Peak District Artisans 5th Annual Great Dome Art Fair Private View

I was invited to the private view of the Peak District Artisans show at the Dome in Buxton on Friday night - 20th July. Over 60 artists were showing their work in the amazing setting of the dome.

On show there was a broad range of creative disciplines: fine art, ceramics, jewellery, photography, textiles, furniture, to contemporary artisans showing stained glass and stone carving. I had the opportunity to speak to some of the artists, Ingrid Karlsson-Kemp, Suzy Shackleton and Catherine Carr. Ingrid  is always very friendly and welcoming. Ingrid has previously done a successful workshop at Leek College for Foundation Degree students last year and hopefully will return in the future. Her stand was very busy with customers and interested viewers. This year she was asked to create the cover illustration for the Buxton Festival programme.

Ingrid Karlsson-Kemps work - www.ingrid-karlsson-kemp.co.uk/

 I also spoke to Suzy Shackelton, felt maker. Her work is very vibrant and looked great. I spoke to her about the possibility of her running a workshop at Leek and she was very keen. Hopefully this will take place in the Autumn term.  Suzy is also part of the prestigious 62 group of textile arrtists.

Suzy Shackeltons work  - www.suzyshackleton.com/

Catherine Carr was a very interesting artist whose work i have seen at many galleries and events previously. She is a glass maker and i have always been curious about her technique so asked her how she did it - the answer ... she knits and crochets with glass! She explained the process which is amazingly complexed and a technique she invented herself whilst studying at Manchester Metropolitan Unviersity on the 3D Crafts course. Inspired by some insulation she found in her loft and discouraged by her tutors who said it would never work she has created this amazing technique of crocheting with glass.

   

Catherine Carrs work - http://www.catherinecarrglass.co.uk/

Peak District Artisans hold regular exhibitions, in some great venues, and its always worth a visit - something for everyone. Look at the website for future events - http://www.peakdistrictproducts.co.uk/

Foundation Degree Graduation Cermony 2012

Congratulations to all our very talented and successful Leek College of FE & School of Art Foundation Degree in Contemporary Art Practice students.  The Awards ceremony took place from 13 July at the Trentham Estate. 

See the photos below of the 2012 Leek College Graduates:

5 of the 7 graduating Foundation Degree students.



 We also saw 3 ex Leek College students graduate from Staffordshire University who had studied on the  BND in Art & Design and Foundation Diploma in Art & Design courses 3 years ago at Leek College. Graduating from BA (hons) Textiles for Surface Pattern; Laura Edwards & Emma Smith. Dan Egginton & Cassie Dimnicki (not pictured) gradutaed from BA (Hons) in Graphic Design and Illustration. It was really great to see 'old' students having achieved their ambition after leaving Leek College and who are now about to enter the art & design world as designers. Huge 'Congratulations' to them.

Great Day!

Tables need numbers in cafe's so I can make sure I get my cappuccino without the chocolate sprinkley bits instead of table 5. Chocolate in your coffee? no thank you very much...anyhow the School of Art at Leek College is very involved with our local art centre (the Foxlowe Arts Centre). We meet there, we eat there, we drink there, we volunteer there and I am the Exhibitions Co-ordinator there. So when asked to look at table numbers I thought I would start at the beginning....ie table 1. Having cut out the number 1 shape on my bandsaw I realised it was a little bit boring, so I whacked out a hole, put a little frame around it and lovingly stuck in a toy I had from my childhood. If you go into the Arts Centre you will find a mish mash of old chairs and tables all of them contain latent histories and memories of a previous life. By using a toy from my childhood I to hope to add to the rich tapestry of life form the past that will sprinkle a little sweetness to the future of the Foxlowe Arts Centre

Hartington British Legion

Interior design challenge -  'British Legion Club', Hartington

Hartington British Legion

One of the many great things about being an Artist/Designer is that you can be asked to get involved in all sorts of different projects and get to meet some really great people. I have been asked to help to redesign the interior of the British Legion in Hartington (beautiful little village in the Peak District). With a 'small-ish' budget and alot of imagination and creative thinking it will, hopefully, be transformed.

The 'before' photos below ('after' photos to come soon - watch this space!):

Bit of history about the legion!! This former drill hall is now the Royal Cavendish British Legion Hall, opposite the Old Vicarage in the village centre. It was originally built by the Duke of Devonshire for the Hartington and Dove Valley section of his Rifle Volunteers. The Hartington Militia were founded in 1875. In 1880, the 21st and 8th Co Dove Valley Militia (founded 1860) were renumbered and they became 2 Volunteer Battalion Sherwood Foresters in 1882. Their rifle range was Target Field in Beresford Dale, from which spent ammunition was recovered within recent years.

