Sarah Pickering Explained

Sarah Pickering (born 1972) is a British visual artist working with photography^[1] and related media including 3D scanning and digital rendering, performance,^[2] appropriated objects and print. Her artist statement says she is interested in "fakes, tests, hierarchy, sci-fi, explosions, photography and gunfire."^[3] She is based in London.

Pickering's book Explosions, Fires and Public Order was published by Aperture in 2010. She has had solo exhibitions at Meessen De Clercq, Brussels (2009),^[4] Ffotogallery, Wales (2009),^[5] Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago (MoCP, 2010),^[6] and Durham Art Gallery (2013);^[7] and was included in Manifesta 11 in Zurich (2016).^[8] Her work is held in the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London; MoCP, Chicago, IL; and North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, NC.

She is a part-time Associate Professor in fine art media at the Slade School of Fine Art, University College London.^{[9] [10]}

Life and work

Pickering was born and raised in Durham, England, and attended Belmont Comprehensive School and Durham Sixth Form Centre.^[11] After a foundation course in art and design at Newcastle College (1991–1992), she was awarded a BA (Hons.) in photographic studies at the University of Derby (1992–1995), and a MA in photography at the Royal College of Art (2003–2005).^{[12] [13]}

Her artist statement says she is interested in "fakes, tests, hierarchy, sci-fi, explosions, photography and gunfire."

Based in London, she is a part-time teaching fellow in fine art media at the Slade School of Fine Art, University College London.^[10]

"Match, 2015", was a 38 metre long public artwork installed at Castlegate Shopping Centre, Stockton-on-Tees between 2016 and 2017.^{[14] [15]}

Publications

Books by Pickering

• Sarah Pickering - Explosions, Fires and Public Order. Aperture, 2010. .

Publications with contributions by Pickering

• Vitamin Ph, A survey of Contemporary Photography. Phaidon, 2006. .
• System Error: War is a Force that Gives us Meaning. Italy: Silvana, 2007. . Edited by L. Fusi and N. Mohaiemen.
• How We Are Photographing Britain from the 1840s to the present. London: Tate, 2007. . Edited by Val Williams and Susan Bright.
• In our World, New Photography in Britain. 2008. Milan: Skira. . Edited by Filippo Maggia. Pickering's contribution is on pages 142–151.
• Foam Album 08. Amsterdam: Foam Fotografiemuseum Amsterdam, 2008. .
• New Light: Jerwood Photography Awards 2003–08. Edinburgh: Portfolio Magazine, 2009. . With a foreword by Roanne Dods, an essay by Martin Barnes, and an afterword by Gloria Chalmers.
• Theatres of the Real. Antwerp: Fotomuseum Antwerp; Brighton: Photoworks, 2009. .
• Realtà Manipolate/Manipulating Reality. Alias, 2009. .
• C International Photo Magazine 09. London: Ivorypress, 2009. .
• Bruit De Fond/Background Noise. Je Suis une Bande de Jeunes, 2010. .
• Afterwards: Contemporary Photography Confronting the Past. London: Thames & Hudson, 2011. . Edited by Nathalie Herschdorfer.
• Public Relations. SAFLE Commission, 2012. .
• Hijacked III: Australia / United Kingdom. Cottesloe, WA: Big City; Heidelberg: Kehrer, 2012. . Exhibition catalogue.
• The Photographer's Playbook: 307 Assignments and Ideas. New York: Aperture, 2014. . Edited by Gregory Halpern and Jason Fulford.
• Staging Disorder. London: Black Dog Publishing, 2015. . Edited by Christopher Stewart and Esther Teichmann.
• Revelations. London: Mack, 2015. Edited by Ben Burbridge. .

Awards

• 2005: Worshipful Company of Painter-Stainers Photography Prize, Royal College of Art.^[16]
• 2005: The Photographers' Gallery Graduate Award, London.^[17]
• 2005: Jerwood Photography Award, for Public Order. Other winners were Daniel Gustav Cramer, Nina Mangalanayagam, Oliver Parker, and Luke Stephenson.^{[18] [19]}
• 2008: Peter S. Reed Award, Peter S. Reed Foundation, USA.^[20]
• 2015: Refocus: the Castlegate mima Photography Prize, Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (mima) and Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council. A commission to produce "Match, 2015".^{[21] [22]}

Exhibitions

Solo exhibitions

• Fire Scene, Daniel Cooney Fine Art, New York City, 2008.^[23]
• Explosion, Meessen De Clercq, Brussels, 2009.
• Holding Fire, Ffotogallery, Wales, 2009.
• Incident Control, Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago, IL, 2010.
• Aim & Fire, included Celestial Objects and other works, Durham Art Gallery, Durham, England. Part of The Social: Encountering Photography festival, 2013, for which Celestial Objects was commissioned.^[24]

