The Art insider presents… How to get ahead in the art world

Seminar: Every first Tuesday of the month
Next session: Tuesday 7th Jan 2013 6.30 – 8.30pm
Location: Gallery & Project Space

The Art Insider is a brand new forward-thinking company providing bespoke mentoring, group seminars and a comprehensive range of associated services for visual artists.

It is run by a friendly team of practicing visual arts specialists, dedicated to facilitating the professional development of artists and supporting the progression of studio practice.

The Art Insider provides artists with the knowledge, skills and confidence to navigate successfully within the fine art industry. The Art Insider exists to bridge the gap between studio practice and successful commercial enterprise.

This session provides a better understanding of the marketplace, of appropriate representation and looks at generating interest in order to make a living from the commercial art world.

Areas Covered:

– The ability to talk about your work
– The ability to engage in professional relationships within the arts
– A basic understanding of how the art industry works – know what you are operating within.
– The range of opportunities available to artists – Where to look for sources of information – Identifying your aims and objectives
– How to create a workable and realistic schedule of activity
– How to create income streams and activities to spread over a workable time frame
– How to plan strategically for financial gain

School for artists| professional development for artists | The Art Insider

Professional career development for artists . London based School for  Artists advising on marketing, exhibitions, web design, photography  video and jobs in art.

Further information: www.theartinsider.co.uk
info@theartinsider.co.uk / t.02082799916

Atrium: A showcase of art & design

Friday 7th Dec, 6.30 – 10.30pm
Saturday 8th Dec, 12.00pm – 6.00pm

Set within the frame of Great Western Studios’ dramatic atrium, a new collaboration opens.

Resident artists and designers are presenting a showcase of their own work, celebrating a diversity of media. This is a unique opportunity to meet exhibitors and to buy directly from them. It will be open to the public Friday evening 7th December, and Saturday afternoon 8th December.

Explore the central atrium and its adjoining studios and gallery to find work from over 30 exhibitors. Among them you can find Jimmy Turrell, a graphic designer who combines digital techniques with handmade collage, screen printing, drawing and painting. His clients include The Guardian, Green Peace and Nike. Wendy Bain is a colourist who works with oils, acrylics and gold & silver leaf. Her paintings capture the energy and mood of landscapes with colour and movement. Julie Goldsmith is a sculptress. Her totemic figures are talismanic and poetic.

ilovegorgeous are designers of beautiful vintage-inspired clothes for girls. They will be selling samples from previous seasons’ collections. Shiv is an illustrator; working with photography and Photoshop, she creates a realistic feel within an abstract subject matter. Her clients include Sony Music, BMW and Camel.

This event promises to be an open and accessible market place with unique works on offer. In addition to the examples given above, you can also find visual arts, mosaics, ceramics, printing, photography, jewellery, leatherwork, textiles, millinery, fashion, costume, architecture and landscape design.

Come celebrate in a creative community. With the Atrium Café offering food and drink, it is set to be a vibrant and enjoyable experience.

Point of Departure

Exhibition runs: 27th Nov – 4th Dec 2012
Location: Gallery & Project Space

Point of Departure presents an opportunity to view work by second year master’s students from the Royal College of Art’s celebrated Ceramics and Glass programme at a pivotal point in development.

The programme itself has been described as a site for discursive practice, where cultural, social, personal, historical and aesthetic concerns intersect. An overarching belief that the skills of making and thinking can develop in tandem, and that the made object is a vehicle for expression that can engage with the individual and society, lies behind much of its students’ output. The artists do not see ceramics and glass merely as a fixed set of media, instead prizing and celebrating diversity and breadth whilst embracing connections.

As work in progress, Point of Departure includes eighteen individual artists’ investigations taking form. It gives a rare insight into the thinking behind the works at this ‘point of departure’. The exhibition reflects recent discoveries within the students’ artistic journeys as they establish individual identities.

The work itself covers a wide spectrum – from design for manufacture, the unique art object to installation. Themes being dealt with range from the body, the domestic and the architectural, at the core of which is material understanding.

Helle Bjerregaard
Rachel Hopkins
Sabina Stumberger
Kane Cali
Rosanna Martin
Ester Svensson
Kevin Callaghan
Enrique Perezalba Red
Luke Twigger
Eunghan Choi
Helena Plado
Cristina Vezzini Olivia Fink
Shane Porter
Jonathan Wade Lydia Hardwick
Mella Shaw
Yiru Wang

Darren Almond Studio All Things Pass Exhibiton

All Things Pass opened with huge success at the Galerie Max Hetzler in Berlin. Almond’s diverse body of work incorporates film and video, drawing, painting, installation, sculpture and photography.

Almond’s diverse body of work incorporates film, drawing, installation, sculpture and photography. His subjects are as diverse as clocks, train plates and bus shelters. They reveal feelings about the passage of time, themes of personal and historical memory, movement and space.

