Jake Mullins

Jake Mullins’ work is born from his interest in Marc Auge’s analysis of modern life, especially around the notion of non-places, described by Auge as places in which we spend a lot of our time participating in travel, communication and consumption. With his growing curiosity in non-places he is intrigued by spaces in which we inhabit on a temporary timescale, especially those sat on the border between the public and the private, that can often be associated with leisure and luxury. In his work from the last couple of years, public spaces such as shopping centres, office blocks, hotel receptions and bathhouses become the focal subject matter which aims to provide those spaces that are frequently unnoticed with their moment of glory.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Mullins had been solely working on a collection of paintings based on the Harrogate Turkish Baths and spa, capturing the intimate and ritualistic spaces guests can use to indulge in luxury relaxation. The four Harrogate Turkish Baths and Spa paintings presented in this show, devoid of the human figure, focus on the beauty of interior architecture, design and our relationship to space and place whilst also playing with the notion of voyeurism.

This collection of paintings was intended to be exhibited the year that the COVID crisis broke out, but was cancelled due to lockdown restrictions. Mullins is excited to have a second opportunity to present this collection and believes the work has taken on new meaning over the past two years as we have all had to adapt to the ‘new’ way we interact with space and place. Restrictions meant that venues such as the Turkish Baths in Harrogate remained closed for long periods of time and so weren’t populated with people doing the very thing they were designed for.