January FORUM - Web Site Specific

The next FORUM will be on Thursday 31st January, Ffotogallery at Chapter, meeting 6.30pm in Chapter foyer.

This month we'll be talking and thinking about artists' websites.

We'll be delving into why artists build websites, what their purpose is and how they can work. What's the relationship between online presence and general practice, and what are the implications of artists building virtual spaces?

If you'd like to share your work and if think your work is relevant to this discussion please contact emma@ffotogallery.org.

Opportunity: ATTIC begins ‘Rapid Cycling’

Artists Sara Annwyl and Julia Thomas introduced us to ATTIC at November's FORUM and this week, they sent a call out to Wales based artists interested in contributing to the new gallery and project space over the coming year.

ATTIC, hosted within the charity Journeys, is 'committed to an exploration of how emotional distress, cognitive ‘dysfunction’ and ’madness’ are understood, treated and experienced scientifically, personally and culturally.'  The

The deadline for expressions of interest is Sunday 6th January 2013 and for more information, here is an excerpt from the call out:

'ATTIC’s primary activities will develop from a shared exploration of the subject matter through the curation of fine art exhibitions and associated events. However, we will be open to working with practitioners of other creative forms: for example literature, music, dance and cinema. It is a central objective of ours that we should enable the development of new creative work as well as providing the support for innovative and informed creative and intellectual exploration of mental illness and mental health. Artists are encouraged to think about how they might use the space and opportunity to either explore relevant lines of enquiry within their existing art practice or how they might develop a new idea.'

To find out how to apply please visit the ATTIC website.

Tonight! The Unseen

We'll be meeting at Chapter foyer at 6.30pm, then heading over to the Stiwdio for goodcopbadcop's Experimentica performance event, followed by a discussion with Sara Annwyl and Julia Thomas in the Ffotogallery Meeting Room upstairs.

We now have a twitter account, follow @artistforum

November FORUM | The Unseen

Thursday 22 November

6:30pm

Chapter, Market Road, Cardiff

FORUM returns to us next week and taking its cue from Experimentica 2012, this months theme is The Unseen.

We'll have artist Julia Thomas discussing her project 'Show and Tell', which was originally part of the group show 'The Unseen and The Unspoken' and has since been shown as part of Arcade Cardiff.  

Artist Sara Annwly will also be discussing her practice in relation to The Unseen and together, Julia and Sara will be talking about ATTIC; a new project and exhibition space that marks the beginning of an interesting collaboration between the two artists.

We will meet in Chapter foyer at 6.30pm and then whisk you away to Ffotogallery's meeting room, which is hidden away in the darkest recesses of Chapter!

Anniversary: Act of Memory

WORKSHOP THIS THURSDAY!

As part of Experimentica a project called ‘Anniversary – an act of memory’ has been commissioned; a performance series in 60 acts, focusing on the importance and relevance of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).

It will include voluntary performers who will learn and recite from memory individual Articles from the Declaration, in their preferred language, making up the entire Declaration along with artist Monica Ross. The UDHR is translated into 385 languages and to date more than 400 people have taken part in thiswork in over 50 languages. Although the text remains the same, each voice gives its own context and we are encouraging participants to celebrate the diversity of language in Cardiff and Wales. 

Groups and individuals are invited to take part in this unique event at Chapter. Please join us for a workshop with Monica Ross at 7pm on Thursday 1 November, where she will talk about the project and outline how it will work. The performance will take place at 12 noon on Saturday 24 November at Chapter.

Please see the website for more details…

http://www.chapter.org/28121.html

http://www.chapter.org/28459.html

Made in Roath

Now in its 4th year Made in Roath returns with a full programme of events, such as exhibitions and workshops, that stretch into the community in an effort to create an inclusive environment for local artwork. The festival will play host to numerous forms of art including presentations of locally made films, music and spoken word performances and more traditional exhibitions of painting and photography. 

The festival began on Friday 12th October and continues until 21st October.

