Fleur Yearsley explores memory and mortality with ‘Breathing is Free’ at The Edge Gallery

Following successful solo exhibitions at London’s Sapling Gallery (When The Lights Go Up) and Liverpool’s Walker Art Gallery (To The Moon and Back), Mancunian artist Fleur Yearsley presents Breathing is Free, a richly evocative series of oil paintings which explore both personal and collective memory in the context of a stirringly human conception of mortality. Free to visit until April, Yearsley’s works are on display at The Edge Theatre’s Gallery Space.

A graduate of MMU’s Manchester School of Art and UCL’s Slade School, Yearsley said: 

““The subject matter of my paintings is the fruit of personal memories, often imbued with a sense of shared pop culture imagery. The symbols and objects of my work become a focal point for broad collective experiences instilled with a sense of mortality, they are captured moments of our past life, memories of what makes us who we are.

Play is the life force running through my paintings, with dichotomies that bring a humorous approach to the sweet and sour.

At a time of social and political polarisation, I attempt to find commonalities with others by discovering shared memories through painting. What at first appear to be ordinary objects painted with directness and simplicity, serve as metaphors and devices to explore intimate relationships, emotional connections, and humanity through the materiality of paint.”

Curated by visual artist and performance maker Jez Dolan, whose artist focus draws on ‘the intersections between queerness, sexuality, identity and memory’, The Edge Gallery Space hosts a diverse array of exhibitions throughout the year. 

Click here for more information on The Edge Gallery, and check out Fleur Yearsley’s work on Instagram.