Cherubs served up at Butchers Shop

A BLACK bust sits in the centre of the Old Butchers Shop Gallery to welcome everyone to artist Eden Fairbrother’s latest exhibition, Putto!

The recent opening night also highlighted a number of paintings and sculptures inspired by cherub figures of classical tradition, but Fairbrother said they are “second fiddle” to the centrepiece in the middle of the room.

“The Black Cherub is the main thing for the exhibit, which people will see as soon as they walk in,” he said.

“I was doing it last year just to do it, and it came about really naturally. I thought it would be cool to do a whole show around it, so it just escalated from there.

“I wanted it to be super organic and to crank up the originality of it. It’s the one artwork that I’m truly satisfied with.”

With a history of “see-sawing” between sculptures and paintings, Fairbrother said he wanted to combine those elements together to provide visitors with something of a classical art showing.

The Black Cherub was made from ceramic over several months last year, and serves as an evolution of the bulbous features inherent in Fairbrother’s street-art influences.

“It’s definitely got an attitude, a contemporary attitude wrapped in a classical form,” he said.

Fairbrother said there has been a surprising amount of interest in the exhibition, and that the best way to appreciate his masterwork is to do it in person.

“Everything’s been on screens these days and people are happy to stay at home and check it out on the internet and stay home,” he said.

“But they’re missing out on a real human connection with the artwork. There’s a dialogue there that’s missing when you take yourself out of it.”

The Putto! exhibition will remain on display until Sunday, 27 March.