Wysing Arts_ communal amphitheatre
A really exciting project taking is place in Cambourne this summer with Wysing Arts. This large scale project will be the creation of a giant outdoor structure using only found and discarded materials. They need you to get involved – by give them your unwanted building materials or by joining in the designing and building of the structure.
This large communal structure is being headed by Berlin based artists Folke Köbberling and Martin Kaltwasser. You are all invited to work together on building the main structure, the amphitheatre, connect your own structures to it – anything goes! The only things you need bring with you are very basic carpentry skills (training will be given) and a willingness to experiment with scale, materials and concepts.
Wysing wants to encourage the communities surrounding us to work and play together. Influenced by the writings of American academic Robert Putnam who refers to “the collective value of all social networks and the inclinations that arise from these networks to do things for each other”.
Putnam’s concept of social capital stresses the importance of social ties among communities : “increased co-operation, collaboration and trust .. leads to .. better opportunities, health,
quality of life and neighbourliness”
Through this project Wysing is seeking to “raise levels of social capital locally, by developing experimental models of artistic activity and production”.
From 19 May onwards Wysing’s gallery has become a repository for unwanted and discarded, found and recycled materials, so if you are throwing away wood, windows, doors or any other kinds of structural materials, please let them know and they will take it off your hands.
International Residency with Folke Köbberling & Martin Kaltwasser takes place from July 16th and runs until August 31st.
To register your participation, or your unwanted building material, please contact info@wysingartscentre.org or 01954 718881.
www.wysingartscentre.org
Showing posts with label Luke Payn's Articles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Luke Payn's Articles. Show all posts
Thursday, 26 February 2009
Muddy Arts Festival 2008
Muddy Arts Update:
Grassroots Festival 5/6/7th September 2008
The art boards are going very fast and have created quite a bit of excitement. It now looks like the festival itself will be very active with artists producing a lot of work live on site. Artists from Locality, a local Hip Hop crew, the Muddy Arts Collective, Kelzo and friends from Manchester, and many others have all agreed to get involved. (check out www.kelzo.com) The boards measure 8ft x 4ft and can be painted both sides. If you have other art work you wish to display, on fabric, taurpaulin or board please contact me and I will try to accommadate it in the site. We want as much art on site as possible, so don't be shy.
“No Protection” is an additional feature to the site and will present artwork on small boards, cardboard etc. cable-tied to Harris fencing (the standard metal fencing you see around building sites) The idea of this project is for artists to donate art work to the temporary gallery, which festival goers can buy, proceeds going to St Teresa's Homeless Shelter. The work will be hung in the open air, hence “No Protection”. The work can be brought along or made on site, materials will be available.
If you have any old sofa cushions, curtains, fabric, wood, chickenwire, bedsheets, half used paint pots, wool, rugs,blankets,string,net curtains,tablecloths or anything else you think we could use we would be very grateful!!
Any other ideas for art on site please contact Luke on: lukepayn@hotmail.com
www.myspace.com/muddyarts
www.thegrassrootsfestival.co.uk
Grassroots Festival 5/6/7th September 2008
The art boards are going very fast and have created quite a bit of excitement. It now looks like the festival itself will be very active with artists producing a lot of work live on site. Artists from Locality, a local Hip Hop crew, the Muddy Arts Collective, Kelzo and friends from Manchester, and many others have all agreed to get involved. (check out www.kelzo.com) The boards measure 8ft x 4ft and can be painted both sides. If you have other art work you wish to display, on fabric, taurpaulin or board please contact me and I will try to accommadate it in the site. We want as much art on site as possible, so don't be shy.
“No Protection” is an additional feature to the site and will present artwork on small boards, cardboard etc. cable-tied to Harris fencing (the standard metal fencing you see around building sites) The idea of this project is for artists to donate art work to the temporary gallery, which festival goers can buy, proceeds going to St Teresa's Homeless Shelter. The work will be hung in the open air, hence “No Protection”. The work can be brought along or made on site, materials will be available.
If you have any old sofa cushions, curtains, fabric, wood, chickenwire, bedsheets, half used paint pots, wool, rugs,blankets,string,net curtains,tablecloths or anything else you think we could use we would be very grateful!!
Any other ideas for art on site please contact Luke on: lukepayn@hotmail.com
www.myspace.com/muddyarts
www.thegrassrootsfestival.co.uk
Arts Diary July 2008
Arts Diary
First Published in Art & Soul Magazine July 2008
This month I have been getting into the work of Thomas Hirschhorn, someone who's work at first confused and displaced me, but taking a bit of time for closer inspection has revealed a wonderous world of sincere and strongly galvanised artwork. This was a great reminder for me that, in the spirit of the great Bo Diddly who passed away this month, you can't judge a book by looking at the cover.
Kat Moores exhibition at The Great Northern was an incredible delight. The pictures show amazing visual dexterity, Kat has really worked hard at presenting the true nature of light. The atmosphere in the venue was very friendly and open, many thanks to Jessica and Kat for inviting us and making the afternoon so enjoyable.
I also visited the Bury St Edmunds art gallery where three artists displayed work under the title “focus on dance”. “Dancers” by Morten Nilsson, “Backstage at the Ballet” by Oona Richards” and “In The Flesh” by Billy Cowie. The exhibition was based around the formal side of dance, suits, ballrooms and ballerinas, (not the techno tribal side).The three pieces were a very clever video installation that made creative use of 3D specs, an automated sculptural construction that saw ballerina shoes moving without bodies, and some incredibly eerie photographs of aspiring young dances all kitted out in full ball room attire, there was something unnerving about these portraits. The gallery itself had a lovely ambience and we were warmly greeted. Their next show is “Suffolk Showcase” June 14th to July 19th www.burystedmundsartgallery.org
This month you can see “Poetry in Colour - The Art of Nature by Genevieve” at The Stamford Arts Centre. Geneviève mixes her own paints made from vegetable oils, organic colour pigments, ochres, and minerals resulting in a very personal style and textures. Her astonishing natural colours and versatile techniques of nudes, landscapes and abstracts have become her main trademark.
5th to 31st July
www.genevieveart.nl
At the Kings Lynn Arts Centre is a show dedicated to Walter Dexter. This offers a unique opportunity to view the breadth of work produced by this prolific local artist and includes drawings, paintings, illustrations, books and posters. 2008 is the 50th anniversary of the death of Walter Dexter (1876 – 1958), who lived and worked in King’s Lynn, latterly in Nelson Street and was tragically knocked over and killed by a motorbike in Saturday Market Place. Dexter was the first President of the King’s Lynn Art Club in 1945 and taught Art at King Edward VII High School. He was a remarkable painter of both landscape and portrait and was renowned for his fine views of King’s Lynn across the river from West Lynn.
