David Hollington, Curator
"I find myself very drawn to Tamara's desire to explore, she turns her exceptional vision of the world around her into an array of 2D and relief works. These pieces bristle with a fierce identity and a boldness of handling that span an array of often unconventional found objects and materials. There is a real feeling of the joy of creation in Tamara's work which spans the many stories both personal and historical she weaves into her narratives. The best storytellers always make you long to know what will happen next. I look forward greatly to this exhibition and the many that will follow it."
Maria Calinescu, Assistant Curator
"Tamara Tolley’s artworks form a brightly generous and kaleidoscopic journal of her pandemic experience. She shows us a world simultaneously contracted and expanded: we see Tamara delving into the intimate archive of the family attic, the transnational space of the British Museum, and centuries-old trading routes. Drawing parallels between present-day couriers and the Silk Road’s camel-back traders, she brings gravitas and beauty to a labour force and a material (cardboard boxes!) that are often unappreciated and treated as disposable."
