Emerging from his studio, Loughborough proudly presents his latest body of work‘In the Cave We Dance’for his second solo show with Anno Domini gallery in California. This title conjures the image of Dionysian human forms in darkness, perhaps circling and lurching around a fire or light of some kind. The new artworks echo and distort these visions of a primal gathering with a twist from a more recent episode of art history. He draws upon iconography and themes evocative of the decadent period of Berlin (particularly theatre and film of the 1920’s) as a vehicle to explore Plato’s ‘Allegory of the Cave’ in which our subjective perception of reality is questioned.

The rendering of the pieces fluctuates between expressive mark making and a critical layering of gold leaf into flat geometrical compositions. This also mirrors the embers of the blaze whilst charcoal functions as a perfect opposite to encapsulate and enhance the metallic glint. Gold is often regarded as an opulent colour, an over indulgence whereas charcoal is perhaps one of the humblest artists materials. Aesthetically, black and gold complement each other as values of the unknown and illumination adding to the dichotomy of this juxtaposition. They are used on an ambitious scale in this series which delves into the catacombs of the human condition.