In 1998 the artist initiated an experiment, which he called Fifteen Minute Moon. This became the starting point to an ongoing series of works, now known asFullmoon photographs.

Often travelling to inaccessible locations, Almond takes his photographs at night. The only source of light is the full moon. The landscape becomes visible by using extended exposure time and turns a dark night into a light day, often appearing ghostly.

The first Fullmoon photograph is a fifteen minute exposure taken at Montagne Saint- Victoire in Provence, thus conjuring the shade of Cézanne. The remote places in Darren Almond’s works reference painters, photographers and writers such as WG Sebald, John Ruskin and Carleton E. Watkins, JMW Turner as well as Caspar David Friedrich’s famous Baltic sea paintings.

In his continuous journeys Almond creates meditative landscapes, turning the invisible visible. The artist depicts the notion of isolation, complete silence, beauty of nature and thus reflects on time and history; themes reminiscent of the romantic 19th century painters.

Recent settings include the British Islands, Uganda’s Rwenzori Mountains and the Yellow Mountains in South East China.

All seven new works Fullmoon@Eifel have been taken in 2010. The large-scale landscape photographs emit a mystic and at the same time warm aura; reminding us of nature’s power and peacefulness.

Darren Almond’s Fullmoon series might suggest a journey beyond time; capturing moments that are spatial in dimension, because here time comes to a standstill.

Bathing Beauties – The National Centre for Craft and Design

Exhibition runs 13th – 26th Sept 2012
Private view 13th Sept
Talk by Michael Trainor 18th Sept
Location: Gallery & Project Space

An international exhibition of over one hundred models designed by artists and architects who re-imagine the British beach hut for the first time in three hundred years.

Great Western Studios and The National Centre for Craft and Design present The Bathing Beauties® exhibition which evolved from the Bathing Beauties® project www.bathingbeauties.org.uk. This inspired 240 architects, artists and designers from 15 countries to compete for commissions to build their designs on the stunning Lincolnshire coast. The competition, organised by artist Michael Trainor, elicited one of the most exciting responses to any architectural competition this century. A selection of models (scale 1:15), showing the incredible virtuosity of approach will be on show in the exhibition.

‘The beach hut is one of the few building forms which has been seriously overlooked by contemporary architects the world over. They are perceived as a treasured feature of our coastal landscape, as quintessentially British as fish and chips and the knotted hanky, but in reality are usually little more than a painted shed’. Michael Trainor, Lead Artist & Project Curator.

The brief to re-imagine the simple beach hut produced an amazing array of design solutions which catapult our ideas of seaside micro-architecture into a new aesthetic, rather than an endless pastiche of imaginary heritage.  Traditional seaside references are gone, replaced by structures incorporating wind turbines, saunas, camera obscura, viewing platforms and space-age materials with only the most oblique of witty nods to sandcastles and stripy windbreaks.  Striking, unconventional and surprising, many of the models celebrate the idea of happening upon something by chance when strolling along the beach, whilst others are bold creative exercises in space, light and line.

Examples on show include the scale model which won ‘Best Model’ prize for outstanding craftsmanship, Lazy Susan by Thurgood Hobson Design, London; partly inspired by the American Airstream caravan, the beautifully crafted Lazy Susan is designed to rotate to follow the sun.  Mark Thurgood is a designer, model maker, 3-D illustrator and skilled carpenter with a strong media background having designed for both television and magazines.  Kevin Hobson is a designer/maker and silversmith jeweler with a variety of craft skills.  Other scale models on show include: Jabba by i-am associates Ltd, London, a 21st century cave of laminated wood and glass whose organic form wouldn’t look out of place in one of the desert scenes of Star Wars; The Wizard of Oz by Lionel T Dean, Future Factories, Lincolnshire, a ‘twister’ of a beach-hut which plays with the idea of being boarded up out-of-season; Cheese 42 by Christian Uhl, Germany, literally a giant cheese block with surprisingly practical features; and Alien Drum Sensorium by Alasdair Tooze, Gareth Hoskins, UK, which is inspired by beach detritus such as washed-up containers and features a sound-amplifying horn for deeper enjoyment of the crashing waves.

This is a show for all the family to see design at its best and most innovative. Wonder at the way in which architecture and design can solve problems and make imaginative places.

Opened in October 2003 as ‘The Hub’ and rebranded as The National Centre for Craft and Design entirely dedicated to the exhibition, celebration and promotion of the very best of national and international craft and design and receives over 85,000 visitors a year.

