Singular sensation

Prunella Clough; Harry Thubron: Collages and Constructions 1972–1984

At Austin/Desmond is an exhibition devoted to the work of another insufficiently recognised artist of the same generation as Clough — Harry Thubron (1915–85). Known primarily as a teacher, Thubron was also a canny maker of collages and constructions, a group of which, dating from 1972–84, is now on show. All have sold, which says something — perhaps about his cult standing. Thubron collected much material from the old drovers’ road outside his house in southern Spain, and incorporated it, sometimes unchanged, into his constructions. Perhaps the finest and most classic work here is ‘Tin’ (1973), which is simply a flattened can placed centrally on a board to work exquisitely with the marks on the wooden surface. The magic is all in the arrangement, in the juxtaposition and interval. Often made from the kind of detritus found on the floor of an abandoned warehouse, these collages deal in charred corrugated cardboard, frayed fabric and abraded paintwork, orchestrated with loquacious elegance. Rotting lino rubs shoulders with old foil containers and roofing felt; tickets, burnt matches and a fag-end make a strangely satisfying ensemble. If it all looks a bit thin and artful after Clough, the comparison is perhaps unfair. The quality of her imagination is given freer rein at the Tate than Thubron’s in this small commercial show.