Disturbing Darlings opens: exploring the sweet and the sinister

An exhibition of surprising, nostalgic and quirky art

With both artists and art enthusiasts, Disturbing Darling’s launch was a fantastic evening as visitors pondered on each piece; a display of nostalgia, escapism and vulnerability in its own unique way. The multimedia exhibition boasts a variety of art toys, video installation and painted works and displays the innovation of each artist.

Helena Minginowicz’ SCAPEGOAT, for example, featuring a lamb painted upon delicate paper towel, echoes the vulnerability and reflection on what we deem as disposable. And, with Amy Coleslaw’s collection of strange yet endearing art toys such as Octo-Tubby DIPSY and Barpig, we’re also reminded of how we can process childhood fear and future uncertainty with the humorous.

Five artists pushing the boundaries of the sweet and the strange

Learn more about the five artists participating in the Disturbing Darlings exhibition:

• Alana Lindsay: An award-winning British artist, Lindsay tackles extensional thoughts and embodies complex emotions through an embrace of various characters within her artistic process. They become both the tools and the subject, as she immerses herself within play and creates the illusion of freedom. The exhibition holds her Sad Bear Mask, with which she paints and posts online, evoking a form of performance art.

• Alison Lord: Lord has a unique artistic voice within the British art scene, and challenges conventional boundaries as she transforms Furby toys into unsettling creatures. Combining childhood nostalgia and horror, her highly skilled craftmanship of sewing, 3D printing and faux fur enables her ability to bring the truly terrifying to life. Not afraid to push further, Lord’s multidisciplinary works are eye-catching examples of how quickly the sweet can turn sour.

• Ra: Ra’s Alpha Machina comments on capitalism and the discarded, in an exploration into how to survive within a system that threatens your very existence. As another multidisciplinary artist within this exhibition, he channels cinema, stop-motion, and painting. In his series of paintings Masquerade, he addresses the mask we may put upon our true identity, and our drive to conform to our culture.

• Helena Minginowicz: In a combination of adorable and dark imaginary, Polish painter Minginowicz demonstrates themes of vulnerability, disposable ephemera and injustice. Her works act as an invitation for people to take care of others as well as acknowledge that we may hurt the ones around us by mistake if we don’t stop and think about what they may be guarding inside. By using images such as plastic bags, kittens left on a doorstep and the medium of paper towel, Minginowicz embodies the delicate and the weak in a powerful way.

• Amy Coleslaw: The British artist reclaims the unloved and transforms toys into whimsical and kitsch art pieces. Challenging boundaries of modern art culture, they uphold the importance of playful creativity and sustainability. With pieces such as Barpig and Barberry, Coleslaw harks back to 90s pop culture and childhood nostalgia, bringing old items back to life.