Fermoy Gallery | 13 July – 9 August www.kingslynnarts.co.uk
In Cambridge you can visit Kettles Yard to see the work of Roger Hilton (1911-1975). He is widely thought to be one of the best and most adventurous painters of his generation. His paintings can be as rumbustious as the life he led. However abstract the paintings become the human body is never very far away. Spontaneous in gesture, they show him to be one of the boldest yet subtlest colourists. The exhibition focuses on Hilton at the height of his powers, from 1953 when he first saw the paintings of Mondrian, to 1965. It will feature more than forty oil paintings including several rarely or never seen before in exhibitions. 2 August - 21 September 2008
Also in Cambridge at the Ftizwilliam Museum is the exhibition “On the Shoulders of Giants”: Photographic Portraits from the University of Cambridge. Part of the University of Cambridge’s celebration of its 800th anniversary, this exhibition of photographic portraits by accomplished Cambridge photographer Howard Guest offers an intriguing insight into the working life of one of the world’s most celebrated academic institutions.
10 June 2008 - 28 September 2008
Wysing Arts Centre in Bourn, near Cambridge will be hosting an International Residency with Folke Köbberling & Martin Kaltwasser as they help the local community build a huge amphitheatre from waste materials. This looks like a fascinating project and hopefully I will get the chance to visit and see the artists in action, if so I will bring you a full write up. www.wysingartscentre.org
Over near Norwich at the Sainsbury's Centre For Visual Arts is a massive exhibition of Abstract and Constructivist Art, Architecture and Design called “Constructed - 40 Years of the UEA Collection”
The UEA collection began in response to the modernity of the University of East Anglia’s architecture. In 1968, UEA was one of England’s ‘New Universities’ with a bold concrete campus designed by architect Denys Lasdun to reflect the ambitious inter-disciplinary approach of the young institution.
The earliest group of works in the exhibition date from between circa 1910 and 1930 and reflect the origins of a modern ‘movement’. Early exponents included artists and architects associated with the De Stijl Group such as Gerrit Rietveld and those associated with the Bauhaus in Germany such as Wassily Kandinsky. Also works by Wassily Kandinsky and Lazlo Moholy-Nagy. Artists began making work now described as ‘constructivist’ in the second decade of the twentieth century. WW1 and the creation of a new social order through the Revolution in Russia were instrumental in causing many artists to rethink how art and design shapes the way people live. This is a real treat and will give a real insight to art in the early 20th century.1st Jul 2008 - 14th Dec 2008. www.scva.org.uk
There are two fantasic shows in London for you this month, Stolen Space Gallery has some of the freshest work around at it's “Summer Group Show” with work from Vitche, Jana & Nunca (all from Brazil), Vhils (Portugal), Word To Mother (UK), Shepard Fairey (USA) and Andrew McAttee (UK). Check out their work on the internet to see what I mean. 18th July - 10th August. And the Tate Modern has it's own exhibition, “Street Art” from 23 May – 25 August.
Last of all Peterborough Open Studios is on throughout July, so make sure you take the opportunity to support our local artists, there is loads of great work on show so be sure to take some time to see what's being made in this fair city
That's all for this month, enjoy the summer !!
Luke Payn
First Published in Art & Soul Magazine July 2008
This month I have been getting into the work of Thomas Hirschhorn, someone who's work at first confused and displaced me, but taking a bit of time for closer inspection has revealed a wonderous world of sincere and strongly galvanised artwork. This was a great reminder for me that, in the spirit of the great Bo Diddly who passed away this month, you can't judge a book by looking at the cover.
Kat Moores exhibition at The Great Northern was an incredible delight. The pictures show amazing visual dexterity, Kat has really worked hard at presenting the true nature of light. The atmosphere in the venue was very friendly and open, many thanks to Jessica and Kat for inviting us and making the afternoon so enjoyable.
I also visited the Bury St Edmunds art gallery where three artists displayed work under the title “focus on dance”. “Dancers” by Morten Nilsson, “Backstage at the Ballet” by Oona Richards” and “In The Flesh” by Billy Cowie. The exhibition was based around the formal side of dance, suits, ballrooms and ballerinas, (not the techno tribal side).The three pieces were a very clever video installation that made creative use of 3D specs, an automated sculptural construction that saw ballerina shoes moving without bodies, and some incredibly eerie photographs of aspiring young dances all kitted out in full ball room attire, there was something unnerving about these portraits. The gallery itself had a lovely ambience and we were warmly greeted. Their next show is “Suffolk Showcase” June 14th to July 19th www.burystedmundsartgallery.org
This month you can see “Poetry in Colour - The Art of Nature by Genevieve” at The Stamford Arts Centre. Geneviève mixes her own paints made from vegetable oils, organic colour pigments, ochres, and minerals resulting in a very personal style and textures. Her astonishing natural colours and versatile techniques of nudes, landscapes and abstracts have become her main trademark.
5th to 31st July
www.genevieveart.nl
At the Kings Lynn Arts Centre is a show dedicated to Walter Dexter. This offers a unique opportunity to view the breadth of work produced by this prolific local artist and includes drawings, paintings, illustrations, books and posters. 2008 is the 50th anniversary of the death of Walter Dexter (1876 – 1958), who lived and worked in King’s Lynn, latterly in Nelson Street and was tragically knocked over and killed by a motorbike in Saturday Market Place. Dexter was the first President of the King’s Lynn Art Club in 1945 and taught Art at King Edward VII High School. He was a remarkable painter of both landscape and portrait and was renowned for his fine views of King’s Lynn across the river from West Lynn.
Fermoy Gallery | 13 July – 9 August www.kingslynnarts.co.uk
In Cambridge you can visit Kettles Yard to see the work of Roger Hilton (1911-1975). He is widely thought to be one of the best and most adventurous painters of his generation. His paintings can be as rumbustious as the life he led. However abstract the paintings become the human body is never very far away. Spontaneous in gesture, they show him to be one of the boldest yet subtlest colourists. The exhibition focuses on Hilton at the height of his powers, from 1953 when he first saw the paintings of Mondrian, to 1965. It will feature more than forty oil paintings including several rarely or never seen before in exhibitions. 2 August - 21 September 2008
Also in Cambridge at the Ftizwilliam Museum is the exhibition “On the Shoulders of Giants”: Photographic Portraits from the University of Cambridge. Part of the University of Cambridge’s celebration of its 800th anniversary, this exhibition of photographic portraits by accomplished Cambridge photographer Howard Guest offers an intriguing insight into the working life of one of the world’s most celebrated academic institutions.