The bass drum of the Hartington Volunteers hangs on a bracket high in St Giles Church with its drumsticks attached. According to a local newspaper report, it was bought by a local family in 1940, and given back to the village in recent years. It is a proud and colourful instrument, decorated with a lion and unicorn, mottoes, flags and some of the emblems of countries within the British Isles. The drill hall became the Cavendish Hall before acquiring its present name.

The Royal Academy Summer Show 2012

The world’s largest open submission contemporary art show, now in its 244th year, continues the tradition of showcasing work by both emerging and established artists in all media including painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking, architecture and film.

There were over 11,000 entries received this year and each year more than 100 first-time 'open submission' artists are chosen to show their work in the Summer Exhibition; approximately 1,200 entries are displayed and almost two thirds of those are by non-Academicians.

We visited the gallery on Piccadilly in London on the 1^st of July, it wasn’t too busy and we spent several hours pouring over work. There was a large quantity of smaller work, this demonstrates that work of a more modest scale can be as powerful as larger work. It's great to see Tracey Emin's etchings next to Joe Blogg's. I love this exhibition; it is such an eclectic mix of styles, media and subjects. My grandfather exhibited here a few times in his life and though he died long before I was born I can’t help but imagine him wandering through the rooms looking for his painting over 80 years ago.

What Celia Saw........

What Celia Saw........

10th June 2012

On yet another trip to Chatsworth House, a walk around the gardens revealed the work of Sir Anthony Caro. Large scale sculptures from the last 30 yrs were placed around the fountain lake with tantilising glimpes of steel through emaculately clipped hedges.
The juxtoposition of the hard lines and rusting metals softened against the flowing landscape of the surrounding hills and natural forms of trees, allowing the visitor time to look and be apart of these conflicting structures, giving rise to passing comments about what art is and whether this type of work has relevance to the wider general public outside of the regular exhibition space.

Yes this was a sunny day

12th  July

Foxlowe Arts Centre Leek a new exhibition of landscape art has just opened, artists Judith Donaghy, Darren Stevenson  and Ivan Taylor are exhibiting under the heading of Land and Sea. The work is a mixture of oils and watercolours as each artist reveals their own perceptions of the landscape.
There is something for everyone here from abstract forms and moody skys to traditional scenes in earthy tones.
Go and check this out- open til beginning of August see ST13 for further details and up and coming events.

Judith Donaghy

Tate Modern: Edvard Munch

Friday 29th June A visit to the Tate Museum to see the Munch exhibtion that started yesterday and is on until 24th October.

  
 www.tate.org.uk

This is a quote from the website -

"Few other modern artists are better known and yet less understood than Norwegian painter Edvard Munch (1863–1944). This exhibition examines the artist’s work from the 20th century, including sixty paintings, many from the Munch Museum in Oslo, with a rare showing of his work in film and photography."

As this is work from the Museum in Oslo you won't see his most recognisable work - The Scream, but it is worth going to, although it can be a bit heavy if you find the themes he chose disturbing!

Laura Cumming in The Observer on Sunday 1 July 2012

made some good points about it... www.guardian.co.uk 

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Made in the Middle: Contemporary craft across the Midlands

Lauren Van Helmond

Made in the Middle

Shire Hall Gallery, Stafford 

15 September 2012 - 27 October 2012

The seventh in its series, Made in the Middle is the Midland’s principal selling exhibition and takes place

every three years. For the first time in its history- ‘East meets West’ as makers based in or affiliated to the East Midlands will contribute to the exhibition alongside their West Midlands counterparts. This exhibition series promotes the best of recent craft from makers of all disciplines.

27 makers have been especially selected by a panel of curators and craft sector specialists. The makers offer an insight into the skill, creativity and innovative practice within the region. The range

of disciplines include ceramics, glass, metalwork, jewellery, textiles, wood work and mixed media from recent graduates to makers with over 30 years experience.

Selected exhibitors include Jennifer Collier, Amy Twigger Holroyd, Jannette Matthews, James and Tilla Waters, Anna Collette Hunt, Kevin Grey and Imogen Luddy. ‘Pathways to craft’ careers represented include apprenticeships, traditional university routes and evening courses and provide inspiration for people looking to change career path. Made in the Middle is a partnership between Craftspace and mac birmingham in collaboration with The National Centre for Craft & Design.

Jennifer Collier: To see more of Jennifers work or find out information about 'Unit Twelve', Jennifers gallery in Tixall, Stafford  follow link below
www.unittwelve.co.uk/

Apprenticeships in the Making worked with young people who are not in education, employment or training, to discover and challenge their perceptions of craft and to introduce them to potential pathways within the sector. Apprenticeships in the Making, was an action research project, produced in partnership between Craftspace and mac birmingham, as part of the touring exhibition, Made in the Middle: Contemporary craft across the Midlands, which will tour to venues nationally from February 2012. For further information, please visit craftspace