Fog Machine presents a new body of work by artist and filmmaker Rob Lye, developed during his residency at Eltham College. The exhibition runs from 23 April -16 May 2026 in the Gerald Moore Gallery’s GF space.
The private view is on Thursday 23 April from 6 – 8pm.
At the centre of Fog Machine is a new moving-image work, Afon, filmed in the landscape surrounding the artist’s home in Wiltshire. The film focuses on the River Avon and the industrial terrain of the former Avon Rubber factory — a site where local geography, industrial history and personal memory converge.
Through layered moving image and shifting atmospheres, Afon traces the residual presence of industry across the terrain. The river operates as both physical and symbolic current, carrying traces of labour, extraction and transformation through the landscape. Presented with a 7.1 spatial sound composition, wind, water and distant industrial resonances circulate through the gallery space. Sound functions as a sculptural element, extending the landscape beyond the screen and situating the viewer within a shifting field of environmental and acoustic presence.
Alongside these broader histories, the work engages with personal grief. Landscape and weather become carriers of memory, suggesting a terrain in which ecological, industrial and emotional time intersect.
The exhibition also includes 20°32’50.4”S 67°22’57.6”W (2022), filmed in Bolivia prior to the 2019 military coup. Developed through extensive research into the lithium economy, the work centres on the Salar de Uyuni, the world’s largest salt flat and a site of vast lithium reserves. Observing the slow processes of industrial evaporation pools, the film considers lithium as both a material resource, often termed ‘white gold’ and a psychotropic substance, drawing connections between global extraction, digital infrastructures and personal histories of mental health. Recurring gestures and traces of hands link the body to landscape, industry and systems of mediation.
Together, these works trace a movement between geographically distant but conceptually aligned sites, where extraction, memory and material transformation unfold across different temporal and spatial scales.
Rob Lye is a London-based artist, filmmaker and sound artist working across moving image, spatial sound, sculpture and installation. His practice explores the intersection of landscape, industry and material memory, often focusing on environments shaped by extraction and labour. Through field recording, spatial audio and film, Lye investigates how ecological, industrial and personal histories become embedded within place.
He studied Sculpture at the Royal College of Art and has exhibited, screened and performed internationally, including at Café Oto, Tate Britain, the ICA, Whitechapel Gallery and Modern Art Oxford. Lye is currently Artist-in-Residence at Eltham College and the Gerald Moore Gallery and recently received an Arts Council England DYCP grant to develop new ambisonic film work in the Arctic in spring 2026.
To book your visit, including for the private view, please click the link below:
Free experimental animation workshops for children aged 9 - 13:
Join us in person on Saturday 2nd May from 11am - 12.30pm for a fun and hands-on session exploring experimental animation using classic OHP projectors with Rob Lye. This workshop, running in the Gerald Moore Gallery, is recommended for children aged between 9 - 13 years old. Come mess around with light, shadow, and movement to make something truly unique. Rob Lye will guide you through playful techniques that bring your ideas to life in unexpected ways. Don’t miss this chance to see animation from a fresh perspective!
To book your place, please click the link below: