E8: The Heart of Hackney
16 June - 15 July 2007 Fri-Sun 12-6pm

Tom Hunter - London Fields Barbaresi & Round, Study for 'Basildon', 2007
E8: The Heart of Hackney is an exhibition of work about the E8 area of Hackney by eight contemporary artists. Rather than a mere surface reading of this rapidly transforming area the artists approach their subject from obliquely unexpected angles to challenge any preconceptions that visitors to and residents of the area may have. The work in the show ranges from the political to the psychogeographical, from quirky to beautiful and from fun to thought provoking and takes in photography, painting, sculpture, drawing, audio and interactive walks.
E8 resident Tom Hunter is showing a haunting image of his local park - London Fields. Hunter was recently the first photographer to show his work at The National Gallery.
walkwalkwalk have investigated the chip shops of E8. Their free chip shop map is available at the gallery to allow you to design your own chip walk (on 21 June at 7pm they led an E8 Chip Shop Tour - see pictures here). There are also two limited edition chip papers available to buy at Transition priced at £5 they feature Chip Facts and Chip Stories. Read more about the progress of this project on the E8 Chipshop Blog
Barbaresi & Round have been interviewing the area's senior residents and will be making work in the gallery inspired by the stories and reminiscences they have been told
Emily Cole's paintings are inspired by walking and talking in E8. She is particularly focusing on where E8 goes for leisure, depicting places such as the London Fields Lido in a painterly mix of fluorescent colours and sump oil.
Matthew Stock is using surveillance cameras to beam different areas of the Regent Studios block directly into Transition Gallery.
Gary O'Connor's writing merges fact and fiction and is often combined with installation and audio. For E8 his work focuses on the real experience of being trapped in the Regent Studios lift. O'Connor has contributed to a number of publications including the recent collection of artists' fiction 'The Alpine Adventures of Victor B'
Hilary Jack's practice includes recycling and repairing discarded items. For E8 she has 'repaired' a classic maxply tennis racket that she found in a street alongside Broadway Market using the 70s' pin and thread technique.
Laura Oldfield Ford's cult fanzine, Savage Messiah, involves a psychogeoraphical look at different areas in London combining cultural theory with her own fiercely political outlook. Her E8 drift will combine pertinent text with romantically dreamy drawings.
There is a publication to accompany the E8 show with texts by a number of writers including Iain Sinclair, Charlie Porter and Ruth Jarvis
Buy online at the E8 Shop An accompanying workshop - GR8 - led by Alex Michon takes place at the Hackney Museum on 16 June & 21 July.
E8 is the second in an ongoing series of shows that focus on different East London postal districts. E9: An Anatomy of an Area took place in 2004 at Transition.

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