10 June 2008 - 28 September 2008
Wysing Arts Centre in Bourn, near Cambridge will be hosting an International Residency with Folke Köbberling & Martin Kaltwasser as they help the local community build a huge amphitheatre from waste materials. This looks like a fascinating project and hopefully I will get the chance to visit and see the artists in action, if so I will bring you a full write up. www.wysingartscentre.org
Over near Norwich at the Sainsbury's Centre For Visual Arts is a massive exhibition of Abstract and Constructivist Art, Architecture and Design called “Constructed - 40 Years of the UEA Collection”
The UEA collection began in response to the modernity of the University of East Anglia’s architecture. In 1968, UEA was one of England’s ‘New Universities’ with a bold concrete campus designed by architect Denys Lasdun to reflect the ambitious inter-disciplinary approach of the young institution.
The earliest group of works in the exhibition date from between circa 1910 and 1930 and reflect the origins of a modern ‘movement’. Early exponents included artists and architects associated with the De Stijl Group such as Gerrit Rietveld and those associated with the Bauhaus in Germany such as Wassily Kandinsky. Also works by Wassily Kandinsky and Lazlo Moholy-Nagy. Artists began making work now described as ‘constructivist’ in the second decade of the twentieth century. WW1 and the creation of a new social order through the Revolution in Russia were instrumental in causing many artists to rethink how art and design shapes the way people live. This is a real treat and will give a real insight to art in the early 20th century.1st Jul 2008 - 14th Dec 2008. www.scva.org.uk
There are two fantasic shows in London for you this month, Stolen Space Gallery has some of the freshest work around at it's “Summer Group Show” with work from Vitche, Jana & Nunca (all from Brazil), Vhils (Portugal), Word To Mother (UK), Shepard Fairey (USA) and Andrew McAttee (UK). Check out their work on the internet to see what I mean. 18th July - 10th August. And the Tate Modern has it's own exhibition, “Street Art” from 23 May – 25 August.
Last of all Peterborough Open Studios is on throughout July, so make sure you take the opportunity to support our local artists, there is loads of great work on show so be sure to take some time to see what's being made in this fair city
That's all for this month, enjoy the summer !!
Luke Payn
Wednesday, 28 January 2009
Art & Soul Magazine_Andie Scott , “1100 Tokens”
First published in Art & Soul Magazine June 2008
Andie Scott @ Space4
“1100 Tokens”
Andie Scotts paintings are sombre meditation on the valiant perseverance of the Burmese people, monks, nuns and ordinary citizens facing up to such a brutal and medieval regime.
The installation comprises 1100 portraits of prisoners and demonstrators, some of whom have died through torture.
The room is awash with the colours so familiar to us representing Burma, oranges, reds and yellows, like the robes and the flags. The simplicity of the line portraits also recalls the simplicity of the Buddhist message, elegance and grace, subtle and yet profound and engaging. I felt quite tearful walking around the room, looking at faces who had, are many who still are, facing such horrible imprisonment and torture.
Scott has also produced small Buddha icons, which symbolise the lost dignity of the Burmese people and the reason why they risk imprisonment to highlight their cause on the world stage.
£10 from the sale of each canvas goes directly to the prisioners via Assistance Association for Political Prisioners Burma (AAPPB) www.aappb.org
I urge you to take time out this month to visit this exhibition and experience an art piece that truly has something to say.
Luke Payn
Art & Soul Magazine_Luke Payn
First published in Art & Soul Magazine June 2008
Arts Diary June 2008
Summer is nearly here and I hope the sunshine is striring your creative appitites because there is loads going on. Please feel free to contact me with any ideas for future features, contact details below.
This month my brain has been brimming with visual stimulation. I got the chance to go the opening night of Ruth Joyces show in Stamford, great pictures with lots of movement and action, many thanks to Ruth for making us feel so welcome. I also visited London to see “The Adam & Ron Show”, and the Duchamp /Man Ray / Picabia show at the Tate Modern, and also took in a huge piece by Banksy that had gone up about 48 hours before. I came home dizzy with delight and inspiration, well worth the train fare.
Space4 has two other artists exhibiting alongside the installation. Photographer Doug Gray whose ‘Selected Coincidences’ makes use of “accidental multiple exposures where seeking out the hidden objects within the prints becomes an experience in itself”, and painter Andie Scott's “1100 Tokens”, comprising of 1100 portraits in oil on canvas of Burmese monks. 9th May -22nd June
Newly opened at The Great Northern Hotel is Peter Boizots gallery which house's his private collection alongside regularly rotating work by new and local artists. Kat Moores work will be on show here until June 15th.
In London you can check out the retrospective of Cy Twombly at the Tate Modern. A great opportunity to see this mans work in his 80th year. It is his first major retrospective to be held in over twenty years. If it is as well designed as the Duchamp show then expect to be impressed. 19th June-14th September. At ElmLesters gallery is “Delta: The New Dutch Master”. “Delta” aka BORIS TELLEGEN has been an inspirational pioneer in the European graffiti scene since 1983, this work goes to a whole new level however. June 6th - 28th. www.elmslesters.co.uk
Over in Cambridge you can visit Kettles Yard to see the work of Michelle Charles whose subject is everyday domestic life - glasses of milk, medicine bottles, tea towels, pan scrubs and bars of soap. Working in series - in paintings, drawings, photograms or cast glass - she repeats a motif to explore the possibilities of how we might see the same thing in many ways, depending on the fall of light or the attention we give it. Recent series include house flies and the knitting and unraveling of wool. 7th June - 27th July. www.kettlesyard.co.uk
Whilst in Cambridge you might like to visit the Fitzwilliam Museum's “Fifty Etchings 2005” by Christopher Le Brun's. Made over one year and employing an extraordinary variety of subtle etching techniques, the series revisits a wide range of subjects known from Le Brun’s other work whilst also introducing new themes and motifs. The sequence shapes associations of literature, music and art, like the questing travellers in the prints, the viewer is drawn into a metaphysical journey in search of meaning as well as beauty.
20th May to 28th September .
Also at the Fitzwilliam is the very exotic “Chinese Imperial Jades” displaying exceptional pieces of jade from the Qing imperial collection. These jades were carved during the reign of the Emperor Qianlong (r.1736-96), and their materials would have been mined and carefully shipped to Beijing to be carved in the imperial workshop. Some of the pieces on display bear poems composed by the Emperor himself emphasising the important status of jade in Chinese art and culture.
The pieces on display illuminate the different features of Qing dynasty jade carving, including the fashion for copying ancient objects, particularly bronzes, and the technique of carving a two-dimensional landscape with figures onto a three dimensional jade.
1st May to 29th June
www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk
At the Sainsburys Centre for Visual Art is Margaret Mellis's - “A Life in Colour”
Margaret was a central figure in the St Ives group of artists which included Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson.
