Norwich and London Exhibitions and Self Promotion

The exhibition opening in Norwich for the Assembly House Art Show 2011, Flying Colours: Fascinating Forms went really well and is open until 31/8/11, attracting over 200 people a day!

Follow this link for more information on the show and events that are on at the Assembly House during this time.

The Eastern Daily Press commented : "The Georgian gem in the heart of Norwich is suddenly reborn as a major gallery via an event which aims to be the region’s answer to the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition." 4/8/11


I was really excited by this comment and have been receiving some positive feedback from family, friends and fellow students who have been to see the show. The venue itself is beautiful and exceedingly well kept, with huge Ballrooms, a Bar, amazing chandeliers, a lovely garden area and a sweet little cafe with a range of devilish cakes and treats to choose from!

Click the picture bellow of the article and zoom in to read the Eastern Daily Press Review...

The Upcoming British Talent Exhibition at The Future Gallery in London opened on 4th Aug, which was a collection of contemporary art from new graduates and upcoming artists from within the UK. It had a totally different feel to it than the swanky and sophisticated Assembly House, it was smaller and less grand but more intimate with a fresh, cool vibe to go with it. The venue was a very long space with funky tunes,  large wall space, excellent lighting, a projector at one end showing images of the building, and a Courvoisier Bar at the other. You can hopefully manage to ignore my awful camera work but manage to pick up the feel of the place by this short video bellow from the opening night!

Here are some images from the opening night, the venue and how my work was displayed.

The exhibition was supposed to last until 10th Aug but got extended until 16th which was brilliant news as it provided more time for more people to visit. I have heard some good feedback about the exhibition including a lot of footfall so being able to get my work seen by so many people int the heart of London.

I was really happy as this was a great opportunity the exhibition provided me with and wish to aim for more of these kind of events in the future.

To try and expand my audience I have recently finished designing a 12 page, self promotional booklet which I just uploaded to the printers last night. I am now waiting for my proof to arrive and then go ahead with the print if everything is alright with that. I am hoping to use the booklet as a mini folio. As my work is of large scale it is difficult to transport so I plan to hand this out/send to galleries so they can see my work, have an introduction to me as a person and an insight in to what my work is all about, and (fingers crossed!) get back to me and hopefully want to display my work, which is one of my next aims.

Ehibition Entries: A Quick Update

Have been so busy recently taking pieces here, there and everywhere; getting things framed and taking to exhibitions etc! Will give a full update soon, I just wanted to quickly update with a couple of shows I have managed to get myself in to! Was at the opening of the Assembly House Art Show 2011: Flying Colours, Fascinating Forms in Norwich on 1st Aug. Was a lovely evening in a beautiful, sophisticated setting. I have one piece in this show of contemporary art by a range of artists from in and around the Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire area. The show is open until the end of the month and is free admission. Well worth a look if you are in or around the Norwich area.

For more information in the exhibition opening times and what other activities are available at the Assembly House please follow this link.

After arriving back in Cambridge last night I then had to collect my remaining two pieces from the framers this afternoon. I had 3 works already framed but had to get another two framed as I am lucky enough to have been chosen to showcase 5 pieces of my work at The Future Gallery, situated on Great Newport Street, between Charing Cross Road and St Martins Lane and within 50 metres of Leicester Square tube station! I can't believe the prime location of this funky and fresh space and am really excited about the showcase opening tomorrow night! The show is on for one week with the private view tomorrow night (which is open invite as far as I am led to believe so come one come all!)!

Will update the blog with all the details when I have a chance but at the moment it's all incredibly exciting!!!

Summer, Framing, Competitions and a Constant Attempt to Expand my Audience

During the summer break from my course the blog has seemed to take a back seat unfortunately! However, this doesn't mean I've not been working away, even if I've not been in the studio for a while!

Before we broke off for summer I continued to print the long thin plate I recently posted photos of. I started to add colour through using watercolour to add a range of colours to lift the design and give it a new, vibrant look.

I then experimented by using coloured chine-colle pieces and masking areas in the print to try to show the multitude of layers in the print to the audience.

