The Monthly discusses John Baucher’s latest work “Try We Must: The impossible task of squaring the Circle”, and his transition from photographer to multi-media artist – Part 2 – Building exhibitions

This latest exhibition, how long did you work on the new material?

Basically since the last exhibition, ‘Worship the Last Thread as a Relic’, and that was a very successful exhibition. I was very pleased that the Ulster Museum bought two pieces, and then another piece was selected for the Royal Hibernian Exhibition and has subsequently been bought by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland for their permanent collection.

That success told me that I was onto something, but I didn’t want to do exactly the same thing again although I did want to carry on examining the area I was working in.

I want to create work that pleases me as much as anyone else and I want to also raise questions and start conversations with my work. I want to offer a sense of fluidity, that my work isn’t rigid. And hopefully that will open up possibilities for conversations around difficult subjects.

The exhibition is entitled, “Try We Must: The impossible task of Squaring the Circle”. What are the key ideas associated with these new works?

Mathematicians know that they can’t equate the surface area of a square and that of a circle, but they are always trying to solve the equation. Every now and again they come up with a theory and it doesn’t quite work so they start again. That is the process I think we are all engaged with.

The key thing is thinking about how we solve problems here, enough to allow us and the future generations to live together in relative peace. Whatever your political perspective, some form of harmony has to be achieved. That also means looking at identity, asking questions, “What does it mean to be Northern Irish, Irish, British.” And I am not saying it isn’t difficult but we have to find a way to keep moving forward.

With this latest work you have moved towards illustration, narrative works, more sculptures and paintings?

I have used those orientations I’ve just discussed, and beyond that there is a strong anti-war theme. I’m looking at what happened here and a little bit of work is looking at Palestine and the land grab that is going on there.

I have also included historical elements going back to Roman times, thinking about Maniples. Maniples were legions of the Roman Army, it is where the word manipulation is derived from, and from there I am looking at political manipulations and the consequences which emerge. The expression of these ideas emerge through manipulating the flag material.

I have lamppost access covers, and they are part of a couple of pieces. I have some sculptural pieces using the red hand image. I have illustrations which look at historical situations and how that leads us through to today.

I also have a few personal elements referenced through certain works as well.

Where to now?

This exhibition will finish shortly and I haven’t anything planned for another showing of this particular group of works.

I do think I would like to increase the scale of the works, still looking at these kinds of ideas, and given I am the only artist working in this particular area, I think I have plenty of scope for future works.

Luckily I am never short of materials. People in my area actually drop off material to me, and I am always stumbling across material. I have plenty of ideas still to be processed, worked up into pieces which will become another exhibition.

My approach is a way of looking and seeing and then communicating, and all of my work is based on the ideas of unity not division. My starting point is engaging to with our shared past to gain an understanding in order to look to the future

I am also working on another project. I am currently researching a hybrid participatory walking tour based loosely around the Ballymacarrett Retail Export Import Trading Society. This is a fictional Victorian company, which I use as a device to talk about architectural heritage, iron foundries and their cast iron makers marks dotted around the city centre.

I’ll also be linking in a potted history of photography and Victorian photographers. This is very exciting as I’m being given free reign to link these disparate, yet linked, subjects. It will be part fact part fiction but grounded in history.