Tom Dale exhibition in Plymouth

By PRSD, on Thursday, October 23, 2008

Art exhibition of the week: King’s Island, by Tom Dale, Plymouth Arts Centre
posted by Cptn

Impossible stunts and crazy jumps have always held a lurid attraction, and for Tom Dale in his exhibition King’s Island at the Plymouth Arts Centre that attraction seems to equate with a fascination of celebrity culture and possibly even faith – but that might be a leap too far.

The show takes its name of one of Evel Knievel’s last motorcycle jumps in Kings Island, Ohio. Dale has taken the idea of Knievel’s star-spangled launch pads and skewed them to unbelievable trajectories. So, is it a comment on the communal American Dream, or an individual’s desire to become a hero?

Of course, the commentary could be on the twisty, turny nature of fame, politics and life itself.

Knievel said of his fans: “They started out watching me bust my ass, and I became part of their lives. People wanted to associate with a winner, not a loser. They wanted to associate with someone who kept trying to be a winner.”

• The show runs until November 16

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