gives one of his most provocative performances ever, strutting and posing with debonair arrogance and a commanding erotic sensuality. Its a key ambition of mine to try to achieve something of that in all my painting and so I hope these six digital works have some of that strutting, joie de vivre and rock and roll swagger and playfulness…so “roll up, roll up…!”
Unique details
Each of these six improvisations has a set of unique details and you can flip the image to reveal