15 March to 26 April 2008

Comfort Zones brings together works by twelve artists from the UK and abroad exploring the environment which we might call 'home'. The exhibition's title is enticing, conjuring up images of warm, safe private places, far removed from the public, open and vulnerable world we live in. Our homes fill a variety of functions in our lives: they are places of comfort and belonging, and they are often reflect the sort of people that we are, or indeed, desire to be - whether that is through the colours we decorate our rooms with, or the objects we place on our mantelpieces.

Comfort Zones mixes video with installation, textile, sculpture, drawing and short film. The works in the show play with humour, encouraging us to look at our own homes, belongings, rituals and comforts with fondness and indulgence. Yet not all the comfort zones explored here are all that they may seem. Many of the pieces are disconcerting, questioning, and often surreal, revealing events, memories and stories far from what we might expect. Our homes are exposed as sinister, unknown places, which can make us feel unsettled or even afraid. The works in this exhibition also explore the contrasts of the home: the familiar, private and secure, against the unfamiliar, unnerving, surreal and unexpected.

Artists include: Darren Banks, Paul Bush, Maia Conran, Katie Cuddon, Anka Dabrowska, Caitlin Heffernan, Louise Hopkins, Martin Kersels, Nina Saunders, Jennie Savage, Ola Simonsson & Johannes Stjärne Nilsson.

Exhibition curated by Emma Williams.
This exhibition has been generously supported by the Henry Moore Foundation,
Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and The Arts Council of Wales.
Comfort Zones is an Oriel Davies Gallery Touring Exhibition