Some highlights and participants of the schedule include:

g39

The new gallery space will play host to Brzeska' Eagle, a tribute to Henri Gaudier Brzeska an artist who lived in Roath in 1908. g39 have invited three Wales based artists to respond to the magnificent stuffed eagle from the National Museum of Wales that Brzeska studied in the early 1900s.

www.g39.org/ 

The Hand of Roath 

For the duration of the festival, Made in Roath will be occupying an empty shop space in Queen’s Arcade in the city centre as well as bringing passing shoppers a rolling programme of performance based art.

http://madeinroath.com/category/hand-of-roath/

The Gate

As part of the exciting Made in Roath festival The Gate will be hosting an open exhibition of local talent that aims to give an insight into the people and community of Roath, something reflected in its inclusive attitude regardless of constraints on age, experience and subject. 

In that spirit the show comprises mixed media work from children, the elderly, amateur and professional on equal standing.

The show opened on the 10th October and will continue to the 3rd November.

www.thegate.org.uk/

Workshops 

Throughout the festival there will be an array of workshops including silent movie making, script writing, flower arranging, lindy hop dancing and we will be hosting a digital photography workshop at Milkwood with Ffotogallery. 

Closing Night
Sunday 21st October
7pm onwards

As well as a screening of the classic ‘movie goer’s movie’ Cinema Paradiso, and a free DJ and live art event at The Globe, there will also be a night time trail paying homage to Roath after dark. Using sound and light based artwork, the trail will include a dramatic live performance of Fauré’s Requiem in memory of Cardiff’s lost architecture and hot spiced punch at various venues to keep you warm!

 

WORKS/PROJECTS Submission Opportunity for Unrepresented Artist in South West

WORKS/PROJECTS are offering the opportunity for an unrepresented South West based artist to have work exhibited in their new London based gallery space as well as further professional development sessions. WORKS/PROJECTS sits between an artist studio and an exhibition space that primarily displays intimate shows of their artists. 

The deadline closes on the 2nd November.

For further information visit. 

http://www.worksprojects.co.uk/exhibitions/regional-interference/

Public Realm Commission Call Out for Applications

Application Deadline: Midnight Saturday 20 October 2012
Commission Budget: £800 (to include artist fee and production expenses)

Hand in Glove is a group of artists and curators based in Bristol.  They are currently welcoming proposals from artists based in South West England and South Wales for a project to be developed for the public realm and delivered in Spring/Summer 2013.

This is a unique co-production opportunity encouraging experimentation and fresh thinking around the display and public presentation of artwork. Hand in Glove will work closely with the selected artist to facilitate the development of work for an appropriate public context. The commission will enable the selected artist to push the boundaries of their practice and test new ideas in relation to how artwork is presented. This is an open brief for the selected artist to work with Hand in Glove to explore how art is disseminated and received, and to work in a space or context outside of the gallery, i.e. in response to a specific site or in multiple venues, online or in print. If a physical location is required, we would like the artist to work in Bristol and its surrounding area.

Shortlisted applicants will be notified by Monday 29 October and must be available to present to the selection panel on Friday 9 November 2012 in Bristol. This will be an opportunity for you to elaborate on your proposed project.

Selection panel:
Sean Edwards, Artist and WARP (Wales Artist Resource Programme) Coordinator
Katie Daley-Yates, Curator and Situations Programme Coordinator
Louisa Fairclough, Artist and Co-Curator of Mezz
Hand in Glove, Leela Clarke, Vickie Fear, Dominique Hill and Cara Lockley.

More information on how to apply can be found at: http://handinglove.org.uk/2012/09/public-realm-commission-call-out-for.html 

September FORUM

Claire Prosser's activity at the front of Chapter.

September FORUM | Conversation Pieces

Thursday 27th September / 6.30pm / Ffotogallery at Chapter

At the August FORUM we said our sad goodbyes to  Freya Dooley who has been a massive part of FORUM for the past 6 months. She has come to the end of her internship at WARP, so although she won't be officially responsible for FORUMmy shenanigans, we hope to see her at many more to come! Freya, please keep us all in the loop with your practice in the future, we'd love to see how you are getting on.

