Sarah Taylor - 'Show & Tell' Staffordshire University Degree show 2013

Sarah Taylor

I had the pleasure today to see Sarah Taylor, ex Leek College Foundation Degree in Contemporary Art Practice student  (who graduated from Leek College in July 2011) at her final degree show at Staffordshire University. Sarah is graduating from the BA (hons) in Surface Pattern with an amazing collection of homeware and wallpaper designs inspired by Japanese Geometrics. Sarahs work is to be taken to New Designers as part of the FLUX collection from Staffordshire University's ceramics department and she has recently been showing her surface pattern designs Chelsea flower show as part of the designers in Stoke on Trents regeneration garden. 

Sarahs statement:

I am a freelance Surface Pattern Designer and recent graduate from Staffordshire University. I love mixing hand drawn and painted images with digital design and combining digital and hand printing to create beautiful interior decor products such as Wallpaper, ceramics, lightshades and fabrics.

Sarahs wonderful work below. Sarahs work is also on http://www.behance.net/Sarah-Taylor

 Chelsea Flower Show - Stoke-on-Trent's Transformation Garden

Sarah....second from left

Sarah Taylor was selected as one of four students who got to showcase their creative skills on the world stage as part of the Chelsea Flower Show.

Stoke-on-Trent entered the Chelsea Flower Show with a stunning Transformation Garden – with the express intention of growing the city’s international reputation as a hothouse for inward investment and enterprise.

Surface pattern students also worked on fabric designs for a display of cushions for the ornamental seating. Academic group leader Sarah Peart said: “We were given mood boards from the City council to work to and the designs took account of the flowers that are in the garden. The gardens are beautiful.”

'The Universal Addressability of Dumb Things' at Nottingham Contemporary

'The Universal Addressability of Dumb Things'

curated by Mark Leckey.

 

I visited the Nottingham Contemporary gallery, for the first time, to see the Universal addressabilty of Dumb things... a very strange and humorous  collection and an amazing space to see art. The exhibition resembles a museum-like collection of objects, yet the objects  are unlikely to be seen alongside each other in any regular museum....a strange and curious collection of wierd and wonderful and artefacts, objects, etc.
My favourite was the mesmerising UV room ... It is a room where you are engulfed by electronic, robotic sounds in the glow of UV light. The high-res video of 'bouncing bead-man' was mesmerising - colour, movement, scale... immerses you into it and makes you feel quite strange. The exhibition is perplexing and humorous, odd and thought provoking.

UV room

 

This exhibition, curated by Turner prize-winning artist Mark Leckey, will explore how our relationships with artworks and common objects alike are being transformed through new information technologies. It will present a kind of 'techno-animism', where the inanimate comes to life, returning us to 'an archaic state of being, to aboriginal landscapes of fabulous hybrid creatures, where images are endowed with divine powers, and even rocks and trees have names'.

 

The Universal Addressability of Dumb Things is an attempt to see the virtual realm cross over into the physical world and familiar objects become enchanted: a high-tech car may be presented in the form of a clay effigy; perfume bottles battle each other in a 'fantastical' video.

In one space a generator chugs away as a ten-metre high inflatable of Felix the Cat billows into a skylight...a piece in the exhibition that caused my small son to stand with his eyes and mouth wide open staring up at 'Felix'... until finally uttering the words...'awesome'!!

  

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC56Mdeyqk0
curator discussing the installation of The Universal addressability of Dumb things at the Bluecoat Gallery, Liverpool.

 

Nottingham Contemporary http://www.nottinghamcontemporary.org/

 

...an amazing building and one of the largest contemporary art spaces in the UK, a really interesting gallery to visit.

 

for a review on this exhibition and other interviews with artists see http://www.criticismism.com/...criticismism is a journal of art and ideas inspired by work in Brighton, UK, and beyond. It is written by Mark Sheerin, a frequent contributor to Culture24, Frame & Reference and Hyperallergic.


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'ASTOUND 2013' Private View, Nicholson Institute, May 23rd 2013

The Foundation Degree of Contemporary Art Practice Degree students (1st, 2nd and 3rd years) opened their 'Astound 2013' exhibition at the Nicholson Institute on Thursday 23rd May. A really great event, with a lots of people attending enjoying the wonderful work produced by the students. Work was viewed, enjoyed and lots sold, wine was drank... a great evening was had by all.

Some of the 'Art Team' Rob Barks, Anne-Lise Fraser, Suzanne Mellor, Chris Thompson.

more of the Art team...Jennie Morrey with Jo Reay.

Mary Worwood

Kath Hall

Jane Brocklehurst

Susannah Thompson

Fantastical Birds workshop

The Foxlowe Arts Centre - Sunday 26th May.

A fab day was had by all at the Fantastical Bird workshop run by the very talented Chris Thompson. 'Bird wars' had begun between Gwen and myself in the run up to the workshop...what to take?? tins, frames, boxes, found objects, what/who is the inspiration for the little birds,  whats the story behind them....Chris birds are amazing and the quirky tales that he bases them around make them so good. He says...

"Fantastical Birds, they give a lot of love and will brighten your day"..they most definitely do.

We made birds, ate cake, ate lunch, sat in the sun, drank tea and had lots of fun and left with our own little feathered friend to take home with us.

 Mr Thompson ...bird maker extraordinaire and leader of the amazing workshop.

www.warmigloo.net/

'Gerald' by Chris Thompson

Gerald waited for his girl by the gas works wall, unfortunately he forgot the gas was turned off and he had to borrow his sister Millys coat. 'Hussar' for Milly and her rather fetching coat that was also practically warm.

'Mildred' by Chris Thompson

"Mildred tried her hand at decorating balloons but found a job checking the peckability of tops with bottoms not wanting to move to far away from the sea she was pleased that the job was with Messers Thompson, Thompson and Hipkiss, 'Beach Bottle Top Peck Check Company', Beach Road, Beachley BB13 5NZ". 

....Bird makers in action!

'Polly in Pyjamas'... Suzanne Mellor

...my little birds, Polly,  story started in Liverpool in 1901 when Polly arrived at Liverpool Docks and then somehow ended up travelling to my grandparents farm - 'Manor Farm' in Hulme-End, Manifold Valley. Polly spent most days in the back yard near the milk house and charmingly shouted at the famers  ...'bugger off' and 'your nothing but an old faggot!' Dont know where she got that from. Polly's days ended when she got caught in a bad rain storm  and now has lived (stuffed!) in a box in the farm kitchen on the dresser ever since. She sits, silently now,  surrounded by photos of my cousins and I like part of the Mellor family!! Polly is dressed in fabric from a pair of never finished 1940's pyjamas sourced from the treasure trove of things my Grandma and Aunty Dot have 'acquired' over the years..or 'a load of junk that needs throwing away' as my Aunty Dot describes it!

'S.A.S'...Gwen Emery

'Disco Diva'...Andrea Tilbrook

Un-named!...Mary Worwood

 

The days fantastical collection of Fantastical Birds

The fantastical bird makers!

'Paper Trail - York' by Deborah Bowness

Whilst wandering through the beautiful steets of York I came across this outdoor wallpaper installation by artist Deborah Bowness. Deborah Bowness creates inspirational wallpapers and it was really intersting to see them in a subway under the railway bridge.

Paper Trail extends the canvas beyond interior walls and onto Britain’s streets, bringing the heart back into our cities. This is Deborah’s attempt to create the largest outdoor art exhibition the UK has ever seen.
Paper Trail is continuing is journey around the country. York will be the next city to be decorated with wallpaper installations. The exhibition will be on show throughout the month of May.