November 2022 - November 2023
Update 2026 : A permanent display panel acknowledging the artwork installation is now in place
The artwork Counterpoint was created as a response the Ashmolean’s Chantrey Wall. It faces the imposing display of 16 busts by the sculptor Frances Chantrey representing wealthy, influential figures from the 18th century.
A recent research project investigating the sitters has revealed that a large number of these individuals benefited, directly or indirectly from the slave trade, including those who voted for its abolition. The Chantrey Wall represents the wealth derived from the sale and exploitation of enslaved African people.
Counterpoint is a conversation with these Chantrey’s busts and a celebration of 21st century Oxford. The works by British artist Mary Chamberlain are on vellum, a material that for centuries has been used to encode British law; and they incorporate pigments made from colonial imports such as coffee, saffron and nutmeg. These pieces were conceived through a series of community engagement workshops exploring stories of people that shaped the histories and economies of Britain yet are absent from this museum’s walls. By putting pigment to vellum, we are adding to the picture that the Chantrey Wall paints of our British history and celebrate the many faces that represent our society. The pieces are based on images and responses of participants from local community groups who generously shared their reactions to the wall in workshops led by Community Connectors Olivia Holder and Rawz. We would particularly like to thank the Black Excellence Project, Urban Music Foundation, Meadowbrook College and Transition Lighthouse for their participation.
The composition of the piece against the window has been chosen to echo the layout of the 16 busts it faces on the opposite wall.
Hear from the Community Connectors about Counterpoint
“We have another set of faces gazing out, but this set is back-lit by the dancing rays of the sun. Dynamic interacting with staid. Emotive communicating to the stoic. And engaging reaching to aloof. Highlighting our impact on the past and looking into the future. As one of you said, ‘You say Black future. It’s good to be back.’ These histories have always been there—we’re just highlighting them.”
Olivia Holder, Community Connector
“This window represents a step on a journey ... a window on contemporary Oxford, an Oxford often unacknowledged, and one that I’m delighted the Ashmolean is taking steps towards highlighting and becoming a part of.”
Rawz, Community Connector
Counterpoint - 2026 Onwards
"A complementing or contrasting item or used of contrast or interplay of elements in a work of art"
Merriam-Webster
‘The term counterpoint originates from the Latin punctus contra punctum meaning “point against point”.
Essentially it’s something that is different or even opposite to another item, but which can work with it in a positive and pleasing way. And by joining the two together, you are left with something greater than the sum of its parts. ‘
Following from the initial Counterpoint installation, created as a riposte to the Chantrey Wall in the Ashmolean, the piece lives on and resounds further.
It is now a part of the Museum’s Shedding Light Tour (please click for link)
Written and narrated by Research Consultant, Olivia Holder, this audio tour brings the concept of 'shedding light ' out of the case and into the museum, taking you on a journey across time spans and geographical boundaries. It aims to illuminate connections between some of the themes and stories in this display and a number of objects and artworks across the museum’s many galleries.
Where able, participants have been offered their portrait image, enabling further dialogues and ‘points’ as the pieces travel to homes in the UK and abroad.
‘‘Being asked to be immortalised in such a beautiful and unique manner was nothing short of an honour! The Ashmolean was such a cool home for the piece initially but I’m even more proud to have the picture in my house now.’
Samuel Mansell, Counterpoint Participant
‘It’s Mary’s talents, her sensitivity and humility, her capacity to look unflinchingly - to listen with her heart and eyes - that has made her such an important collaborator on this project. A vital piece of work and social activism confronting a dark and complex past.’
Natasha Gordon MBE, playwright and actor