Art / Bristol artists
Artist covers ceiling of The Gallimaufry in 3,000 objects
The inside of Gloucester Road pub The Gallimaufry has been transformed by visual artist Maximillian Malone. Assisted by the pub’s owner James Koch, staff and regulars, the ceiling has been covered in over 3,000 objects hanging from fishing wire – including 1,500 old ball pit balls, origami animals and laser cut geometric shapes. Max calls the installation the Galli Cosmos.
The idea to decorate the ceiling came from a conversation between Max and James. “We were sat here, late at night, looking at the ceiling, and he had the idea to develop it,” James explains, looking up at the ceiling of The Galli. “We had a limited number of origami animals hanging from the ceiling, which had started a 3D feel, but nothing like this.”
1,500 old ball pit balls in a variety of colours were donated for the project, and Max made many of the other shapes that now hang from the ceiling, alongside the original paper animals that sparked the idea. He laser cut the perspex with fellow artist Jessica Bennett of KoKoMo.Design, and used the space at Signs & That to compile the work.
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This still from a video by Richard Broomhall shows the ceiling as a work in progress
The process of making, arranging and attaching the objects to the ceiling took more than three months in total, and was documented by filmmaker Richard Broomhall.
Max and James previously worked together at The Galli in 2015, in a project that saw Max cover the front of the bar in an intricate collage – a process that took six weeks.
The work stretches between two murals at opposite ends of the main downstairs seating area, between a monochrome painting by Mr Mead and a series of large illustrations by Dave Bain. Care has been taken by Max to link the two pieces using colour.
Maximillian Malone and James Koch attach the work to the ceiling. Still from a video by Richard Broomhall
The latest work cements The Gallimaufry as an independent Bristol business that supports local artists. “We have staff that are aspiring or working artists,” James continues. “It’s a collaborative process, being here and moving along together to make the space as interesting and organic and progressive as possible.
“It certainly seems to have caught people’s imaginations. We tend to have children coming in here in the daytime and they love it. I’ve got a nine-month-old niece and her face lights up when she sees it. I think it adds to the experience of being in here.”
Main image by Richard Broomhall
Read more: Gallimaufry collaborate with Good Chemistry for new beer
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