Introduction

Tanks & Tablecloths is a collaboration between artists Elizabeth Masterton and Lizzie Ridout. In 2004, we chanced upon an image of a soldier camouflaging artillery with a tablecloth. We were intrigued by the absurdity, yet entire practicality of using a tablecloth to camouflage a large gun. There’s a tension between the clean, lacy tablecloth and the dirty, rugged gun-and by extension,the soldier draping the cloth delicately over it. Soon after, we found 'Shoot Straight Lady' in a book of Second World War recipes. Where the soldier presented the military with a hint of the domestic, this second image demonstrated the domestic with the suggestion of military strategy, poise and efficiency. These two images raised a variety of questions in our minds which encouraged us to explore the relationship between the military and the domestic in more detail. And this was when Tanks & Tablecloths was born. Three inch gun of the US 75th Infantry division, camouflaged with lace tablecloth Belgium, 13 January 1945. Copyright DAVA-US Army Shoot Straight Lady Courtesy Imperial War Museum

Chapter 2: Plymouth Arts Centre Combed Tops Date unknown Samples of wool ‘tops’ used for spinning yarn 783 x 385 x 55 mm DNHC collection The Measure of a Man I [4 Fathoms] Wool from one disassembled navy surplus pullover, spun into rope 7320 x 20 mm Scales Date unknown 453 x 234 x 405 mm DNHC collection The Measure of a Man III [Worth His Salt/Test His Mettle] Plymouth Sound sea salt on brass 600 x 600 x 2 mm CZ108 brass sheet; 350g of salt made from Plymouth Sound seawater Knives 1930s-1950s Various sizes DNHC collection Belli Dura Despicio [Broadside] 29.7km line on 150 broadside sheets Digital print on 55 gsm newsprint 750 x 520 mm, folded to 375 x 260mm Still from Quercus Regius: 00:58-01:29 Digital film Black & white, 31 minute loop New artworks, shown alongside selected artefacts from the ‘unseen’ archive of Devonport Naval Heritage Centre (DNHC), testing our concept of ‘an exploded book' - an experiment in ‘reading’ the interrelationships of text, object and place. [Read more] Photos: Andy Ford

Chapter 1: Newlyn Art Gallery Spit & Polish 1 Laser cut leather cutlery Sizes vary Plotting table [Tanks & Tablecloths] Plywood, pine, vinyl 2440 x 2440 x 1000 mm Hedera Xileh Desks, lamps, desktop materials, felt laser-cut ivy leaves In Chapter 1, we transformed the gallery space into a participatory 'operations room', inviting visitors to explore links between the military and the domestic in a series of experimental artworks which evolved in the space over the course of the exhibition. [Read more] Photos: Steve Tanner

Index Our news, research, thoughts, findings, ruminations, peregrinations and dreams in the Tanks & Tablecloths blog.