Toby Messenger (b. 1976, Birmingham) is a Glasgow-based visual artist whose practice merges drawing, painting, assemblage, and installation. He studied Fine Art (Painting) at Glasgow School of Art and has since been awarded a Royal Scottish Society of Painters in Watercolour residency at Hospitalfield House, and a residency at Lademoen Kunstnerverksteder in Trondheim. He has curated three major group exhibitions under the moniker From the Big Splash to the Last Splash at Terrace (London) and IOTA (Glasgow), and SPACE JUNK at Strange Field (Glasgow) — each showcasing cross-generational artists in expansive, DIY-spirited formats. A fourth show ‘New Waves’ is scheduled for June 2026 at Transmission Gallery, Glasgow.
Where Angels Fear to Tread (For Dad) – POA
Toby MessengerCardboard, wood, plastic packaging, road maps, newspaper, paper, acrylic paint, spray paint
Rooted in the aesthetics of rave culture and a nostalgic fascination with the motor car, Messenger’s lo-fi constructions celebrate the studio as a space of making, memory, and quiet resistance. Working primarily with cardboard, recycled wood, and household materials, he constructs scaled replicas of everyday objects that transform overlooked materials into playful, poignant monuments to a pre-digital world. Particularly poignant is Messenger’s choice of materials for his motorbike replica, created just after the passing of his father. Where Angels Fear to Tread (For Dad) is built from packaging, recycled cardboard his dad had set aside for him, and collaged paper, including one of his dad’s old OS road maps. Unbeknownst to Messenger, the number 46 on the Asian supermarket packaging is a reference to the celebrated Grand Prix motorcycle racing World Champion, Valentino Rossi, who carried the number 46 throughout his career as a tribute to his own father.
POA