Sol Bailey Barker, Pansentient Arboriculture at Proposition Bethnal Green, East London – All aboard the skylark, saw this new space listed a couple of weeks ago, a new East London space is always good news, wondered if Joe was involved? Nah, that’s so twenty years ago and Stringer Bell long since left along with most of East London’s fading art scene. Art Rabbit led us to a map that pointed us at Herald Street and kind of made it look like it was just something happening in the long standing space that has been the rather conservative Herald Street Gallery for years so rather than bust a gut to go see what the score was on the opening night we though we’d wait until we were next called to the new establishment that are the galleries of Three Colts Lane or more likely heading for Whitechapel’s cheap fruit and veg when fate would have it that a broke-ass late night train and everyone getting turfed off led to a late night passing by Proposition and oh, there it is, that looks big!

The bright lights of the gallery calling out from the former piss-smelly graff-drenched abandoned corner on Cambridge Heath Road, on the same block as Herald Street, so the normally semi-reliable Art Rabbit had almost got things right. Proposition looked rather splendid all lit up for no one in particular somewhere around the witching hour. The midnight encounter demanded a walk back in the daylight, it did look enticing through the window blinds, mysterious, demanding. Strange looking sculptures, a touch of the spiritual about them, something very right…

“Pansentient Arboriculture is a new solo exhibition by artist Sol Bailey Barker, which proposes a system of care in which trees and entire forests are considered sentient and aware—possessing a form of consciousness”. 

Sol Bailey Barker (b. 1987, England) is a sculptor “who bridges ancient and modern worlds. Blending traditional craftsmanship with contemporary techniques, he creates sculptures that transcend their material origins, forging a dialogue between mythology and technology” and here in the grit of East London’s Bethnal Green it all looks rather monumental, it looks challenging, it looks so wrong and feels so right, I’d love to know who else is looking in late at night, have the gallery got CCTV on us curious late night viewers? Do they know how much interaction there is? Is it about reaction? Does the artist particularly like being here or would he or indeed it all feel the same in some West End space or for that matter somewhere like Hauser and Wirth’s rather inflated Somerset space for instance? Does this feel different in a gallery on a gritty no that fashionable East London street that it would in for example a former farmstead in Bruton?

Actually how much spirit is there here? I mean it looks like the real deal, a statement like “Born out of an in-depth study of ancient civilisations, Bailey Barker’s sculptures evoke universal motifs, exploring the ceremonies that connect human experiences across time and space and laying bare our profound connection to the land” does kind of set off an alarm bell or two, there are artists naturally tuned in to these things, who’s art doesn’t emerge as a result of an “in-depth study” as much as it comes from natural instinct, from just being instinctively in tune with the trees or the culture that evolves around the Captain’s Table and such. here’s another #43SecondFilm…

“Mythology and animism are recurring themes in Bailey Barker’s work, with archetypal symbols such as the Tree of Life and narratives like the Great Flood serving as rich sources of inspiration. Motifs of transformation, survival, and transcendence also permeate his work, reflecting his own near-death experience as a child, during which he spent months in a coma. Situated within the realm of Ancient Futurism, Bailey Barker explores the fusion of indigenous knowledge and practices with modern technologies, creating new blueprints for environmental sustainability, social justice, and community development”.

It is very easy to want to at least question, is he the real deal? How much depth is there to these interpretations of  the evolution of sacred objects and lost cultures? I mean, it does feel good in the gallery, it does feel right, it does feel instinctive; “Bailey Barker’s sculptures – whether monumental or intimate – operate as vessels of memory and echoes of myths, inviting audiences to reconnect with a primal sense of wonder and awe”. I am enjoying this show, it does feel good, not sure if I’m feeling wonderment or awe, I am kind of want to explore the artist and his art a little more. Doesn’t he want to take it outside of the gallery and on to the streets here? Not that he has to, the street isn’t for everyone, and hey it does feel welcoming, engaging, inviting, like I said before, it is very (very) enticing, it does make me want to explore more of Sol Bailey Barker’s work…. (sw)

“Through my work, I want to expose the underlying threads that connect all living things. I invite viewers into a shared space of reverie, where history, spirituality, and matter bring to light our common humanity.” – Sol Bailey Barker (2025)

Proposition Bethnal Green is at 279 Cambridge Heath Road, Bethnal Green, London, E2 0EL. Right opposite the park on the main road, you really can’t miss it (especially at night!)  The Sol Bailey Barker exhibition is on until Saturday 7th June 2025. Open Wednesday to Saturday, Midday until 7pm.

Gallery: website / Instagram / Facebook / Sol Bailey Barker: website /Instagram

As always, do click on an image to see the whole thing or to run the slide show…