Further information: www.nationalcraftanddesign.org.uk

Portobello Film Festival

Screenings: Start from 6:30pm
Location: Gallery & Project Space

5th Sept

6:30pm – ‘In memory Of A Free Festival’ presented by Lizzy Piffany
7:15pm – ‘Written in sand’ presented by Pip Hackett
9:00pm – ‘A Brief History of The Arcola Cinema’

7th Sept

6:30pm – ‘In The Dark I Sat’ presented by Sarah Jane Swann & Roger Simon
7:15pm – A selection of short films and artist talk presented by Jemima Burrill
7:45pm – A selection of short films presented by Beata Marta Rzepecka

14th Sept

6:30pm – Bathing Beauties, a film about 100 beach huts designed by architects from around the world, presented by Neil Baker & Steven Hatton of Electric Egg

Portobello Film Festival was created in 1996 as a reaction to the moribund state of the British film industry, to provide a forum for new film-makers and give exposure to movies on different formats.

This international film festival has a fantastic reputation as being ‘the biggest celebration of independent film in Europe’ (The Independent) showing tomorrow’s films today. Now in its 16th year, Portobello film festival has screened films which have gone on to win awards and become highly successful.

This is a great opportunity to see interesting films in inspiring surroundings and to meet the film makers and directors behind them.

Further information: www.portobellofilmfestival.com

Summer Open Studios – A weekend of contemporary art, design & events

Saturday & Sunday, 7th & 8th July 2012

Now in its 18th year, our renowned Open Studios weekend presents a thriving community of established and emerging artists and creatives from all disciplines including architecture, drawing, digital media, fashion, jewellery, music, painting, photography, sculpture and much more.

We support talented designer-makers and present a rare opportunity for the public to see and shop behind the scenes. With over a 100 creative studios showcasing exceptional work, there is something for everyone.

There’s also a full events program throughout the weekend. Fashion designers – Orlebar Brown, ilovegorgeous and Froufrou Boudoir amongst others – will be holding exclusive sample sales.

Artist Richard Wentworth will present a silent auction of 67 prints by sculpture students of the Royal College of Art.

In-house & guest jewellery designers will fill the atrium – an ideal gift for a friend, family or just a treat for yourself!

As part of London Festival of Architecture – Innovation Imperative, Light Architecture, Pitman Tozer, Moxon and Threefold will also be doing their Architects’ Surgery. Mark Lutyens will be holding an Open Garden Surgery and there’ll also be interior design consultations.

Artist demonstrations will include screen printing, traditional methods of oil colour mixing and working with mosaic.

For children there’ll be a new multicoloured children’s art trail that leads them on an interactive quest around the building – and back by popular demand –  Health Cuts will show them how to create a 3D hand print.

Under the Westway, invited exhibitors will be showing their wares in the Arts Market and to round it all off the increasingly popular Annual Open Dog Show takes place on the Sunday evening – all shapes and sizes welcome!

‘Excellent display of talent, will definitely recommend it to all of my friends.’Visitor at the Christmas Open Studios 2012.

Falls the Shadow – a collaboration

Exhibition runs 20th – 27th June 2012
Private view 21st June
Location: Gallery & Project Space

“Between the conception and the creation… Falls the shadow” 
T.S. Eliot

An exhibition of the new work by jeweller Melissa Hunt and mosaic artist Catherine Parkinson exploring the relationship between form and shadow. Both artists will be exhibiting work they have made individually, alongside a collection of innovative pieces which combine mosaic and metals.

Melissa Hunt

Melissa uses the method of photo-etching to depict both the permanent and the fleeting, from architecture to plants and insects. Although traditionally trained and now a practicing jeweller and tutor, Melissa also explores the properties of metals and gemstones in her work by repeating and reviewing such techniques as hand piercing rollerprinting, inlay, enamelling and the addition of gold foil until the desired finish is achieved. An understanding of the potential and limitations of the materials as well as the order in which a piece is fabricated is as important as the resulting appearance.

This joint exhibition is a long-awaited opportunity to include the use of magnets, spacers and hanging mechanisms into Melissa’s work to investigate shadows and reflections, allowing the viewers interactivity with the pieces.

Catherine Parkinson

Closely observed and recorded patterns of nature are a recurrent inspiration for the piecing together of Catherine’s mosaics. The mosaic medium can give an image a depth and solidity that cannot be achieved in any other art form. Sometimes the work is resolved in an abstract manner, other pieces grow into a recognisable scene or still life.

The raw materials used in some of Catherine’s mosaics: old china, found fragments, stones and fossils, have a patina that reflects their history. Often the seeking out of the materials, some of it a deliberate quest and some chanced upon, is as important as making the work itself. A single piece can be a starting point for a new mosaic work.

The juxtaposition of diverse materials and colours is an on going preoccupation. Catherine’s recent work combines painted areas with mosaic, reflecting the contrasting nature of form and shadow.

