Every club has its own set of matchday rituals. Some spawn from quirky one-off results that superstitiously stick with fans as a lucky charm over the decades; others arise from sheer lunacy. In Buffalo, the Bills Mafia are known for body-slamming each other through tables, while in Detroit, Redwings fans throw dead octopuses on the rink during playoff home games. For artist and Tottenham Hotspur supporter, Jack Hirons, visiting the chicken shop before a game is just as integral as watching the match.
In his first solo show, Hirons has unveiled a new body of work at OOF Gallery inside the Tottenham Hotspur stadium entitled Fowl Play. Emblematic of the title, the show comprises of monochromatic paintings and stained glass window artwork centered at the intersection of his love for chicken and Spurs’ cockerel logo. “It is definitely part of mine and lots of other people’s matchday rituals,” Hirons told BBC, when describing the ritual of visiting Chick-King, just opposite the grounds. “There is always a big queue. The interior feels really iconic.”
Chickens don’t only play muse for Hirons. The artist actually charrs the bones of the food he gets from Chick=King, which he uses as blackened pigment for his canvas and stained glass works. “Humans have been painting with animal bones for a long time,” Hirons explained, adding, “Contemporary art doesn’t need to be this closed loop. Why not have it at a football match?” Additionally, more than just cheap laughs, Hirons uses his choice theme as a metaphor to speak on all sorts of associations that have emerged over time — from politics, power to sexuality. For those attending an upcoming home game, Fowl Play will be on view until May 11.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
OOF Gallery
782 High Rd,
London N17 0BX