Katie Paterson at Haunch of Venison Launch

Prestigious art gallery Haunch of Venison celebrated the opening of its new space in Fitrovia with the first UK presentation of Katie Paterson: 100 Billion Suns. Originally staged in conjunction with AnOther at the 2011 Venice Biennale, the project unites images and installations of Paterson’s beautiful and unconventional works, which in their turn are an amalgamation of the artist’s absorption in cosmology, technology and the inherent mysteries of the universe’s vastness. The exhibits range from photographs of the confetti showers set off around Venice, which represented Gamma Ray Bursts that take place far out in the depths of space, to Ancient Darkness TV, which splices a US chat show with a vignette taken from the farthest point in the universe that humanity has yet reached.

Thus, within a relatively small space, Haunch of Venison and Paterson have collaborated to create a show of objects that each harbour a colossal resonance; that push the unfathomable momentousness of the universe to the forefront of the viewer’s mind, and then asks them to take it further. As Paterson says, “My work is about what confuses me and astounds me, what I find repeatedly difficult to grasp. And the imagination is pretty much the most important thing, because what you actually see is usually quite subtle and minimal but it’s the things that it refers to, and what you can imagine in your mind – that is the artwork as much as a thing on the wall.”

"My work is about what confuses me and astounds me, what I find repeatedly difficult to grasp"

Continuing their collaboration, yesterday saw AnOther partner with Haunch of Venison for the opening of Paterson’s show. The evening began with guests mingling among the artworks at the new gallery space, drinking icy bottles of Meantime pale ale. Later, a crowd reconvened at The Riding House Café for a debrief over prosecco and delectable small plates.

Katie Paterson: 100 Billion Suns is at Haunch of Venison, 51 Eastcastle Street until April 28.