On the other had we are pleased to welcome regular FORUMmer and now new WARP intern Jess Mathews, who will be taking over the role for the next 6 months. September's FORUM takes place in the run up to the Artes Mundi 5, so we will be discussing practice and projects that make conversation and participation an integral part of the artwork itself.  Jess will discuss her ongoing project ‘Critical Mass’, drawing on the content and themes of Artes Mundi 5’s symposium surrounding socially engaged art practices.

WARP regular Claire Prosser will share her ideas for her upcoming project ‘Between oneandanother’, which consists of a series of actions, live performance and art happenings for this year’s Made in Roath Festival. Tiff Oben will also be talking about her project.

We will meet in Chapter foyer at 6.30pm, look out for the FORUM sign! We will show you to Ffotogallery's meeting room which is hidden away in the darkest recesses of Chapter.

August FORUM at g39

Motorcade/FlashParade Open 2012

Dystopia: Are We Nearly There Yet?

CAAPO: Creative Assault Art Production Organisation presents

Publication Launch @g39

Friday 24th August 2012 | 6.30-9pm

Summer Party – Tunes by Runo B – Bar by Club Love

'Dystopia’s are frequently created as warnings, or as satires, showing current trends extrapolated to a nightmarish conclusion. The current international political landscape is littered with Orwellian references of dystopian ideology. It has become a time of ‘us and them’.' CAAPO 2009

This Publication marks the end of the project (for now) and will act as a catalogue for its various sections, alongside newly commissioned essays, creative writing and accompanying illustrations.

Join CAAPO to celebrate the successes and failures of this ambitious adventure, and pick up a publication as a memento of the experience. 

www.creativeassault.org

Artist in Residence: Héloïse Godfrey at Sherman Cymru

Héloïse Godfrey is a fine artist engaged with ideas relating to narratives: particularly exploring bodies as sites for storytelling or forums for autobiography. Since May this year, she has been artist in residence at the Sherman Cymru theatre in Cardiff where she is producing a new project, Moving Narratives. Her residency is supported by the theatre as part of their Artist Development Initiative and funded by the Arts Council of Wales.

Héloïse's work includes film, sound, drawing, writing, printmaking and casting. To a large extent people are her main medium, with her work relying on conversations and experiences shared with participants, experiences which are then translated into visual/audio works and archives. 

Héloïse will be talking to us about her project and experiences as an artist in residence at Sherman Cymru at August FORUM. 

How you can get involved...
As a part of the Moving Narratives project, Héloïse will be drawing and filming the people who use Sherman Cymru – actors, audiences, and staff. This research will contrast the performances and scripts that performers and non-performers engage in. An exhibition of audio-visual work and prints will open at the theatre in the Autumn 2012.

She is looking to meet with performers and non-performers who have:

- Lines/gestures to learn – these could be for a performance on stage but equally anything that requires thought before being spoken/acted out. This could be a speech for a wedding, practice make-up for an occassion, preparation for a birth or a sporting event, preparation for an interview, practicing a meal for a first date etc. Anything that requires some practice!

- Plans to visit Sherman Cymru or another venue in the next month to see a performance. Héloïse will be researching ways that audiences prepare to see theatre/dance.

Anyone who helps with her research will receive a piece of limited edition art in September 2012.

Please get in touch at:

Heloise_godfrey@hotmail.com

www.HeloiseGodfrey.com

Twitter @HeloiseGodfrey

Painting Seminar

2PM SATURDAY 4TH AUGUST 2012 | MISSION GALLERY, SWANSEA

If you type in ‘Painting is dead’ on Google search it returns 64,400,000 results.

The fortunes of painting wax and wane, at times carry the stigma of it being perceived as a traditional art-form and “of the past”. It has suffered the effect of sidelining by more currently “fashionable” art-forms of film, video and performance. Katie Allen's 'Nature Illuminated' at Mission Gallery and the Beep Wales international painting prize organised by Elysium Gallery at Volcano, demonstrate that painting is well and truly alive.

