Two paintings, inspired by an early morning walk, were finished yesterday. Back in May I took an early trip to the Barbican in Plymouth. The early sky was, an impossibly clear, Klein Blue. The colour was reflected in the waters of the harbour. As usual the harbour water was full of the detritus of a busy fishing port.
In Barbican Detritus II the wake of a boat washes into the harbour and breaks on a roll of fishing net. 50cms x 50cms £300
Barbican Detritus I
Barbican Detritus I, has a super-shiny resin coat which makes photographing it impossible. The shine gives immediate impact but closer inspection shows the texture and detail. It is a macro landscape of a corner of the harbour where rubbish, oil and paint gather.
50cms x 40cms £300
South London Women Artists put on their summer show at Brixton East last week.
This video installation looked amazing projected on the wall next to the three prints of Waterloo Bridge that accompanied it. The text projected is the actual writing of some of the women who were welders on the bridge.
Valerie, a London based Scot, feels that bridges signify her place in London. It’s hanging very happily in theoldmortuary now .
The success of this exhibition is not only the work of women. Celestine, a man of infinite patience, hung every piece of art. The building, Brixton East, is also pretty special.
Yesterday was my first chance to see the completed ‘My Place’ exhibition at Brixton East. It will be a blog subject all of its own in the next few days.
My Place by Valerie Lambert had to be purchased. Firstly it represents , to me, the defiance of London following the attacks on London Bridge and Borough Market. Secondly it combines Fine Art with text which is my current obsession. Thirdly it’s a political watercolour. Red Dot in the corner please.
This is my main piece of art for the exhibition. It doesn’t take a genius to see that this is not an Elephant . It is quite obviously a door. What this also is, is Contemporary art comedy gold. Sections of the media and comedians love to laugh and scoff at the futility or silliness of Contemporary Art . They report and snigger at Mark Quinn’s Self Portrait ( A sculptured head formed from silicone and ten litres of his own blood, frozen) Made funny by a security guard turning off the power that kept it frozen. Tracy Emins bed, tidied up by an over zealous cleaner, and a recent installation , I don’t know the name of the artist, hoovered up overnight in Liverpool
Brixton East is a fabulous multi-use creative space. Currently South London Women Artists are curating their latest exhibition there.
Now the studio is completely unusable. This will take days to dry and is in the centre of the now tidy floor.
Who knew that printing on old Ordnance Survey maps would prove to be such a compelling activity . This must be about number 6 and I feel like I am getting close to something I would be happy to sell. The journey! has been thwarted by the differing qualities of the paper the maps are made of. They also react to the weather and atmosphere as my studio is in the garden. I hadn’t realised the maps were quite so delicate and as mine are all recycled they have all had very different life experiences with their previous owners .This makes them unpredictable when taking up the print medium.
Inspired by this chap and by an idea I had a week or so ago , I decided to print the VW’s in the colour palate of the original maps so the harmony of the complete image has the same quality as the original untouched maps.
My Place, is an exhibition being held in Brixton in July. The details are below. This door is my contribution to the show. There will also be three smaller works available.
Early June is the perfect time to hunt for contemporary art. Art Schools and Universities showcase the best that their art students have to offer. Usually held over a week or so the Graduation exhibitions are vibrant , eclectic events. Last night I went to Plymouth College of Art and Designs Graduation Showcase, Breaking Through., Plymouth is one of the few remaining independent art schools. It teaches an eye watering number of creative courses and the end of year show reflects the huge diversity of subjects. The standard of these shows is always high . Proud parents, tutors and graduates rub shoulders with interested art lovers and talent scouts from the creative industries. Bargains can also be found and I’ve bought some lovely pieces from Degree shows around the country. One or two pieces have turned out to be a great investment as their creators become well respected and successful as their careers progress.
It’s not every day you see an ECG represented in a painting. I popped along to St Saviours Hall on Lambhay Hill in Plymouth to see a fellow artists work today. A little blast from the past in the hares eye caught my medical imaging eye.
This monoprint has been knocking around in my head for ages. It’s taken a while to pull together the various strains of thought and to find the products that would give me the feel I wanted.
theoldmortuary.design 