1st July to 31st August
www.scva.org.uk
Angelor Mellor Gallery
The Angelor Mellor Gallery in Ely is showing “In Return – Cycles of Influence” a show exploring the returning and revolving influences between textile artist Gill Recordon and her daughter, painter Tess Recordon.
Gill is an experienced textile artist who has travelled widely. A characteristic of her work is the interplay of images to be seen and found. Dragons can form out of tree roots and fire; winding serpents, fish or tree branches from rivulets flowing across win-ribbed sand.
Tess, working from her memories of Morocco and Japan, explores the space between landscape and abstraction. The paintings use condensed colour and texture to convey the atmosphere of rural and urban landscapes.
14th May – 14th June
www.angelamellorgallery.com
At the Stamford Arts Centre is The Guild of Fine Artists' “Summer Exhibition”, an exhibition of traditional fine representative paintings by a Guild dedicated to keep traditional craft techniques in the production of visual art. Subject matter ranges from still life, natural world, landscape, townscape and marine.
10th - 28th June
www.stamfordartscentre.com
“Continuous Practice” is currently showing in Kings Lynn at The College of West Anglia.
The Art and Design Department shares an insight into the work of tutors, created as continued professional practice in their specialist teaching fields. It is the strong belief of the department that art educators should remain current within their fields, so as to be able to convey an up to date and real enthusiasm for their subject to their students. For the very first time, tutors and technical staff show some their work . 7th – 21st June www.kingslynnarts.co.uk
Nearby in Wisbech and presented byAtelier East are Louise Stebbing's prints at The Angles Theatre, 1st June - 4th July
www.atelier-east.co.uk
And finally Peterborough Open Studios is back! The opening event is at the end of June with the Open Weekends taking place throughout early July. Be sure to make the most of this wonderful opportunity and support our local artists.
www.paos.org.uk
So plenty to quench your creative thirst this month as the solstice sun glides across the horizon, have a great month!
By Luke Payn
Monday, 26 January 2009
Luke's Arts Diary May 2008
Arts Diary May 2008
This month has been very busy for me, I have really enjoyed writing for this magazine, meeting several artists and visting art shows, great fun indeed.
I said last month that I would find out about Space4 closing. Well the rumour that the gallery will be shutting it's doors in September is simply untrue. There is no one officially curating the Space4 at the moment, however shows are booked up until October this year.
This month I thought I'd look at events happening slightly further afield. And the theme seems to be claim the streets, claim the city with a re-wiring of the social spaces & structures that weave us together.
First up is “The Adam and Ron Show” which features the work of billboard-hijacking, pop surrealist and US legend Ron English and British artist Adam Neate who's subversion of street space has resulted in reports on CNN and European television, major collectors and celebrities fighting for his originals and international critics praising the artist's work. Over the past five years Adam Neate has left thousands of pieces of work on the streets of London, either hanging on nails or propped against lampposts for people to find. His two and three dimensional paintings use recycled cardboard boxes as canvases - Neate is a street artist with a difference. His work is technically expert and has won him acknowledgement from Tate, National Portrait Gallery and The National Gallery.
Ron English has pirated over one thousand billboards in the last twenty years, replacing existing advertisements with his own hand-painted "subvertisements." He revels in taking on the establishment, tearing down corporate icons, and unravelling social constructs. His works on canvas contain an equally biting commentary whilst being flawlessly painted in a hyper-real style.
Take the opportunity to see this astonishing work if you can.
May 2nd - 31st at Elms Lesters Painting Rooms,
Tuesday - Saturday 12 - 6pm, Thursdays 'til 9pm
www.elmslesters.co.uk
The second event on the radar is futuresonic in Manchester. This is an “Urban Festival of Art, Music & Ideas” titled “The Social - Social Networking Unplugged”. An annual event currently in its 12th year, futuresonic is extending the focus on presenting artworks in unexpected city spaces, and on social art and social technologies. The 2008 theme presents a sideways and playful look at social networking. This is the first major art exhibition to present a comprehensive and creative look at social networking. For five days and nights Manchester will be the most sociable city on the planet - with new commissioned artworks and many world firsts from an array of international artists Manchester city centre will be overrun with ‘unplugged’ social networking.
So what's the thinking behind this project? In their words: “Computers have become social interfaces to build online communities and folksonomies. Some technologies are more social than others. Social technologies are bottom up and many-to-many instead of one-to-one or one-to-many. They can include technologies created and maintained by social networks, such as communities of developers and users working collaboratively with open source tools. At the same time we see how electronic communication can isolate us, as more and more people drown in a deluge of email that generates stress, even reducing IQ. Additionally, 'online communities' are based upon an artificial equivalence between 'users' which obscures power relationships and issues of ownership.The festival and conference will explore the new social spaces and the social implications of technologies for the many different kinds of people who make, use and are affected by them.”
“This runs much deeper than online social networking websites alone. When you use your credit card, you are using a social technology. Each time we buy something we let the company know where we are and what we are buying. An electronic profile is created for each one of us and the aggregated information is used to shape services and select the products on the shelves. This in turn shapes the choices available to us, and the society we live in. Futuresonic plans to pull out the plug in order to take the new social spaces apart, see how they work, and put them together in new ways.”
1-5 May, exhibitions till 17th May.
Exhibitions are free
www.futuresonic.com
Street Blitz is a 2 week festival of street art and creative subversion. The motivation for this festival is, in their words, the “corporate image factory” which “spends a huge amount of money on billboards, flyers or ‘guerrilla’ marketing campaigns masquerading as street art. They fill your lives with an unrelenting barrage of preposterous ideals, numb values and false icons. No one asks for your permission before they push these images in your face so neither should we seek consent in order to leave our own mark on the city.” And it's action that counts as they propose a 2 week blitz of street art in London between 1st-15th May. “Whether you make murals, stencils, stickers, posters, sculptures, street projections, sign modification/removal/additions, billboard subverting/defacing/destruction etc; whether creative or destructive; whether to convey a message, brighten up a dull spot, rewire some corporate brainwashing tactics; whether to leave your mark, remove a stain, express yourself or simply to show your disgust – it’s all valid and all adds to The Blitz!” So if that sounds like your thing nip done and get involved. www.streetblitz.com
And also for your consideration are the following events, Blek Le Rat's solo show at the Black Rat Press gallery in London, May 8th -22nd. Blek Le Rat is one of the pioneers of street art and has been weilding his stencil styles since 1981, a visionary artist and well worth a look. www.blackratpress.co.uk and Noisefestival which is the UK's first cross-media showcase for artists under 25, there are loads of opportunities to present your work, check their website www.noisefestival.com and see just how big this project is.
