Series
Monolith (2016)
Monolith comprises of six sculptures each an earthen Monolith and accompanying figure that explores themes of history, trauma and recovery. The first of the six sculptures Menin Gate at Dawn 2019, is the first of the series and is constructed as a 1/3 scale marquette.
The title Menin Gate at Dawn references a historic war artwork by Australian WW1 Artist John Longstaff, Menin Gate at Midnight, 1927. The wound within the Menin Gate at Dawn monolith mirrors the Menin Gate arch; and despairs at the optimism with which each generation promises to never return to violence and war it undertook with such enthusiasm, only to have the next generation repeat the mistakes of the last. The work harks back to experience in Afghanistan and Iraq. Walls, both of earth and cement, were integral to the construction of native villages and military bases throughout Afghanistan and Iraq as they sought to separate those inside from the dangers of the world beyond. The walls raise the horizon line by meters, projecting it into the sky and hiding the world beyond from view. It is within this liminal world that life is conducted for the soldiers and local Afghan and Iraqi defence forces and the civilian population. The reclined figure, now known as 'The Toll', was crafted in clay, cast in resin and hand-painted with a patina. The dark stains that cast hands, feet and eyes represent the decay and toll on the human form.
Inspired by confinement
For four months, Mike was confined to the walls of a compound in Iraq. His view of the world was limited to the sun's trajectory and the stars of the night sky. Within this confinement, he became fascinated by the wall structures; the weathering, the light, the forms, and their confinement of the view. Upon his return, they began appearing in his sculptural works. Their weight seeks to dominate a space, to obstruct and conceal, forcing the viewer to heed its presence. Raw earth as an art medium has several meanings in Armstrong's work. Colour, texture and form are reminiscent of the earthen walls found throughout Afghanistan. Walls marked the existence and gathering of people, separating and protecting them. The ubiquitous walls stood marked by the weather, the people they contained and the conflict they defended their occupants from. Earth is also a literal carrier of history; its strata contain our civilisation's narrative captured within its folds.
It takes a Toll
Monolith is now for sale as a single reclined figure. Defined by its expressive gestures, The Toll is understood to represent authentic emotion and the Self. Painting and sculpture, the suggestion of staining reflects Mike's expression of the impact of the external world and the struggle for individual expression. Delicate, detailed brushwork aligns with the human experience, in which materiality of paint equates to stagnation, inertia and obstruction.