Speech Acts Connections // Patrick

The Speech Acts exhibition, which asked the viewer to make connections between the juxtaposed works on display, may have come to an end, but there’s no reason that the conversation should finish there.

Over the course of the exhibition, it was hard not to notice visual connections between the works on display in Speech Acts and other exhibitions. These included the recent Annie Swynnerton: Painting Light and Hope, And Breathe... and Nordic Design exhibitions as well as the permanent collection galleries, and even the buildings themselves. (I guess that’ll happen when you're left looking at paintings all day).

Here, then, is a light-hearted look at some Speech Acts ‘connections’ found in artworks across the gallery’s collections and exhibitions, inspired by the exhibition’s themes of reflection, imagination and repetition.

Further examples can be found on Twitter and Instagram using the #speechacts hashtag.

(l) Spiral II (1983) by Kim Lim

(r) Staff Stairs

(l) Untitled [Dollhouse] (2002) by Yinka Shonibare

(r) Detail - Coming Home from the Mill (1928) by L. S. Lowry (gallery 16)

(l) Red Composition (1959) by Fahrelnissa Zeid

(r) Shattered glass pane, second floor landing

(l) Waiting for the Cloud (1959) by Ahmed Parvez

(r) Shadow of Death by William Holman Hunt (Gallery 7)

(l) One to Nine and One to Seven (1962) by Anwar Jalal Shemza

(r) Minimart plate, breakfast tableware, designed by minimarket & Anna Lerinder, (gallery 19)

(l) Untitled (1964) by William Turnbull

(r) Detail - Age of Bronze (1911) by Auguste Rodin (Entrance Hall)

(l) Column dress and hat Barbara S/S (2013) designed by Peter Jensen (gallery 19)

(r) Detail - Wildflower Seller from Work (1865) by Ford Madox Brown

(l) The Sense of Sight (1895) by Annie Swynnerton, National Museums Liverpool / Walker Art Gallery

(r) Planet Lilac (2012) by Lena Bergstrom (gallery 19)

(l) Portrait of a Boy with Dog (1660) by Jan Albertz Rotius (gallery 14)

(r) Six Acts ft. Lasana Shabazz (2018) by Sonia Boyce (gallery 10)

(l) Fire and Ice (2016) by Amy Quinn (gallery 19)

(r) Newborough 2 (2004) by Terry Duffy

(l) Detail - Peasants Playing Cards and Skittles in a Yard (1650) by David Teniers the Younger (Gallery 14)

(r) True to its Origins, mug (2017) by Tove Slotte (gallery 19)

And if you think about the idea of juxtaposing paintings to produce a speech act, a  ‘conversation’ between them, and how that might change their context, what about these two? I’ve often wondered what the knight and his animals were so afraid of. Maybe it’s some baleful, tentacled eldritch entity, courtesy of Alan Davie?

(l) Elephant’s Eyeful (1960) by Alan Davie

(r) In Manus, Tuas Domine (1879) by Briton Riviere (gallery 9)

Of course, these are just a few of the connections found. Without a doubt, there are many other instances of Speech Acts-style connections inspired by the themes of reflection, imagination and repetition around the gallery.

So, keep your eyes and minds open and let us know if you spot any. Send them to our emails magvsblog@gmail.com