Kevin Collins | Sixty Characters in search of an Author

This year at RMB Latitudes, I present Sixty Characters in Search of an Author—a title that pays homage to Luigi Pirandello’s groundbreaking play Six Characters in Search of an Author, first performed a century ago. Pirandello’s metatheatrical work, with its absurdist reflections on authorship, identity, and interpretation, forms the conceptual bedrock of this exhibition.

In celebration of its centenary, I have multiplied the characters tenfold: sixty ceramic figures, each one poised in a state of narrative suspension. Like Pirandello’s original six, these characters arrive with fragments of stories, but no author to complete them. That task, I propose, now falls to you.

Each figure is an invitation, an open-ended prompt. I believe that no artwork exists in a vacuum, nor is it ever truly complete until it is seen, interpreted, and felt by someone else. Meaning in art is not a fixed truth but a living process, shaped as much by the viewer as by the maker. Your experience, associations, and interpretations are not just welcomed; they are essential.

On Subjectivity and Interpretation
Art is, by its nature, subjective. Ten people may see ten different stories in the same character. Even the same person might find a new meaning each time they return. This variability is not a flaw; it is the lifeblood of visual storytelling.

Meaning as Process
To interpret art is to engage in an active dialogue: visually, emotionally, and intellectually. It’s a process that considers context, form, and feeling. When we slow down to look and reflect, we allow meaning to emerge... Fluid, personal, and evolving.

Beyond Representation
Though sculptural, these ceramic characters are not mere representations. They are symbolic vessels. Their gestures, textures, and expressions gesture toward themes not explicitly stated—waiting to be uncovered through metaphor, memory, or emotional resonance.

The Role of the Viewer
Ultimately, I see the viewer as a co-author. These works are not final statements, but beginnings. Open texts waiting to be read, imagined, and completed through your lens. In this way, you help write the narrative that I have only begun.

I invite you to continue this conversation with us during a live discussion with Gordon Froud on Saturday, 24 May at 15:00. Your perspective, as ever, is of deep interest and value.

This show runs from 23-25 May 2025.