I like the effect this technique had but feel I could pull it off better. The first print, hand-coloured with watercolour paint works much better on an aesthetic level I think. The photos bellow show both prints side by side.

Due to the successful outcome of the long plate printed along with the use of watercolours I have now entered this to be selected for submissions to Bite: Artists Making Prints 2011 exhibition at The Mall Galleries, London.

Another piece I experimented on with with watercolours was my irregular shaped plate. With a very subtle use of yellow, blue and pink tones I gave the piece a fresh, summertime look about it. The piece has subsequently been named Growth and Process (Bubblegum) due to the colours used.

To enter this competition artists could choose up to 6 works to submit, with a maximum of 3 works to be selected. All work had to be framed as a requirement for it to be submitted. Due to the large size of my work it was costly for me to get it framed, but I suppose this will stand me in good stead for the future of the work doesn't get selected as I can now enter it to many competitions and will have it ready. I am now looking at my work from a more commercial point of view and attempting to expand as an artist. I intend to do this by entering my work in to as many competitions as possible and am currently designing an 8 page booklet which I can hopefully use as a sort of mini-portfolio. When the booklet is printed I plan to had it out to galleries etc in the hope to gain a wider audience through possible exhibitions.

I recently got some business cards printed which has spurred me on and given me a boost to continue this new self promotional idea and see where it takes me...

The website I got the business cards printed was very good value for money, extremely easy to use and I was very pleased with the outcome. If you are looking to get business cards printed quickly and easily, using your own images then I would strongly recommend a visit to uk.moo.com. Photographs bellow show both sides of the cards. The website provides you with the option to have a range of different designs across your collection of business cards to make them that little bit more interesting.

Due to delivering the framed pieces to London it provided me with the opportunity to drop in on some exhibitions. I saw the work of students between Year 11 and Year 13 (Which I think is between the ages of 15 and 18) at the Mall Galleries. Some of the work was incredible and some of the pupils' work displayed shows they have a bright future ahead of them, I was very impressed. The show was also interesting as you could see how different young peoples' attitudes are towards art rather than someone who has a lot of experience in this field. Most of them are trying to express exactly how they feel or see things through the use of art, rather than bubble wrapping their work in jargon and unrelated concepts and thoughts they were simply showing things as they saw them, nothing else.

I also visited the Summer Exhibition 2011 at the Royal Academy which was really good as this was an exhibition I really wanted to see. The collection of art being shown is made up of contemporary work from established and up and coming artists. It includes drawings, paintings, prints, photography, architecture, sculpture and more.When you enter you are given a book of prices of the work on display which is useful as it can give you a general idea of pricing and how you should start thinking about pricing your own work, which is something I find quite difficult. The show is on until 15th August and I would recommend it to any emerging artist to gain inspiration and ideas.


A piece that stood out for me was the war memorial which currently stands outside of the Royal Academy, with the smaller prototype included inside the exhibition space. I am not entirely sure who created this but I found it to be a highly emotional piece, managing to capture the soldier's feelings and communicate them to the viewer with just one glance at the statue.

Another piece I enjoyed in the courtyard was one by Jeff Koons. The piece was called 'Colouring Book' and played with the viewers perception and impression of reality leaving the viewer wandering what was real, what bits were cut put, what was reflecting behind you and what was actually in front of you! I found it colourful and fun; it fitted the spot and the general image of the show to incoming visitors perfectly.

It seems that, at the moment, my art is taking me all over the place, tomorrow I find out if any of my prints have been accepted to the Bite exhibition at Mall Galleries and on Friday I have to deliver my work to Norwich for the Assembly House Arts Show 2011! Its quite exciting, I'll keep you posted on how it all turns out!

If at First You Don't Succeed...

After my last attempt to print my new plate and messing it up I was determined to achieve the results I desired in the studio today! After an early shift at work I headed for uni armed with cardboard boxes that had contained the delivery. When I got to uni I made up a couple of folders from the boxes to contain my work to be handed in for assessment.

