Joe Sheehan’s art practice was surveyed for the first time in Other Stories. The artist’s unique practice explores the contemporary importance of stone carving, represented in this exhibition through a selection of thirty sculptural objects which echo commonplace items found in our everyday lives. The exhibition demonstrated how Sheehan’s practice both revitalises and subverts the classical tradition of stone sculpture, which goes back to the beginning of art-making in the Western world.

The scattered letters of Words Fail (2011), a Chartwell Collection work created from Carrara marble, act as a reaction to the artist’s experience of the Antarctica New Zealand Arts Fellowship which he embarked on in 2011. The humorous yet heavy weight of the letters echoes the enormity of experiencing such a trip. Slide Show Carousel 2 (2009) from the Chartwell Collection was also included in this survey exhibition. The exhibition was curated by Helen Kedgley.