Group exhibitions

• Part of East International festival, Norwich, UK, 2005. Selected by Gustav Metzger.^[25]
• How We Are: Photographing Britain from the 1840s to the Present, Tate Britain, London, 2007. Curated by Val Williams and Susan Bright.^[26]
• Theatres of the Real' – Contemporary British Post-Documentary Photography, Fotomuseum Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium, 2009. Curated by David Green and Joanna Lowry.^[27]
• Manipulating Reality: How Images Redefine the World, Centro di Cultura Contemporanea Strozzina, Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi, Palazzo Strozzi, Florence, Italy, 2009/10.^[28]
• Signs of a Struggle: Photography in the Wake of Postmodernism, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 2011.^{[29] [30]} Curated by Marta Weiss.
• An Orchestrated Vision: The Theater of Contemporary Photography, Saint Louis Art Museum, St. Louis, MO, 2012.^{[31] [32] [33]}
• Living in the Ruins of the Twentieth Century, UTS Gallery, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia, 2013.^{[34] [35]}
• Revelations: Experiments in Photography, Media Space, Science Museum, London, 2015;^[36] National Media Museum, Bradford, 2015/16.^[37] Co-curated by Greg Hobson and Ben Burbridge.
• Professions Performing in Art, Manifesta 11, Zurich, 2016. Curated by Christian Jankowski and Francesca Gavin.

Collections

Pickering's work is held in the following permanent collections:

• Victoria and Albert Museum, London: 2 prints^{[38] [39]}
• Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago, IL: 2 prints^{[40] [41]}
• North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, NC: 3 prints^{[42] [43] [44]}
• LACMA, Los Angeles, USA: 1print^[45]
• Brooklyn Museum: 1 print^[46]

External links

• • Video interview from 2010 in which Susan Bright gives an introduction to Pickering, who talks about her Public Order series
• Video interviews about making the "Match, 2015" commission for Refocus: the Castlegate mima Photography Prize