Once I had gathered my work together in the folders I was eager for a successful session of printing! I inked my long thin plate for printing, rolled through the press, to no avail! The plate had been over wiped in areas and, again, I wasn't happy with the print. Although my efforts hadn't been completely wasted, at least my plate would be beginning to take the ink and the next print taken was almost guaranteed to be better than the previous attempts.

And... it was! Finally! Bellow is the successful print!

I also had a plan in mind to try when printing this plate, and now I had a basic print of it, so I decided to try it. I inked up the plate and wiped off the excess ink as normal. When the plate was on the press ready to be printed I randomly placed on a selection of different sized rectangles I had cut previously from some tracing paper to mask ares on the plate. I took this idea from an ething I had seen by Chris Olfili called Castell Harlech and can be seen by following this link.

I like the contrast between to flowing lines and the rigid square shapes. Before, the eye followed the lines and swept through the design, where as now, I find, you are not quite sure whether to gaze at the pattern or be attracted to the rectangle shapes with their bright white and wonder why they have been placed in such a way. Quite a different outcome than my previous prints.

Patience & Print Making, Learning Lessons Through Mistakes

Since my last post I have been enjoying the Easter break! I managed to even tickle the creative bones of my housemates! On Easter Sunday, we had some good clean fun; I hard boiled some eggs and we sat out in the lovely sun decorating them with my Posca pens! It was pretty childish but we had a laugh and it proved to be more fun than everyone originally thought! We then went a walk to roll the eggs... neither of them had ever herd of this tradition which struck me as pretty strange! Here are the results and what wee all produced!

Apart from having Easter laughs I also got one of my pieces framed which was actually really exciting! The piece I got framed was the one that is going to be shown in The Assembly House Arts Show 2011, Norwich. When I went to get it framed I was given a choice of different coloured frames and mounts in which to show off the image. As I hadn't had anything professionally framed before it was hard for me to decide but in the end I chose a grey frame with an off-white mount. I think I made the right choice as the frame really does compliment the etching. I now have the piece hanging in my living room but have forced myself to keep the protective cardboard corners on it so as I don't get too used to it having pride of place on the wall as it will have to go to the exhibition in August! I think I will be sad to see it go and will also be left with a big blank space in my lounge!

A group of friends and I also took a little trip through to London where we enjoyed the atmosphere and surroundings of Camden Town in the sun during the day and in the evening we went to see Bonobo, which I have recently been introduced to, at the KoKo Club. The live band played renditions perfectly of the DJ's amazingly chilled out, dreamy tracks. The albums have become a favorite in the print studio, being enjoyed by the majority of the Print Makers at Cambridge School of Art.

I went in to college today for my first day back after the break. I had a long thin plate to etch which I had decided to fill with my pattern (92cm x 11cm). I'm trying to learn how to judge the depth of the bite in the plate but am finding it very difficult to judge. But practice makes perfect and hopefully with experience I'll be able to judge this in time.

The photos above show the bitten plate with the ground still on. This is the stage where you have to decide whether you leave the ground on and return the plate to the ferwick or remove the ground with white spirit and begin to print. If the ground is taken too early and the ferwick has not bitten the plate deeply enough the print taken from the plate will be too faint.

Here are a few photos of the plate with the ground removed and ready to ink up and print.

It always pays to be patient and don't rush at each crucial stage of Print Making, as my unsuccessful results proved to me! I was too eager and impatient and didn't blot the excess water from the paper enough, resulting in the paper ripping and me leaving the studio without managing to pull off a print of my newly etched plate! I was gutted!

So once again I have learned another important lesson from Print Making; Be patient, concentrate and don't rush. It's not all bad though as the piece isn't completely ruined and I can print it again from the same plate, just part of the constant learning curve!

Tate Britain, Up and Coming Exhibitions and Opportunities and Bigger and Bigger Prints!