You are invited to the painting seminar at Mission Gallery on the position of painting in contemporary arts practice through an open discussion between an audience of practitioners and the public.

More information on the event page here.

www.beepwales.co.uk

Free Admission | All Welcome

Critical Mass: Call for Papers

Critical Mass Symposium, 6th December 2012

Artes Mundi have a really exciting opportunity to propose papers for its Critical Mass Symposium to be held as part of a programme of events during Artes Mundi 5.

Critical Mass aims to initiate alternative critical dialogue with emerging practitioners, writers, students and recent graduates. Critical Mass is particularly interested in experimental papers, ideas, actions, collaboration and processes of learning, which will engage this specific audience with Artes Mundi 5.

Proposals are welcomed from individuals and groups across practice-based, theoretical, literary, philosophical, sociological backgrounds and beyond. The aim of Critical Mass is to occupy the in-between, the unpredictable and fluid space between institution (university, museum) and the practices of this year’s shortlisted artists: Miriam Bäckström, Tania Bruguera, Phil Collins, Sheela Gowda, Teresa Margolles, Darius Mikšys andApolonija Šušteršič.

The Critical Mass Symposium will seek to explore the potentiality of the green room, as both a space of performance and the space of waiting to perform. Where art practice can no longer be defined by studio and gallery environments how do artists filter, prepare and become equipped to perform on such a stage.

The deadline for proposals is 4pm on the 31st August 2012.

For more information and details on how to submit your proposal, visit am5-criticalmass.tumblr.com

Peaches & Cream II

A photography competition, exhibition and award
CALL FOR ENTRIES OPEN TO ALL PHOTOGRAPHERS

Deadline - 6 August 2012

Millennium Images is launching it's second annual photographic competition in conjunction with Milim Gallery and Crane Kalman Brighton.

Peaches & Cream is offering all photographers the chance to win a contract with Millennium Images and the possibility of seeing their work published on the front cover of a best selling novel.

Prizes include:

- Three Year Contract with Millennium Images
- £500 Cash Prize
- Exhibition in Central London at DreamSpace Gallery in October 2012 with four other runners up.
- Special Graduate Award

We are looking for a series of 3-10 images on any theme and in any style, for example documentary, fine art, travel etc.

Millennium Images is best known for their book covers with some of the top selling publishers in the UK and abroad. For examples of previous published work, click here.

Entry costs £10 per submission before 29 July. £20 from 30 July - 6 August.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER

The FibonARTcci Project

The FibonARTcci Project will launch with an event at the Welsh Institute of Sport Leisure Centre, Sophia Gardens, CF11 9SW, on the 12th August 2012 at 2pm.

With the help of 144 people, the first twelve images in a sequence will be created. The participants will be immortalised in one of the largest art installations ever conceived!

The project are looking for 10 volunteers on the day to assist with registration of the attendees and runners, and assist the artist Peter J Symonds.

Even if you are not able to attend as a volunteer, you are invited to bring family and friends to spend an afternoon with the FibonARTcci Project, and end up in the photographs!

Here is the facebook event where all the information about the day is:
https://www.facebook.com/events/500679339958137/

For more information, and to offer assistance, email fibonartcci@gmail.com

Disruption2 - Saturday, 21st July - 2-4pm - High St. Swansea

On Saturday 21st July between 2-4pm High Street Swansea will be host to Disruption 2, a series of post apocalyptic performances and events.

Artists involved include:

Barrie J Davies | Rowan Lear | Philip Cheater | Sophie Victoria Elliott | Sylvie Evans | Simon Farid | Jennifer Foster | John Muir | Micheal O'Conner | Klaus Pinter | Ben Ross | Tim Kelly | Natasha Tresadern-Hill | Wanda Zyborska | Elena Videnova | Cerys Thomas | Tiff Oben | Helene Roberts | Alessio Rutigliano | Victoria Malcolm | Carys Shannon | Sandra Demar | AE101 Collective | Kapspike & Goebbels | Jason & Becky | Emergent Behaviour | Tracy Harris | David Marchant | Jessica Lerner |Alys Hugs | Plus the team of Disruption documentors

