Genesis Imaging, in London, recently completed a large-scale exhibition project for artist Gayle Chong Kwan’s ‘Anthropo-scene.’ The project utilized several different substrates, in large and small format, to include, “…Direct to Media UV prints on Dibond, marine plywood and glass, Lambda C-type prints, Giclee Fine Art prints and Bespoke framing for the multilayer installation that explores the built environment, strata and waste, in relation to the City of London,” according to experts at Genesis.



The rather large-scale project is featured in the Bloomberg SPACE in London until mid-March. Its context explores London’s abandoned architecture in what the artist calls “contemporary waste.” The Bloomberg SPACE describes the exhibit as, “Installations in the gallery recall stacks of archaeological drawers. The photographic and sculptural elements range in ratio and scale. Chong Kwan brings together contemporary, historic and archaeological objects and materials, juxtaposing excavation and construction, ruin and renewal, and confounding their chronology in order to question what we leave to posterity.”

These ‘Stacks’ are only a portion of the exhibit which features 15 inkjet display prints with Direct to Media UV printing on glass. Additionally, the project features a section called ‘Strata’ with five UV print Direct to Media UV printing on plywood and wooden stands. And finally, the ‘Lost’ portion which includes nine UV print Direct to Media on Dibond aluminum composite panels that envelop the exhibition, used as the guide for its contents.



The title Anthropo-scene comes from a concept hypothesized by Paul Cruzan, Nobel Prize-winning chemist, back in 2002 where he explored the idea that with overpopulation we are entering a new epoch or era. Once the Holocene, which is synonymous with recent, we would enter a geological epoch coined Anthropo-scene, which the gallery further explains as, “This shift in the relationship between humanity and nature further complicates distinctions between artificial and natural, and real and imaginary – questions raised by Chong Kwan‘s installation.” In an explanation by Genesis Imaging of the exhibit, they explain that there’s an assertion in her piece that waste is a measurement of life.

Kwan is well known for her thought-provoking photography and installation pieces, winning several awards in the UK and abroad. Back in 2012, the artist completed a large installation called “Wastescape,” made entirely of plastic milk bottles.

information courtesy of Genesis Imaging and Bloomberg SPACE
photography courtesy of Gayle Chong Kwan and Bloomberg SPACE