Websites:
www.melissahuntjewellery.co.uk
www.catherineparkinson.com

Auction

Auction on 11th May 2012 7-9pm
Hosted by Anne Robinson Exhibition
Runs 3rd – 13th May 2012

Natasha Laflin is a much loved artist, illustrator, friend, partner and mother. This event has been organised by her family and friends to raise funds to adapt her house so she can come home after more than four long years under NHS care.

In January 2008, at the age of 40, she suffered a severe brain haemorrhage as a result of a congenital malformation to the blood vessels in her brain. After months in a coma, she was pronounced brain dead. Despite this and many serious setbacks, she has managed to make a slow and painful recovery and is now talking, walking and even painting again. This is due to her own strength, determination and love of life, but also the unfaltering love and support of those close to her. It is with this spirit that we need to bring her home for the next stage of her recovery… that of being able to lead an independent, dignified and meaningful life.

The Protester – Sophie Molins

Exhibition runs 20th – 26th March 2012
Private view 22nd March
Film screening 26th March
Location: Gallery & Project Space

“1984” was not supposed to be an instruction manual.

This year is designated the UN Year of the Co-operative, and the theme for Davos is “Great Transformation”. Last years ‘The Time Person of the Year” was “The Protester”.

The people demanding change are the subject of Sophie Molins’ new exhibition at Great Western Studios. Since 2009 Molins has worked with Artists Project Earth (APE) a charity which funds groups and projects, which raise awareness about and mitigate climate change.

APE has supported and documented: Its float at Notting Hill Carnival; a film at the infamous Burning Man festival in Utah’s Black rock desert; its participation at the United Nations conference on Climate Change in Copenhagen in 2009 and Durban 2011; activist groups such as Liberate Tate, which organized the Reverend Billy’s exorcism of BP at Tate modern: WE CAN at Climate Rush who also organized their children to dress up as endangered animals and visit their MP’s and a Suffragette Tea Party at Heathrow airport against the third runway; recording sessions in Mali for the new Rhythms del Mundo Africa album; and lastly the Occupy camp in London.

The images of these events are an intimate portrait of groups of people who want to change unsustainable systems and try out new ones. There are echoes of the 60’s counterculture revolution in images such as “Occupy The Sky”.  But this new generation of protesters is media savvy, witty, creative and fun. The work explores the slogans and banners with their ironic subversive sound bites that bear witness to deep dissatisfaction and an eagerness for a different model. Slogans:

“Down with that sort of thing”
“the future is on sale”
“the revolution will not be branded”
“time is art not money”

sit alongside poignant portraits of protestors from all walks of life; and burners at burning man and Dogon Dancers in Mali, who star in one of the new RDM videos.

The exhibition premiers a new film of the African Climate March in Durban where song and dance were used in Protest.

On 22nd March at 6.30 Kenny Young APE’s founder will be presenting a sneak preview of the new Rhythms del Mundo Africa Album which features Coldplay, Eminem, Beyonce, Red hot Chilli Peppers, Mumford and sons’  Plan B, Aloe Blacc,  REM, Ali Farka Toure Band, Fleet Foxes, Cee-lo Green and Rokia Traore’. There will be  a guest speaker and an African drumming session.

On Monday 26th March at 6.15pm there will  will be a screenings of The Crisis of Civilization www.crisisofcivilization.com  After which there will be a Q & A  with the film’s author Nafeez Ahmed,  the director – Dean Puckett and the animator – Lucca Benny.

Artists Project Earth  (APE) collaborates with international musicians to produce three fundraising albums to date: Rhythms Del Mundo: Cuba, RDM: Classics and most recently, RDM: Revival. This year APEs fourth album, Rhythms del Mundo: Africa will be released. Profits from sales of the albums have supported over 300 projects all around the world that are helping to mitigate, adapt to and raise awareness of, climate change.

Sophie Molins works in photography, found objects, drawing and web worlds. With an eye for the surreal and the ironic Molins’ work focuses on the physical minutiae of our culture: mundane items that exist in the background of our daily lives; text, fake animals and windows become metaphors for our ethical and emotional condition, poignantly highlighting our projections, our consumption and frailties as a species. She currently has a web commission for the National Trust on at Attingham Park, Shropshire and an exhibition at Riverside Studios has just finished. She has won awards form the New York Times, Westminster Arts, the Arts Council and exhibits frequently here and abroad.

“The Crisis of Civilization’ is a remixed documentary feature film, exploring the interconnected nature of global crises. Documentary filmmaker Dean Puckett interrogates the writer and international security analyst Dr Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed, author of A User’s Guide to the Crisis of Civilization: And How to Save It – a powerful critique of a failed global system and a manifesto for constructive social change. The film incorporates an imaginative montage of public domain archive footage, newsreel and stunning original animation to offer a powerful wake-up call, warning that the inability to recognise the interconnections between different crises is preventing us, as a civilisation, from saving ourselves.

Further information: www.sophiemolins.com