Hand in Glove presents PLATFORM opening tonight at Bristol Diving School

This weekend Hand in Glove present PLATFORM at Bristol Diving School, a group exhibition showcasing artwork from a selection of 2012 graduates from University of the West of England, Bristol, Bath Spa University and University of Wales, Newport. PLATFORM features the work of Gordon Bon, Hannah Clark, Blanche Crossley, Sam Laughlin, Holly McLean & Tom Maryniak, Richard Moment, Pietro Motisi, Trevor H Smith, Katie O'Brien and Josephine Sowden.

The artists will be in discussion from 6 -7pm this evening and the opening event will continue until 9pm with fun, cheap drinks and live artwork! The show continues over Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd July from 12 - 5pm.

More information about PLATFORM and Hand in Glove can be found at http://handinglovebristol.blogspot.co.uk/

Bristol Diving School, Albion Dockside Estate, Hanover Place, Bristol, BS1 6TZ

290.25m3 Exhibition in Bristol

For one night only artists from Top Floor Studios present 290.25m3, a pop-up exhibition, the second in a series of shows being organised by members of the Spike Island community in a temporary gallery space.

290.25m3 features new video, photography, print, painting and installations from:

Noe Baba, Angela Baum, Richard Broomhall, Julian Claxton, Matt Davies, Carol Jackman, Gina Lundy, Milo Newman, Darn Thorn and Kamina Walton.

290.25m3 opens to the public for one night only on Thursday 19th July 6-8pm, The entrance to the exhibition is at the rear of the building on Sydney Row.

spike island 
133 Cumberland Road,
Bristol. BS1 6UX

26th July - Art in the Public Realm

Meeting Point: The spot where Penarth Road meets Taff Mead Embankment , CF11 6NG. 6.30pm



We’re going for something a little different for July’s event. In the spirit of the theme of ‘Art in the Public Realm’, Forum will take the form of a walk from Taffs Mead, along the river and eventually leading to the Mochyn Du pub in Canton. We’re currently approaching artists, curators and collaborators who may provide interventions or discussion points along our group's walk. These will provide prompts for varying and rich discussions and will promote, share and informally critique the practice of the contributors. If you have any questions or ideas just email Freya at intern@g39.org.

Mostyn Open 2012

Mostyn gallery has opened submissions for its 18th Open call. Running since 1989, the open invites submissions from artists of all ages, mediums and locations. There will be an exhibition of selected artworks, and a prize of £10,000 awarded to a single artist of collective, as selected by a panel of artists, directors and curators. For the first time ever, there will also be a 'Peoples Choice' prize of £1,000, as voted for by the visiting public.

There is an entry cost of £25 and the deadline for submissions is 16th July 2012

To find out more, and to enter, visit the Mostyn website

National Museum Wales-The Landing Commission

In July 2011, the National Museum of Art for Wales was launched at National Museum Cardiff with the opening of six new spaces for the display of modern and contemporary art. Within the new contemporary art galleries is a stairwell and landing space which links the lower and upper galleries. Amgueddfa Cymru - National Museum Wales plans to commission a new temporary work for this space, which will form part of an ongoing programme of commissions on the landing to coincide with the annual collection display changes. Submissions are encouraged from artists who work in any media.
Artists living or working in Wales or who would like to work in a Welsh context are encouraged to apply.
The selected artist will receive a fee of £3,500 for the commission. An additional budget of approximately £6,500 will be available for the production and installation of the work.

For more information and an application form follow this link  or email melissa.munro@museumwales.ac.uk

Deadline for applications: 14 September 2012

Artist Residency at CAT

The Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT) have an opportunity for artists working in film, photography or digital media to work with CAT for 12 months engaging with its research projects and community of staff. The residency will coincide with the 'Emergence' Land-journey and Art Summit planned for the 1st-8th September.