Luke Payn
lukepayn@hotmail.com
www.myspace.com/muddyarts
First published in Art & Soul Magazine in May 2008
This month has been very busy for me, I have really enjoyed writing for this magazine, meeting several artists and visting art shows, great fun indeed.
I said last month that I would find out about Space4 closing. Well the rumour that the gallery will be shutting it's doors in September is simply untrue. There is no one officially curating the Space4 at the moment, however shows are booked up until October this year.
This month I thought I'd look at events happening slightly further afield. And the theme seems to be claim the streets, claim the city with a re-wiring of the social spaces & structures that weave us together.
First up is “The Adam and Ron Show” which features the work of billboard-hijacking, pop surrealist and US legend Ron English and British artist Adam Neate who's subversion of street space has resulted in reports on CNN and European television, major collectors and celebrities fighting for his originals and international critics praising the artist's work. Over the past five years Adam Neate has left thousands of pieces of work on the streets of London, either hanging on nails or propped against lampposts for people to find. His two and three dimensional paintings use recycled cardboard boxes as canvases - Neate is a street artist with a difference. His work is technically expert and has won him acknowledgement from Tate, National Portrait Gallery and The National Gallery.
Ron English has pirated over one thousand billboards in the last twenty years, replacing existing advertisements with his own hand-painted "subvertisements." He revels in taking on the establishment, tearing down corporate icons, and unravelling social constructs. His works on canvas contain an equally biting commentary whilst being flawlessly painted in a hyper-real style.
Take the opportunity to see this astonishing work if you can.
May 2nd - 31st at Elms Lesters Painting Rooms,
Tuesday - Saturday 12 - 6pm, Thursdays 'til 9pm
www.elmslesters.co.uk
The second event on the radar is futuresonic in Manchester. This is an “Urban Festival of Art, Music & Ideas” titled “The Social - Social Networking Unplugged”. An annual event currently in its 12th year, futuresonic is extending the focus on presenting artworks in unexpected city spaces, and on social art and social technologies. The 2008 theme presents a sideways and playful look at social networking. This is the first major art exhibition to present a comprehensive and creative look at social networking. For five days and nights Manchester will be the most sociable city on the planet - with new commissioned artworks and many world firsts from an array of international artists Manchester city centre will be overrun with ‘unplugged’ social networking.
So what's the thinking behind this project? In their words: “Computers have become social interfaces to build online communities and folksonomies. Some technologies are more social than others. Social technologies are bottom up and many-to-many instead of one-to-one or one-to-many. They can include technologies created and maintained by social networks, such as communities of developers and users working collaboratively with open source tools. At the same time we see how electronic communication can isolate us, as more and more people drown in a deluge of email that generates stress, even reducing IQ. Additionally, 'online communities' are based upon an artificial equivalence between 'users' which obscures power relationships and issues of ownership.The festival and conference will explore the new social spaces and the social implications of technologies for the many different kinds of people who make, use and are affected by them.”
“This runs much deeper than online social networking websites alone. When you use your credit card, you are using a social technology. Each time we buy something we let the company know where we are and what we are buying. An electronic profile is created for each one of us and the aggregated information is used to shape services and select the products on the shelves. This in turn shapes the choices available to us, and the society we live in. Futuresonic plans to pull out the plug in order to take the new social spaces apart, see how they work, and put them together in new ways.”
1-5 May, exhibitions till 17th May.
Exhibitions are free
www.futuresonic.com
Street Blitz is a 2 week festival of street art and creative subversion. The motivation for this festival is, in their words, the “corporate image factory” which “spends a huge amount of money on billboards, flyers or ‘guerrilla’ marketing campaigns masquerading as street art. They fill your lives with an unrelenting barrage of preposterous ideals, numb values and false icons. No one asks for your permission before they push these images in your face so neither should we seek consent in order to leave our own mark on the city.” And it's action that counts as they propose a 2 week blitz of street art in London between 1st-15th May. “Whether you make murals, stencils, stickers, posters, sculptures, street projections, sign modification/removal/additions, billboard subverting/defacing/destruction etc; whether creative or destructive; whether to convey a message, brighten up a dull spot, rewire some corporate brainwashing tactics; whether to leave your mark, remove a stain, express yourself or simply to show your disgust – it’s all valid and all adds to The Blitz!” So if that sounds like your thing nip done and get involved. www.streetblitz.com
And also for your consideration are the following events, Blek Le Rat's solo show at the Black Rat Press gallery in London, May 8th -22nd. Blek Le Rat is one of the pioneers of street art and has been weilding his stencil styles since 1981, a visionary artist and well worth a look. www.blackratpress.co.uk and Noisefestival which is the UK's first cross-media showcase for artists under 25, there are loads of opportunities to present your work, check their website www.noisefestival.com and see just how big this project is.
Luke Payn
lukepayn@hotmail.com
www.myspace.com/muddyarts
First published in Art & Soul Magazine in May 2008
Lauren Shields exhibition review / interview
Lauren Shields
Lauren Shields recent exhibition at The Glass Onion saw a fantastic response from visitors.
The work was part of the Exhibit:U project initiated by Gary Law last year.
Her work is bold, simple and fresh. Spacious in colour and composition yet the subject is always shown directly. Whether it is a grimy image showing modern life behind the curtains, or a simple and timeless image of flowers, there is nothing in the image that is unnecessary.
The work was very well presented and had an overall sense of harmony. The images moved from detailed shots of plugs, piled up ready for recycling, to the disused detail of a fire engine, also awaiting recycling and beautifully segued into a inspiring image of a dilapidated brick wall with a beautiful vista of a dreamlike landscape; lush greens married to an eternal blue sky. This was one of the most popular images in the show, people couldn't wait to get a copy of it!
There were also enigmatic shots of a Mansion in France and rural pathways in the countryside outside of Bolton. Both these images were wonderful exercises in the art of composition and had an elusive nature about them, they could have been taken anywhere.
Lauren is a young photographer who I am sure will go far. An industrious and conscientious 17 year old Lauren is studying at Peterborough Regional College doing Photography and Art 'A' Levels (A2) and a City & Guilds in Photography and is hoping to start a degree in September.
Lauren's Father died when she was just 7 years old. He was a graphic designer by trade but also was a keen artist and photographer and she grew up with his paintings and pictures around her. It was this work of her father that started her love affair with imagery and image making.
When she was very young she walked around with disposable cameras and simple roll-film cameras taking pictures of whatever was around. Nowadays she uses either a Nikon D50 (with either a standard lens or a Macro 105mm) or a Nikon F80d film camera. When using film Lauren's preferred make is Ilford's Pan-F ISO 50. A black & white fine-grain film that compliments the crisp composition of her pictures. All the pictures in show were taken on the D50, digital images with very little work in Photoshop. Lauren loves working in the darkroom and uses Photoshop as she would use the darkroom.
