Maurice Agis

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Maurice Agis

Born 1931
London, England
Nationality English
Field Sculpture
Training Dutch Ministry of Education
Works Dreamspace

Maurice Agis (born 1931)[1] is a British sculptor and artist whose Dreamspace projects have drawn the involvement and work of various schools and art institutions all over Britain. His disillusionment with galleries and museums led him to create his signature "interactive works" in the 1960's.

In July 2006 he came to wider attention after his latest work, Dreamspace V, came loose from its moorings in a park in Chester-le-Street, killing two people and injuring 13 others. Following this, Agis vowed to never again make such large works. In February 2008 he was charged with manslaughter over the Chester-le-Street incident.[2]

Contents

[edit] Early and personal life

Agis was born in East London in 1931. Between 1950 and 1962 he studied painting and sculpture at St. Martin's School of Art in London before going onto postgraduate works on De Stijl at the Dutch Ministry of Education in 1967. A decade later he began creating pneumatic arts which were a precursor to his most recognised works.[3] Agis has a girlfriend, Paloma Brotons.

[edit] Works

[edit] Early works

His disillusionment with art galleries led to his collaboration with Peter Jones to create Spaceplace, the first of many "abstract walk-through spaces". Spaceplace was installed at the Museum of Modern Art, Oxford, in 1966 and the next year in the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam. Agis utilised the abilities of his art students while teaching at various installations between 1962 and 1973 (though the larger pieces were later manufactured overseas in countries such as Vietnam before being linked in Britain).

[edit] Solo projects

After collaborating for 20 years, Agis and Jones went their separate ways. Agis's first solo project was Colourspace, which he presented for the first time in London in 1980 and later exhibited in Los Angeles and Brisbane, extending his profile.

When constructing his works, Agis would often involve local schools in the areas where the work would be displayed.[4]

In 1988 Agis presented Clause 28 at the Glasgow Garden Festival. The installation came free from its moorings and rose 30ft into the air. Agis sustained back injuries from trying to stabilise the work by holding onto the loose mooring ropes. No members of the public were hurt.[5][6]

[edit] Dreamspace V deaths

On 22 July 2006, Agis installed Dreamspace V at Riverside Park, Chester-le-Street, the second of a three-part tour of Britain. The following day, echoing the events of 14 years previously, the artwork left its moorings, soaring 30ft (9m)[7] into the air before colliding with a CCTV pole, killing two people and injuring 13 others.[8] Following the incident, Durham Police seized the remnants of Dreamspace and launched a joint investigation with the Health & Safety Executive.[9][10]

Vandalism was immediately suspected; the artwork had been slashed with knives two weeks previously.[11] While foul play was not completely ruled out, other avenues were also explored. Another theory was that the warm air on the Sunday had caused the artwork to become a "hot air balloon". The structure had undergone safety checks by a Chester-le-Street health and safety committee made up of police and fire service experts before it had opened to the public.[12]

On 29 November 2006, Agis attended a police interiew at Charing Cross police station where he was arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. He was released on police bail, pending further enquiries.[6] A statement was issued indicating that it would be summer 2007 at the earliest before the investigation was completed.[13] Agis was due to answer bail on 3 September but this was extended to the end of November.[14]

On 13 February 2008 Agis was charged with gross negligence manslaughter. [15]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Some sources state that he was born in 1934 but newspaper articles from July 2006 describe him as a "74 year-old". See other references.
  2. ^ Man accused of sculpture deaths
  3. ^ Maurice Agis CV. Bath Academy of Art, Corsham. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  4. ^ Following the Chester-le-Street incident, many organizations removed any reference to Agis from their websites. A cached page from the Creative Partnerships is available here.
  5. ^ "Probe into other accidents linked to inflatable horror", The Northern Echo, 2006-08-09. Retrieved on 2007-01-27. 
  6. ^ a b Norfolk, Andrew. "Artist held over bouncy castle fall", The Times, 2006-11-30. Retrieved on 2007-01-27. 
  7. ^ Some sources give this figure as 70ft (21m) and others 150ft (45m).
  8. ^ Durham Constabulary (2006-07-23). "Tragedy at Chester-le-Street's Riverside Park". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  9. ^ Health & Safety Executive (2006-07-24). "HSE investigation into the Inflatable Artwork incident, County Durham". Press release. Retrieved on 2007-01-27.
  10. ^ Staff writer. "Artwork victims 'fell to deaths'", BBC News Online, 2006-07-27. Retrieved on 2007-01-27. 
  11. ^ Chapple, Mike. "Dreamspace returns in all its multi-coloured glory", Liverpool Daily Post, 2006-06-29. Retrieved on 2007-01-27. 
  12. ^ Stokes, Paul. "Sun turned inflatable artwork into a killer", The Daily Telegraph, 2007-07-25. Retrieved on 2006-01-29. 
  13. ^ Herbert, Ian. "Dreamscape designer held on suspicion of manslaughter", The Independent, 2006-11-30. Retrieved on 2007-01-27. 
  14. ^ Staff writer. "Bail extended over artwork deaths", BBC News Online, 2007-09-03. Retrieved on 2007-10-13. 
  15. ^ BBC NEWS | England | Man accused of sculpture deaths

[edit] External links