Simon Le Ruez

For Simon, making is at the core of his practice; a form of thinking that allows him to explore the stability and possibilities of form, structure and the material world. Employing the mediums of sculpture and installation, but also a multimedia approach his recent works draw on both biological forms and architectural structures, exploring how the organic and the constructed might coexist, overlap, or even conflict. In doing so, the work speculates on alternative futures in which human-made and natural systems are not separate but entangled, sometimes harmoniously, sometimes in tension. This approach challenges viewers to reconsider their own position within these shifting relationships, prompting reflection on how we inhabit, shape, and are shaped by the environments around us. These reflections are pushed further through a distinctive use of colour often employed to conjure an immediacy and a sense of liveness. Le Ruez is also conscious of how the perception of colour can be subjective and as a result, how it might playfully juxtapose the factual alongside the fictional. While the work reflects on the anxious times we live in, resolutely revelling in both the spatial and psychological blurring of divisions, it also explores and celebrates a sense of becoming, subversion and fragile fruition.

Born in Jersey CI and now based in Sheffield, UK, Simon has exhibited his work widely and internationally. He has undertaken international artist residencies at Kunstlerhaus Dortmund, Germany and at Künstlerhaus Bethanien in Berlin, both of which culminated with ambitious solo exhibitions. He has made work for the public realm and worked on different collaborative projects with other artists. His work is held in a number of important public collections and he has received numerous prizes and awards in recognition of his work and international projects.