On 9/3/11 our class had another trip to London, this time we visited the Tate Britain. I had never been to this gallery before and very much enjoyed our visit. In the morning we all gathered in the Print Room and were given a talk about a wide selection of prints from Christine Kurpiel. We saw works from a wide range of artists including Gertrude Hermes, Klaus Meyer, who had constructed an very interesting folio/book illustrating the sounds of music through different layers printed on a range of materials such as acetate and very thin paper; Stanley William Hayter, who had created a multicoloured print by using different layers and viscosities of colours; Peter Doig, who had a folio in the collection specifically gifted to the Tate Modern called Ten etchings from the late 90s, using chine-colle for coloured backgrounds on a range of forest scenes. 

We also were shown the work of Chris Ofili. This was very exciting for me as I had already admired the work of this artist in a book in the library, so seeing it for real was brilliant! He works in quite a similar way to myself, using hard ground for his etchings and repeated shapes, as I do. Although he tries to represent places he has visited through his images, where as mine are more focused on layers and the process used to actually create the pieces. He also uses a small rectangle in the corner of the plate to note where the print represents and the date, whoch he has turned in to a feature in his work.

After our meeting in the Print Room we went for lunch at London School of Arts just across the road, and there was a shop there where I bought a large roll of 200gsm Fabriano paper.

I then continued to explore the Tate Britain for the rest of the day, and still didnt mange to see everything I would have wanted! I visited the Artist's Room of Damient Hirst and saw his famous piece "Away From The Flock" featuring a lamb, mid-leap, in a tank of turquoise liquid. When I herd about this piece and saw pictures I didnt think I liked it, but now I have seen it for real I'm not entirely sure whether I do or don't. I kind of like it how the lamb has been captured mid-leap, although slightly morbid, it seems as though a second in time has been frozen. 

Away From The Flock, Damien Hirst

I saw various works by JMW Turner which was brilliant for me as I could remember studying "Norham Castle, Sunrise" at school in past-paper for my standard grades! I love how his works depict very little but manage to convey a great atmosphere so the viewer feels as though they could be simply looking through a window instead of a frame on to this scene. During my time at college I took great inspiration from this artist and tried to recreate the look of his paintings in some of my own paintings and drawings.

Norham Castle, Sunrise, Circa 1845

Sun Setting Over a Lake Circa 1840

Sun Rise With Sea Monsters Circa 1845

I was absoloutly astounded by the painting of John Singer Sargent: Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose. I was really taken back by the warm glow of light used in this piece with the two little girls who seem to be exploring with paper lanterns on a summer's evening. These were just a few of my highlights from our latest London trip!

As for everything else that was going on, the Interim exhibition is now over and done with. The event went really well with a select few selling their work and interest in others, contact information being swapped and over all, although a learning experience for all involved, a great success! So thanks to everyone who took part and took the time to come along for a nosey.

I have also recently received a very welcome email from the organizers of The Assembly House Arts Show 2011, Flying Colours: Fascinating Forms, inviting me to exhibit one of my pieces! I was over the moon as the location looks brilliant and the prizes up for grabs look very tempting indeed! I'm in with a chance of winning £1000 for Critics Choice, there are also 2 runners up prizes of £500 and wittiest in show also wins £500. The show is in Norwich from August 1st-31st. You can find out more information about the show by following this link.

I have been experimenting with my test plate again with some coloured wrapping paper I got from Paperchase.

I have been trying to sort of fit the shapes from the pre made pattern in to the shapes in the print, along with the use of water colours for a hybrid print. I think it has a kind of retro feel about it, but I am really enjoying the use of colours as it breathes a new life and take on the piece.

On 30/3/11 I managed to pull off my biggest print to date! The piece is around 150cm tall by 60cm wide. I used my large, shaped plates for this one and the paper I bought in London. I used Japanese origami paper for the areas of chine-colle. I am really pleased with this print. The moment of transfer is such an adrenalin rush to me when, at that moment, rolling the print through the press, I know my entire day's work will either be a complete waste of time or a success! During the last stages of making the print my hands started shaking a lot and I could feel my stress levels rising considerably, until the moment of truth when I could look at the print and breathe a sigh of relief as it had been successful! Here are a few snaps of it below.