What I liked most about the work on show was that she doesn't over intellectualise the image. She does a lot of her work un-planned, relying on her intuition. She uses her subtlety and a lightness of touch to respond to her surroundings, taking the image on the “spur of the moment”. Laurens focus is on the composition. When I ask her why she loves photography so much she tells me it is because
strong images can talk to all of us, Lauren flips through her notebook to find a favourite quote of hers that illustrates this sentiment better, aha here it is she smiles; “good photography should transcend the barriers of language and nationality”.
Lauren became known for her photography when she started taking pictures of local bands, some of them being published in this magazine, but at the moment she is finding the work on her personal projects more rewarding. I asked her what she would like to be doing in the future, serenely and modestly she replies that she would like to have more exhibitions and more of her work published, perhaps owning a coffee shop with her photographs and jewellery etc. for sale, ..............she quite gracefully says she's not really sure, she'll use her intuition and “go with the flow.”
by Luke Payn
First published in Art & Soul Magazine in May 2008
Lauren Shields recent exhibition at The Glass Onion saw a fantastic response from visitors.
The work was part of the Exhibit:U project initiated by Gary Law last year.
Her work is bold, simple and fresh. Spacious in colour and composition yet the subject is always shown directly. Whether it is a grimy image showing modern life behind the curtains, or a simple and timeless image of flowers, there is nothing in the image that is unnecessary.
The work was very well presented and had an overall sense of harmony. The images moved from detailed shots of plugs, piled up ready for recycling, to the disused detail of a fire engine, also awaiting recycling and beautifully segued into a inspiring image of a dilapidated brick wall with a beautiful vista of a dreamlike landscape; lush greens married to an eternal blue sky. This was one of the most popular images in the show, people couldn't wait to get a copy of it!
There were also enigmatic shots of a Mansion in France and rural pathways in the countryside outside of Bolton. Both these images were wonderful exercises in the art of composition and had an elusive nature about them, they could have been taken anywhere.
Lauren is a young photographer who I am sure will go far. An industrious and conscientious 17 year old Lauren is studying at Peterborough Regional College doing Photography and Art 'A' Levels (A2) and a City & Guilds in Photography and is hoping to start a degree in September.
Lauren's Father died when she was just 7 years old. He was a graphic designer by trade but also was a keen artist and photographer and she grew up with his paintings and pictures around her. It was this work of her father that started her love affair with imagery and image making.
When she was very young she walked around with disposable cameras and simple roll-film cameras taking pictures of whatever was around. Nowadays she uses either a Nikon D50 (with either a standard lens or a Macro 105mm) or a Nikon F80d film camera. When using film Lauren's preferred make is Ilford's Pan-F ISO 50. A black & white fine-grain film that compliments the crisp composition of her pictures. All the pictures in show were taken on the D50, digital images with very little work in Photoshop. Lauren loves working in the darkroom and uses Photoshop as she would use the darkroom.
What I liked most about the work on show was that she doesn't over intellectualise the image. She does a lot of her work un-planned, relying on her intuition. She uses her subtlety and a lightness of touch to respond to her surroundings, taking the image on the “spur of the moment”. Laurens focus is on the composition. When I ask her why she loves photography so much she tells me it is because
strong images can talk to all of us, Lauren flips through her notebook to find a favourite quote of hers that illustrates this sentiment better, aha here it is she smiles; “good photography should transcend the barriers of language and nationality”.
Lauren became known for her photography when she started taking pictures of local bands, some of them being published in this magazine, but at the moment she is finding the work on her personal projects more rewarding. I asked her what she would like to be doing in the future, serenely and modestly she replies that she would like to have more exhibitions and more of her work published, perhaps owning a coffee shop with her photographs and jewellery etc. for sale, ..............she quite gracefully says she's not really sure, she'll use her intuition and “go with the flow.”
by Luke Payn
First published in Art & Soul Magazine in May 2008
Ana Maria Pacheco: Prints
UNKNOWN LAND
Ana Maria Pacheco: Prints
Space4 Gallery
March 22nd to April 20th
www.anamariapacheco.co.uk
Ana was born in the centre of Brazil, and at 65 years of age she is still as active and prolific as ever before. Primarily a sculptress she got involved with printmaking whilst studying at the Slade School of Art. She was recently the Associate Artist at the National Gallery (1997 - 2000) - the first non-European and sculptor to hold the appointment. Since 1973 Ana has lived and worked in England.
The exhibition at Space4 concentrates on her printed work and displays four of Pacheco's printing techniques (etching, multi-plate colour etching, woodcut and drypoint) by bringing together five sets of her prints:
Rehearsal 1-10 (etching, 1989),
Gargantua and Pantagruel I-X (woodcut, 1994),
Terra Ignota 1-10 (drypoint, 1994),
Lux Aeterna I & II (drypoint, 1995)
Tales of Transformation I-V (multi-plate colour etching, 1998).
In each series Pacheco has concentrated on a specific historic fable or social tradition to produce dramatic, highly charged images that illustrate the fine line between human comedy and tragedy.
It is clear as you look at the first selection of prints, “Rehearsal 1-10”, that Ana is interested in the world of theatre and story telling. In the first room there are two sets of prints on either side of you, each a series of five images. These prints are of heads, closely and tightly cropped, dark and black, with small touches of a striking mute red. The faces have life and character, and they are doing something, or have a hold of something, though you cannot be sure what.
In the next room are a selection of woodcuts from the “Gargantua and Pantagruel I-X” series. These are based on the stories of Rabelais and feature flying pigs, giants, men urinating and other scenes loosely associated with his medieval naratives. They are simplistic images with a lightness of touch.
“Tales of Transformation I-V” are produced through multi-plate colour etching and relate to scenes from Ovid's 'Metamorphoses'. With prints of Orpheus singing to Persephone, Circe and the men she transformed to pigs they display a further example of Ana's love for storytelling. Talking about the use of myths in her work she says, “it's not that I'm interested in myths in a direct way. If you investigate them they reflect patterns of behaviour that actually haven't changed that much.................we always hope we can change although this doesn't happen that often.” These prints have an almost illustrative quality as though from a childs fairytale book. The colours are bold and the overall effect is captivating.
