Alex Binnie Anatomies at Ink_d review
March 8th, 2008
A review of the exhibition Anatomies, a collection of drawings by one of the worlds leading tattooist’s Alex Binnie. The exhibition runs from 7th to 29th of March 2008, at the Ink_d gallery in Brighton.
Alex Binnie is a tattooist based in Brighton who runs tattoo shops in Brighton and London, has featured in newspapers and magazines including I-D magazine, the Independent and numerous tattoo publications. He used to be a medical illustrator however, and this exhibition features a collection of drawings on paper, rather than skin.
There are a number of pieces of varying sizes, featuring sketches of body parts and bones adorned with splashes of tattoo-like faded reds and blues, with some collage elements. You can really tell the artist is a tattooist, this comes through strongly along with the medical illustration background and a wicked sense of humour. The works all feature body parts of some kind, in various stages from life to death. Often highly surreal, with bones bending impossibly and abstract representations of internal organs and veins blending in with bone and flesh.
The best way to describe the work is a haunting collection of ghostly medical illustrations from a horror film. The best way to see this exhibition is from outside, at night, with the gallery lights on and the place deserted. I attended the opening, but it wasn’t until walking home after the place had emptied out that the beauty and horror of the work really hit home. The pieces lined up on the walls look like something out of a Tim Burton film, or perhaps something Frankenstein might have worked on in his spare time as a break from creating his monster. Superb stuff!
You can visit the exhibition until the 29th of March at Ink_d – full details and map on our listings of galleries in Brighton. Pieces are available to purchase, prices range from £10 to £1250.
All images in this article are of Alex Binnie’s work and people at the private viewing.