LONDON, UK.- Emissions: The Incident Room is the latest in a series of challenging exhibitions by Horticultural Installation artist Tony Heywood to be shown at Fordham, the East End’s most radical gallery space.

The focal point of the exhibition is a giant prayer carpet of flowering plant material. Intricate and delicate, the work is a mix of plants, moss, crystal jewels, paint, bone and sculpted clay. As in all previous horticultural installations, the piece grows during the course of the exhibition. It refers to the very first enclosed gardens, symbols of paradise and places of worship.

In 2004 Tony Heywood made a series of related artworks, ‘Emissions’ on the streets of Central London for the public to encounter directly; left to be cared for or to decay. The Incident Room gathers together these ‘emissions’ as if reconstructing a crime scene. To this end there are giant cibachrome images by Rob Carter, Victorian bell-jars containing bacterial material; maps, video footage and a sound installation by David Toop.

With a background in Archaeology and Anthropology, Tony Heywood marries twelve years of experience on the cutting-edge of garden design with installation art. Recent exhibits include Super Botanics, twelve miniature landscapes at the Fine Arts Fair Olympia 2004, The Garden, a three day live performance at Olympia September 2004. A major work, The Calling, will be opening at the Cork 2005 City of Culture Festival in July 2005. Described as “horticulture’s answer to Damien Hirst” by Martin Gayford in The Daily Telegraph and “life, death and regeneration” by Cathy Packe in The Independent, Heywood’s installations have received wide critical acclaim. His work has also been televised by Granada and Sky TV.

Sound artist David Toop’s credits include working with Brian Eno, John Zorn, the Flying Lizards, Prince Far I and Steven Berkoff amongst others. His book Rap Attack is on its third edition having been published in six languages. He has released seven solo albums since 1995.