Moving into the cental part of the gallery we see “Terra Ignota 1-10”. Ten prints made using the dry-point technique. These show a series of images with ships in dry-dock. Her theme of journey's, travel & transformation taking a twist, the people here are in a vessel that is going nowhere. These show groups of people in boats raised from the ground with stilts (one bizarrely supported by a Rhinoceros). These images are inspired by the work of D.H.Lawrence, from his poem 'The Ship of Death'. The title translates as 'unknown land' and continues her exploaration of ideas to do with the underworld, the lands after life, and the body as a vessel for the soul and the transformation of body and spirit. I enjoyed these images very much, they strike an unsettling resonance, desperate hope with abject futility.
Also in this room are two prints from her Lux Aeterna I & IV series. The title comes from a Requiem Mass and translates as 'eternal light'. When looking through some magazines Ana saw a photograph of a conflict in the Middle East which showed a crowd of civilians huddling under the dominance of a helicopter, on seeing this she was instantly reminded of another photograph she had seen, one taken in 19th Century Brazil. The similarity of these two scenarios was, she felt, something worth investigating in her prints. The prints show fearful faces cowering, one from a helicopter and in the other there is a female Griffin and what appears to be a burning ship. The faces could be of any race, they are human, but it is hard to make out any other distinction. Asked if there is a political message behind Lux Aeterna she says “ I think it would be naïve to think you can make any work that doesn't have a social connotation – I am not talking about politics or politicians, I am talking about a human condition: humankind as political beings. You live in a society and your interaction with others is a political statement. So in that sense my work has political implications because it is a part of what we are as humans.” To me these prints show the connection that these myths, stories and poems have to real life, the eternal inspiration behind the recurring stories of humankind. On the subject of this connection Ana says “I am fascinated by the manic reality of everyday life and also between the divide between drama and melodrama. What do I mean? Something, I think, about the mis-match of realities of expectations in everyday life. Obviously this has a lot to do with the values of my own culture; nevertheless, the cultural references come to me in a very fragmented way.”
Ana Maria Pacheco is an artist of extraordinary diversity. Her work draws on a wide variety of cultural references that include Brazilian folklore, classical myth, mystical Catholicism and medieval satire. Pacheco uses her source material to create works that play with the art of storytelling. She has developed a particular use of symbols, motifs and devices that combine to produce a distinctive and fantastic imagery.
Seeing work like this gets to the very root of art. Images that inspire, lead you into them, tell stories and take you on journey's. With themes that are present in the first stories & poems of man, settings that relate to today's situations and set somewhere on the psychic borderland.
A very good show, I only wish there were more! I am glad that I have had the chance to be introduced to Ana's work. She has a wonderful style, confident and natural with very much her own idiosyncratic vocabulary. I will certainly look out for more of her artwork, hopefully next time I will be able to see some of her sculptures.
By Luke Payn
First published in Art & Soul Magazine in May 2008
MUDDY ARTS: FESTIVAL UPDATE April 2008
MUDDY ARTS: FESTIVAL UPDATE
The dates are set for the festival, the palms have been chalked, a deep gulp of air and we're off, it's the hundred metre sprint to the opening of the GrassRoots Festival of Music & Art 2008. The first few décor meetings have been held and plans are underway for transforming a flat and unadorned patch of land into a magical fantastical wonderland for three whole days. We have six months to create the décor for the site; flags, sculptures, banners and stage design. The theme, loosely, is the five elements. Each area will be based on one of the elements. Roughly the areas are dance, acoustic, main stage, chillout, art/cabaret & healing. We don't have much time to make the stuff and we don't have much of a budget for it either, but there is plenty of enthusiasm and inspiration for the project. There are ideas for making small forested areas, spiral pathways from flags, columns of light, video cubes, large sculptures, sensory garden and much more besides. All artists are invited to join in with this project, if you would like to paint large banners, make a large sculpture or installation, design the flags, decorate the insides of the tents or anything else then please don't hesitate to come and get involved. We are also building a large gallery for the site so if you would like to show your work then please get in touch. Or if you would like to run a workshop, a stall or do something in the kids tent then contact us. You can chat with the artists involved on the muddy forum, go to www.muddy.org.uk, and head to the forum. We have set up a new set of threads for this years festival so please visit them as they are a very useful resource for this type of project.
There will be regular décor meetings at the Glass Onion, currently every Wednesday
at 7pm. When the art studio is ready we will move into there and get on with painting banners and making décor items. However, if anyone has any large space available for Muddy Arts to use please contact us. We need a large enough space for working with very large pieces of wood, and using power tools, and preferably where the work can be left in-between sessions. The Onion doesn't have the space for this kind of work and it is vital to the festival that we can get on with this as soon as possible. A large yard or garage would be great. So don't be shy, all help is appreciated, and it's a great way of meeting other artists and being involved in something really special.
More newts next month folks,
big love to the Muddy Arts team,
Luke Payn
lukepayn@hotmail.com
www.myspace.com/muddyarts
The dates are set for the festival, the palms have been chalked, a deep gulp of air and we're off, it's the hundred metre sprint to the opening of the GrassRoots Festival of Music & Art 2008. The first few décor meetings have been held and plans are underway for transforming a flat and unadorned patch of land into a magical fantastical wonderland for three whole days. We have six months to create the décor for the site; flags, sculptures, banners and stage design. The theme, loosely, is the five elements. Each area will be based on one of the elements. Roughly the areas are dance, acoustic, main stage, chillout, art/cabaret & healing. We don't have much time to make the stuff and we don't have much of a budget for it either, but there is plenty of enthusiasm and inspiration for the project. There are ideas for making small forested areas, spiral pathways from flags, columns of light, video cubes, large sculptures, sensory garden and much more besides. All artists are invited to join in with this project, if you would like to paint large banners, make a large sculpture or installation, design the flags, decorate the insides of the tents or anything else then please don't hesitate to come and get involved. We are also building a large gallery for the site so if you would like to show your work then please get in touch. Or if you would like to run a workshop, a stall or do something in the kids tent then contact us. You can chat with the artists involved on the muddy forum, go to www.muddy.org.uk, and head to the forum. We have set up a new set of threads for this years festival so please visit them as they are a very useful resource for this type of project.
There will be regular décor meetings at the Glass Onion, currently every Wednesday
at 7pm. When the art studio is ready we will move into there and get on with painting banners and making décor items. However, if anyone has any large space available for Muddy Arts to use please contact us. We need a large enough space for working with very large pieces of wood, and using power tools, and preferably where the work can be left in-between sessions. The Onion doesn't have the space for this kind of work and it is vital to the festival that we can get on with this as soon as possible. A large yard or garage would be great. So don't be shy, all help is appreciated, and it's a great way of meeting other artists and being involved in something really special.
