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Artefacts of Artifice Robert Callender As the fictitious setting of Mel Brooks’ 1974 spoof western Blazing Saddles, Rock Ridge is a town under threat. To save the settlement from a gang of marauding outlaws, Sheriff Bart formulates an inspired plan. Employing paint, canvas and timber frameworks the townsfolk replicate Rock Ridge overnight with a street of facades – a triumph of trompe l’oeil that succeeds in outwitting the witless villains. Concealed within the civilized streets of Edinburgh’s Morningside it’s possible to discover Scotland’s own interpretation of Bart’s ingenious illusion. Ostensibly a small enclave emblematic of raucous wild-west frontier – complete with saloon, cantina and jail – fictional frontages of Spring Valley Gardens give way to the quotidian realm of library, lawnmower shop and garage. Challenging our ability to distinguish between reality and fiction the Embassy’s latest exhibition pays homage to this spirit of visual trickery, paint effects and the art of the façade by bringing together a remarkable group of artists working within the traditions of trompe l’oeil. The Embassy is literally transformed into a pseudo museum: marble effects, plinths, and a peculiar yet very particular taxonomy, cumulate to feign a formal context for their artefacts of artifice. Characterised by a well-developed taste for trickery, anomaly and outright fakery this curious collection of objects present enigmas to be unraveled. Robert Callender, William Daniels, Tony Kemplen, Rory Macbeth, Ellen Munro, Rupert Norfolk, Jonathan Owen, Simon Rigsbi-Taffeleau and Magnus Quaife present work that consciously operates on the level of illusionism. Their works of wonder embody a palpable tension between what an object implies and the reality of its material. While inviting the viewer to intellectually engage with the illusionistic game at hand, they command admiration by the virtue of the consummate skill required for it to succeed.
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 Robert Callender cardboard, paper, paint, marbledust
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Ellen Munro - The Object Is Not Important As Long As There Is
