Take the animals from Noah’s Ark, make them queer, give them some fantastical mutations and weave them in textiles. That’s an idea of what to expect in Jonathan Baldock’s exhibition at Jupiter Artland – a sculpture park just outside Edinburgh.
In the ballroom gallery, there’s a pair of giraffes with split necks and twin heads, horses become unicorns, snails have human faces, and a pair of very tall cats have crystal balls for eyes. They’re arranged in a protective circle that you can venture inside to face off with these playful sculptures.
His chosen animals have been observed to engage in same-sex relationships, pair bonding, or coupling. They include penguins in winter coats that reference the pair of male penguins that paired up in nearby Edinburgh zoo. Commentators quickly suggested this was due to captivity, even though the artist notes that same-sex bonding between penguins has been observed in the wild for decades.
The exhibition is titled ‘Wyrd’, the Norse root word for weird, but when it was initially coined, it didn’t mean strange, but translates as an exceptional otherness tied to destiny, fate and transformation. Growing up in a conservative religious household as a queer man this word has a particular resonance for Baldock and we can see this in these works. Growing up, he says he found faith in nature, and this brings us back to the animals as a fitting reference that combines the woods and nature around Jupiter Artland and his upbringing.
The human body parts are often based on his own anatomy or that of his partner and fellow artist Rafal Zajko, cementing the personal story he imbues into these mythical creatures. On a nearby shelf is a pair of eggs ready to birth the next generation of queer animals to ensure the cycle continues. One of these pairs will be immortalised in bronze and added to the permanent collection at Jupiter Artland, though the final decision on which is yet to be taken.
The second space, in the Lower Steadings, is much darker and mysterious. Sculptures hang from the ceiling, imbuing the space with the scent of lavender. Hands and faces stick out from these hammock-like containers, which can lead to a fright when you peek inside. Some can see them as creepy, but I also found them welcoming, a space to snuggle up inside. They are transformative cocoons that tie neatly into his circle of animal sculptures and the broader theme of charge and transformation across the two spaces.
Jonahan Baldock’s works are wacky and playful, but they also make an important statement about the sidelining of queer culture and behaviour. He’s created a weird and wyrd world, and he’s asking us to step inside it.
Jonathan Baldock: WYRD is on in the Ballroom Gallery until 28th September, and Warm Inside is in the Lower Steadings until 27th July. Both installations are at Jupiter Artland, and entry to the venue is ticketed.
All photos by Neil Hanna.