More newts next month folks,
big love to the Muddy Arts team,
Luke Payn
lukepayn@hotmail.com
www.myspace.com/muddyarts
Thursday, 22 January 2009
Muddy Arts Collective at Space4
Muddy Arts: Collective
On December 1st last year the Muddy Arts Collective opened the doors on our first major exhibition. More than twenty artists filled the walls of Space4 with over 200 works of art, 1500 photographs, two pieces of video art, and one massive group produced installation. Not bad for a first show. With over 4500 visitors to the show over the two months of December and January it was one of the Space4's biggest shows for the time of year.
For the theme of the show we took the idea of 'collective'. It was a chance to look at ourselves and to think about how the collective was formed and the relationships that structure it. It was very interesting to see that there is not a simple structure, it is a quite complex and interwoven community with no easy chronology. Beautifully awkward in fact.
The feedback we have had from visitors to the show has been fantastic with the two most talked about parts of the show being the installation piece and the slide show of 2000 photographs. These photographs date from summer 2005 reminding us of the very early days of the Glass Onion right the way through to a week or so before the exhibition opened. The 2000 strong slide show projected images taken by many photographers, but the bulk of the images were taken, naturally, by Mike Hat ( cheers Mike! ) These photographs were a chance to celebrate the many thousands of beautiful and precious moments we have all shared since the decision to put on GrassRoots Festival and the birth of Muddy Promotions. Looking back to the the glorious days of the festival was a wonderful experience, the projected photographs were at an amazing size of 4 metres wide by 3 metres high, making the views of the sun-setting behind the main stage as your friends are captured frozen in time spinning, stomping and blissed out to the music, or the geo-dome going up at midnight on Friday, all the more entrancing. These giant photographs hooked us in as we sat in the back room of the gallery and stared at the illuminated wall. The colours, the smiles, the silly faces, and the incredible views absorbing us and reminding us of how many people have made all this happen. Knowing you would have to sit there for nearly two hours to see all 2000 of them only served to heighten the experience.
The installation as an idea was tugged and pulled, sketched and re-sketched, bounced around and slowly, slowly pulled out of the collective psyche. Photographs were taken upstairs in the art studio of The Glass Onion throughout September and November, this was great fun and allowed the project to involve more people in the creative
process, increasing the element of collaboration. The photographs were then printed using an A0 banner printer, taken to the gallery, trimmed and pasted to the wall. This process was undertaken by at least ten artists working long hours and late nights throughout November. It was a really great sight to see both studios at the Onion so busy for so long and for so much creative interaction taking place by dedicated individuals.
Both these pieces, the installation and the slideshow, reveal the essence of the collective. Both in execution and in the finished result you can clearly see the hands and souls of many wildly individual artists pouring their creative energies into the melting pot.
The work on show displayed a wide range of mediums & styles, from traditional painting styles and subjects to futuristic 3D computer modelling & graphics, photography & mixed media. The quality of work was very high and the overall effect walking around the gallery was impressive and professional. There was a lot of work on show, yet the walls did not feel cluttered but spacious and fresh. Many of the artists had not exhibited their work before, hopefully there will be many more opportunities in the future.
If you would like to become involved with the Muddy Arts Collective then please contact me below, or pop into the Glass Onion, we are very open and are looking for more artists to come and get muddy!!!
to view a 360° panoramic photograph of the installation visit
http://www.chopperchoons.com/art.htm
Luke Payn
My Articles in Art and Soul Magazine
Over the past year I have been dabbling in the worlds of journalism, of course as Scroobius Pip says,
just 'cos you got a blog, don't make you a journalist, fair play. I was asked to supply a local magazine, called "Art & Soul", with arts editorial. This was in February 2008. There was little in the way of arts content going into the magazine at the time. (the music scene in Peterborough is far in advance of the visual art scene) This request caught me completely by surprise, but I was excited by the idea, gave it a go and absolutely loved it.
Art; it's histories, theories, practice, the opinions, the science, the social commentary and political potentials, and it's philosophy have been a passion of mine for a very long time. The idea of writing for a local magazine, voluntarily, which had a print run of 5000 each month, fitted in nicely with all my other projects, my passions and my previous experience's. I have studied Film, Photography and English, I have studied TV & Film Production and Art & Art History, I have had work exhibited in London & Manchester and done loads and loads of live work with my mates in raves, bars, clubs etc,providing banners, projections and VJ'ing etc. I was also, (and still am) working with a local Art Collective, called Muddy Arts, who were doing big group shows and art projects, including running own own bar/cafe and putting on big events including a festival (Grassroots festival, http://www.thegrassrootsfestival.co.uk/)
So the chance to write about art and artists, to meet new artists, to document the art scene in Peterborough was like manna from heaven. have been doing it for one year, with a break just recently over Christmas and New Year, and in that time of reflection I felt I should probably make my articles available online in one place. So here it is for you. Over the next few weeks I will upload my work from the previous year and then start to add new material as the 2009 unfurls itself from it's coil of infinity into the finite crosshairs of future and past.
Have Fun, and please feel free to ask questions or leave comments. I want to develop my work so any dialogue that can help me to evolve my technique is always received with the good grace of a Kendo student.
Much Love,
Luke Payn
Burghley Road Studios
January 2009
just 'cos you got a blog, don't make you a journalist, fair play. I was asked to supply a local magazine, called "Art & Soul", with arts editorial. This was in February 2008. There was little in the way of arts content going into the magazine at the time. (the music scene in Peterborough is far in advance of the visual art scene) This request caught me completely by surprise, but I was excited by the idea, gave it a go and absolutely loved it.
Art; it's histories, theories, practice, the opinions, the science, the social commentary and political potentials, and it's philosophy have been a passion of mine for a very long time. The idea of writing for a local magazine, voluntarily, which had a print run of 5000 each month, fitted in nicely with all my other projects, my passions and my previous experience's. I have studied Film, Photography and English, I have studied TV & Film Production and Art & Art History, I have had work exhibited in London & Manchester and done loads and loads of live work with my mates in raves, bars, clubs etc,providing banners, projections and VJ'ing etc. I was also, (and still am) working with a local Art Collective, called Muddy Arts, who were doing big group shows and art projects, including running own own bar/cafe and putting on big events including a festival (Grassroots festival, http://www.thegrassrootsfestival.co.uk/)
So the chance to write about art and artists, to meet new artists, to document the art scene in Peterborough was like manna from heaven. have been doing it for one year, with a break just recently over Christmas and New Year, and in that time of reflection I felt I should probably make my articles available online in one place. So here it is for you. Over the next few weeks I will upload my work from the previous year and then start to add new material as the 2009 unfurls itself from it's coil of infinity into the finite crosshairs of future and past.
Have Fun, and please feel free to ask questions or leave comments. I want to develop my work so any dialogue that can help me to evolve my technique is always received with the good grace of a Kendo student.
Much Love,
Luke Payn
Burghley Road Studios
January 2009
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