In July 2014, Paynes & Borthwick Gallery – a real-time virtual replica of an actual gallery space, launched its second exhibition ‘Multiverse’ by acclaimed fine artist, fashion photographer and filmmaker Marcus Tomlinson.
The gallery, which launched in October 2013, provides a unique, first-of-its-kind opportunity for artists and designers to create experiences for an online real-time medium. Tomlinson, who first rose to prominence as a fashion photographer, began experimenting with film and digital media in the 1990s. Collaborations with elite fashion houses including Issey Miyake and Hussein Chalayan, led his oeuvre to expand to include early experimental computer animation works as well as installation. His widely influential style captured the sensibility of digital technology when only analogue film was available. Continuing this evolution throughout his career, the artist has won acclaim for his constant development of new disciplines within his practice.
Multiverse uses the latest in 3D visual and sound technology to explore the past and present phases of Tomlinson’s work. Visitors to the immersive online space will see references to projects with fashion designers Issey Miyake and Gareth Pugh, photographs of garden landscapes, and recent sculptural works.
Tomlinson comments, “Multiverse is a kind of tray of jewels that really is for the imagination. This medium is a new branch to the ever expanding world of how new art forms undoubtedly develop. Working within it gives the audiences new journeys to play on our senses. As with all my art pieces, film and photography play a central role. Part of my journey as an artist is to document myself, and the work, as a separate art form that belongs within my artist’s portfolio”
Hole & Corner Magazine said of Tomlinson: “Magnificent art is rarely about playing by the rules as British artist Marcus Tomlinson knows only too well. The self-dubbed outsider is far more than a man with a taste for building commercial expectations – he’s actually the consummate creative chameleon: a visual artist, maker and now craftsman whose wealth of cultural obsessions and an extreme professional restlessness have already transported him from high fashion photography to filmmaking and, most recently, into sculpture.”
The exhibition was only available to view online for 3 months with 24 hour access, and as with exhibitions in physical spaces, there will be no opportunity to view it after the final day.
