Holly Hendry is interested in defining the architecture of spaces by exploring the possibilities, such as surface, colour and density, inherent in a wide range of materials through her installations.
2018 Biennial Year Find out more
The shifting scales and unusual positioning of her often-monumental works encourage visitors to consider sculpture in dialogue with their surroundings, whilst also considering absence as hollow spaces or voids.
Exchange Flags, a public square by Liverpool’s Town Hall, was the grand setting for Holly Hendry’s new large-scale commission. The sculpture took the form of ‘pipe’ sections made from Glass Reinforced Concrete (GRC) and reflected the artist’s interest in the city’s architecture, from the Williamson tunnels that were purportedly built for land reclamation, to the old dock buried under Liverpool ONE. To bring together this new work, Hendry researched materials and material processes tied to Liverpool, particularly the techniques of the major ship builders of Merseyside, the use of cast iron for manhole covers, and the city’s pioneering employment of architectural supports and precast concrete in panelled buildings.
In Victoria Gallery & Museum’s Tate Hall, Holly Hendry also presented a selection of floor-based sculptures. The works were formed from multi-layered materials including jesmonite, cement and oak, each embedded with foreign objects which reference the artist’s visit to Philadelphia’s Mütter Museum – an institution of medical history and oddities.
Recent exhibitions include The Box, Pippy Houldsworth, London, UK (2017); Arratia Beer, Berlin, Germany (2017); Kunstforeningen GL STRAND, Copenhagen, Denmark (2017); BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK (2017); VITRINE, London, UK (2016); S1 Artspace, Sheffield, UK (2014); and Sharjah Art Foundation, UAE (2014).
Holly Hendry at Liverpool Biennial 2018
Cenotaph, 2018
Glass reinforced concrete, jesmonite, oak, steel plating, marble in-lays
Commissioned by Liverpool Biennial and Liverpool BID Company
Exhibited at Exchange Flags
Reflux, 2017
Plaster, jesmonite, oak, cement, aluminum, marble, steel, turmeric, grit, poppy
Exhibited at Victoria Gallery & Museum
Attend to Your Configuration, 2017
Plaster, jesmonite, oak, pigment, steel, aluminum, marble, birch ply, cement, grit, rock salt, turmeric, ash
Exhibited at Victoria Gallery & Museum
Flatbone, 2017
Aurora marble, rose marble, birch plywood, jesmonite, mild steel, wood, plaster, board, bolts
Exhibited at Victoria Gallery & Museum
Holly Hendry: Cenotaph
Cenotaph is a large-scale art installation by Holly Hendry presented at Exchange Flags, a public square by Liverpool’s Town Hall. Listen to the artist discuss her interest in the subterranean tunnels of the city, and how the spaces and myths around them influenced this monumental public artwork.
Liverpool Biennial 2018: Beautiful world, where are you? takes place across the city’s public spaces, galleries and civic buildings from 14 July until 28 October.
Video: Carl Davies, FACT Video Production Services
Holly Hendry: Cenotaph in Leeds
‘Is it archaeology or infrastructure?’
Fascinated with the architectural undersides of cities – their clandestine and hidden spaces – Holly Hendry’s monumental sculpture Cenotaph explores unseen histories. Originally commissioned for Liverpool Biennial and now situated outside the former Tetley brewery in Leeds, the work references the site’s underground system of tunnels. Listen to the artist and Tetley director Bryony Bond discuss how the artwork foreshadows plans for regeneration in the surrounding area and its ambitions for playful, unconventional audience engagement.
Cenotaph is on view outside The Tetley between 20 June – 13 October 2019 as part of the Liverpool Biennial touring programme.
Film by Carl Davies, FACT Video Production Services
LB2018 Snapshot: Holly Hendry
“I’ve been thinking about the internal plumbing of the city and the veins that make it what it is”
Exchange Flags is the backdrop for a new large-scale commission by Holly Hendry for Liverpool Biennial 2018. The sculpture will reflect on the architectural history of Liverpool, from the Williamson tunnels that were purportedly built for reasons of land reclamation, to the old dock buried under Liverpool ONE. Watch as the artist reveals how these spaces have inspired her in the making of her new work for the Biennial.
Liverpool Biennial 2018: Beautiful world, where are you? takes place from 14 July – 28 October across the city’s public spaces, galleries, museums and civic buildings.