Paisley: Turner Artist coats shop in layers of chocolate

Created by Turner Prize-nominated artist Anya Gallaccio, Stroke opens in Paisley this week as part of a creative project to bring world-class contemporary artwork to high streets throughout Scotland.

The chocolate room is Gallaccio’s first artistic return to Paisley where she was born. The artist has also won the commission for the Aids Memorial London and is about to have a major retrospective exhibition of her work staged at Turner Contemporary in Margate. Her work can be seen on permanent display at Jupiter Artland, near Edinburgh.

An unoccupied shop on Paisley’s High Street has been taken over for the sugary artwork which will see the walls covered in chocolate.

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It’s a substance Gallaccio loves and she has fond memories of visiting her grandparents’ tearoom in Brechin where she was given a catering box full of chocolate eggs.

“I have a sweet tooth and initially I made this work in Vienna, a city with chocolate cakes everywhere,” she told the Sunday National. “I was also thinking about Freud and chocolate’s psychological associations as we often have quite a complicated relationship with it.”

Any images of Willy Wonka conjured up by the idea of chocolate walls should be dismissed, Gallaccio said, as the artwork is quite stark with only the dark walls and a bench in the middle of the room.

“It does not look fantastical but it does have an overwhelming smell of chocolate and for me, it is interesting in terms of thinking about our senses and which senses we prioritise,” she said.

“Somebody whose visual sense is not their strongest is possibly going to get the most intense experience.”

Gallaccio added: “A lot of people will sit on the bench and wonder what they are looking at, then they will maybe start looking at the surface of the chocolate and if nothing else that is often when the smell hits you. It is a different type of sensory experience. The room is quite dark and that could be sinister or overwhelming.”

In past installations, some visitors have tried to eat the chocolate which is not something the artist recommends.

“People have licked the walls before which is quite fascinating but I wouldn’t encourage it,” she said.

Gallaccio admitted that chocolate wasn’t the easiest medium for an artist to work with.

“It is quite finicky and the problem is it gets really messy, so you start off being really tidy but you end up with chocolate running up your arms,” she said. “In the first couple of hours, you are licking it off, but after a while, you start feeling nauseous.”

Chocolate is often seen as a luxury and even a bit decadent but Gallaccio argues that we all need pleasure in our lives.

“We need some joy and optimism and it is often something that we think of as a wee treat, like chocolate, that keeps us going,” she said.

Stroke is being staged as the next iteration of Jupiter+, Jupiter Artland’s nationwide art and learning programme.

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As well as being available for the public to view, young people from every high school, college and community group across Renfrewshire will be invited to explore Gallaccio’s work with the Jupiter+ Learning Team.

Running concurrently with the programme, Jupiter+ Orbit, a collective of 16- to 18-year-olds from Renfrewshire and nearby local authorities, will receive mentorship and support. This youth-led collective will visit major exhibitions and artworks, in the hope of inspiring them to create and use their voice to effect change. An education studio will also be set up in The Paisley Centre, opposite the shop and installation.

“It’s very special to show in Paisley and to be bringing Stroke to the heart of the community,” said Gallaccio (below).

(Image: Martini)

“It is important for me but the bigger picture of what Jupiter+ is doing for the arts and Scotland is really impressive and I am proud to be part of that. It is an incredible programme in terms of opening up artwork and making it seem less exclusive.”

Stroke is part-funded by Future Paisley, a cultural regeneration partnership programme led by Renfrewshire Council, which uses the power of arts, heritage and culture to bring about social and economic change.

Katie Nicoll of Future Paisley said: “I’m thrilled that Anya Gallaccio is returning to the place of her birth by bringing a truly immersive cultural experience to Paisley town centre that is sure to delight and inspire all who visit it.

“The fact Anya is also connected to the area further helps to illustrate what’s possible and I’m sure will help empower another generation to consider future creative paths they may not have otherwise considered.”

Stroke opens on Saturday and runs until the end of December.