Notes and References

1. News: Sarah Pickering. 25 August 2010 . 6 April 2017 . Lucy . Davies . . London .
2. Web site: 10 June 2016 . Sarah Pickering - Pickpocket - A free Professional Development Workshop for Artists . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20190112103332/http://m11.manifesta.org/en/event/770 . 12 January 2019 . 7 April 2017 . Manifesta.
3. Web site: Bio. 18 April 2017 . Sarah . Pickering . Sarah Pickering .
4. Web site: 2009 . Sarah Pickering: Explosion: March 6, 2009 - April 11, 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170420235104/http://www.meessendeclercq.be/exhibitions/past/2009/explosions1 . 20 April 2017 . 17 April 2017 . Meessen De Clercq .
5. Web site: 2009 . Exhibitions: Sarah Pickering – Holding Fire: May 9 - Jun 20 2009 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170420235549/http://www.ffotogallery.org/sarah-pickering-holding-fire . 20 April 2017 . 17 April 2017 . Ffoto Gallery .
6. "Sarah Pickering: Incident Control: Apr 9 — Jun 20, 2010". Museum of Contemporary Photography. Accessed 6 April 2017
7. News: 17 October 2013 . Photographers' artwork putting city in the picture . . Sunderland . dead . 8 April 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170420143430/http://www.sunderlandecho.com/whats-on/arts/photographers-artwork-putting-city-in-the-picture-1-6153483 . 20 April 2017.
8. Web site: 2016 . Professions Performing in Art . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170420144704/http://m11.manifesta.org/en/artist/professions-performing-art . 20 April 2017 . 7 April 2017 . Manifesta.
9. "Ms Sarah Pickering: Teaching Fellow". Slade School of Fine Art. Accessed 6 April 2017
10. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/slade/people/academic/spick01/"[http://www.ucl.ac.uk/slade/people/staff People > All Staff]". Slade School of Fine Art. 3 July 2023
11. News: Sarah's Exhibition Hits the Mark. 13 November 2013 . 8 April 2017 . . Sunderland . Fiona . Thompson .
12. Book: Sarah Pickering - Explosions, Fires and Public Order . Sarah Pickering . 2010 . . 978-1597111232. 121.
13. "Locate: A Jerwood Encounters exhibition: Curated by Sarah Williams". Jerwood Foundation. Accessed 18 April 2017
14. News: A heavenly match made in Stockton to be displayed in new work of art. 30 May 2015 . 7 April 2017 . Chris . Webber . . Darlington .
15. News: Student's 38-metre friction match artwork to take pride of place in Stockton. 29 May 2015 . 7 April 2017 . Lindsey . Sampson . . Middlesbrough .
16. Book: In our World, New Photography in Britain . 2008 . Filippo Maggia . . 9788861305434 . 143.
17. "Sarah Pickering Wins The Photographers' Gallery Graduate Award". The Photographers' Gallery, 13 June 2005. Accessed 7 April 2017
18. "Jerwood Photography Award 2005". Jerwood Charitable Foundation. Accessed 7 April 2017
19. News: Photographers take a view on hot political issues. 18 November 2005 . 7 April 2017 . Terri . Judd . . London .
20. Web site: List of Individual grant recipients by year - 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170408111247/http://www.petersreedfoundation.com/petersreed2008.html . 8 April 2017 . 7 April 2017 . Peter S. Reed Foundation.
21. Web site: Match, 2015. 7 April 2017 . Refocus .
22. Web site: 16 June 2015 . Teesside University lecturer recreates famous John Walker match . 7 April 2017 . Teesside University.
23. News: Up in Smoke: An Explosive Approach to Art. 15 January 2006 . 7 April 2017 . Blake . Gopnik . . Washington, D.C. .
24. Web site: New photography festival takes over Northeast England. 1 November 2013 . 17 April 2017 . Gemma . Padley . .
25. Web site: East International 2005: Sarah Pickering. 17 April 2017 . East International, Norwich University of the Arts .
26. "We are here: Photographing Britain", Tate, 1 May 2007. Accessed 17 April 2017.
27. Web site: 2009 . 'Theatres of the Real' – Contemporary British Post-Documentary Photography . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170517191229/https://www.fotomuseum.be/en/exhibitions/archive/archive-2009.html . 17 May 2017 . 17 April 2017 . Fotomuseum Antwerp.
28. Web site: Manipulating Reality: How Images Redefine the World. 17 April 2017 . Centro di Cultura Contemporanea Strozzina .
29. News: Signs of a Struggle, V&A, London. 20 August 2011 . 7 April 2017 . Ossian . Ward . . London .
30. News: Signs of a Struggle: V&A - review. 16 August 2011 . 7 April 2017 . . London .
31. Web site: An Orchestrated Vision: The Theater of Contemporary Photography: February 19–May 13, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20171016010502/http://www.slam.org/exhibitions/archive/orchestratedvision.php . 16 October 2017 . 17 April 2017 . Saint Louis Art Museum.
32. News: Walls Come Tumbling Down. 17 April 2012 . 17 April 2017 . Richard B. Woodward . .
33. News: "An Orchestrated Vision": Saint Louis Art Museum debuts exhibit of contemporary photography. 29 February 2012 . 17 April 2017 . Dickson . Beall . Webster-Kirkwood Times .
34. Web site: Living In The Ruins Of The Twentieth Century: A vision of the twentieth century as a history of false starts, misbegotten technologies and missing utopias.. 17 April 2017 . .
35. Web site: Living in the Ruins of the Twentieth Century . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20160314201628/http://livingintheruins.net/Exhibition-installation-views . 14 March 2016 . 17 April 2017 . Living in the Ruins.
36. Web site: January 2015 . Revelations: Experiments in Photography . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170403214012/http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/about-us/press/jan-2015/revelations . 3 April 2017 . 7 April 2017 . Science Museum . Media Space.
37. Web site: Revelations: Experiments in Photography. 1 May 2020 . .
38. Web site: White Goods Pickering, Sarah . 8 May 2022 . Victoria and Albert Museum.
39. Web site: John Adams, Museum Collection. Salted paper Print circa 1852-60. Unknown Photographer Sarah Pickering . 8 May 2022 . Victoria and Albert Museum.
40. "Landmine". Museum of Contemporary Photography. Accessed 7 April 2017
41. "Dining Room". Museum of Contemporary Photography. Accessed 17 April 2017
42. Web site: 11 March 2021 . Cigarette . 8 May 2022 . North Carolina Museum of Art.
43. Web site: 11 March 2021 . Large Maroon . 8 May 2022 . North Carolina Museum of Art.
44. Web site: 11 March 2021 . Shellburst Day . 8 May 2022 . North Carolina Museum of Art.
45. Web site: Packard . Cassie . 7 October 2021 . LACMA and the Brooklyn Museum Will Share 200 Photographs by European Women Artists . 3 July 2023 . Hyperallergic .
46. Web site: LACMA . Press Release . 30 September 2021 . EXHIBITION Advisory Exhibition: In the Now: Gender and Nation in Europe, Selections from the Sir Mark Fehrs Haukohl Photography Collection On View: November 14, 2021–February 13, 2022 Location: Resnick Pavilion . 3 July 2023 . LACMA.org.