The Centre for Alternative Technology based in Machynlleth, Powys, are concerned with the search for globally sustainable, whole and ecologically sound technologies and ways of life. They are looking for an artist whose practice reflects an interest in sustainable futures, who is keen to draw upon the resources of CAT and to enter into a dialogue with the public. Committed to engagement with the arts, CAT hope to provide a platform for new projects that can help shift attitudes on how we think about the future.

CAT will provide a studio space, payment of £24,000 in four installments, and access to CAT's ongoing research projects.

More details of how to apply can be found here.

Awards & Bursaries Open for Entries

Celeste Prize 2012

Now in its fourth year, the Celeste Prize is dedicated to emerging and mid-career artists of various disciplines. Closing date for entries is 31 July 2012.

You can enter works into these prize categories:

Painting & Graphics Prize €4,000

Photography & Digital Graphics Prize €4,000

Video & Animation Prize €4,000

Live Media & Installation Prize €4,000

Curator's Choice Prize €3,500

Public's Choice Prize €500

Aberystwyth Artist in Residence

The UK call for Aberystwyth Arts Centre Residencies are now open. The centre offer artists a period, usually 3 months to conduct  research and develop their work, with accommodation and studio space provided during the residency. Their website has all the information on how to apply and also shows work by current and previous artists in residence.

The deadline to apply is 3 August 2012.

BJP International Photography Award 2012

The British Journal of Photography's International Photography award is now open for applications. The award has no set theme and submissions are invited from any photographic style or genre.

There are two seperate categories for submission, one for singular images and the other for a series of works. Photographers can enter both categories if they like, and are invited to enter more than one series to win a printed exhibition at Foto8 Gallery in London. The deadline is 15 September 2012.
BJP Article

1000 Words Photography Award

The 1000 Word Photography Award offers the chance for a photographer born or based in the EU to realise a new body of work under the supervision of high-profile photographers and industry experts.

Entries are now being accepted with a £25 fee and a closing date of 23 July 2012.

The 1000 Words Award includes:

• £1,000 cash prize

• 18 month mentorship programme

• 3 workshops with Jeffrey Silverthorne, Antoine d’Agata and a Magnum photographer in London, Marseille and Seville respectively, including financial assistance with accommodation and travel

• Travelling group exhibition through the UK, France, Spain and Italy

• Catalogue and DVD

• Feature in 1000 Words Photography Magazine.

The Hinterlands presents talks with photographers Brenda Ann Kenneally & Robert Knoth

From the same people that organise the fantastic residential photographic immersion workshops in Devon (of which there are still the last few places available for this Summer's round starting on 24th June), The Hinterlands present a touring series of talks and discussion surrounding this years workshop leader, Brenda Ann Kenneally of the USA and Netherlands-based photographer Robert Knoth, coming to Bristol on Thursday 12th July.

The talks will provide an deeper insight into the work of these two photographers, their perspectives, motives and their practice over the past two decades, which questions and celebrates the role of love in the face of pressing and desperate socio-political issues including effects of the trade of Heroin from Afghanistan and how the current economic climate is accelerating social change and poverty throughout Europe and the rest of the world.

Signed copies of Knoth's work Poppy and Kenneally's out of print Money-Power-Respect will be available to purchase and plenty of time for discussion throughout the evening.

Talks Schedule:

10th July 2012 - Foto8 Gallery - London - 6.30pm

Address. 1-5 Honduras Street, London EC1Y 0TH Tel. 020 7253 8801

Tickets £10

Available from foto8.com

11th July 2012 - White Cloth Gallery - Leeds - 6.30pm

Address. Aire Street Leeds LS1 4HT Tel. 0113 218 192

Tickets £10/ £8concessions

Available from whiteclothgallery.com

12th July 2012 - Instant Coffees - Bristol - 6.30pm

Address. The Island, Bridewell St, Bristol, BS1 2LE

Tickets £6 Adv/ £7.50 on the door

Available from http://www.eventelephant.com/brendaannkenneallyrobertknoth

For more information about the talks and The Hinterlands projects and workshops visit thehinterlands.co.uk

Or contact Rebecca or Mike directly on rebecca@thehinterlands.co.uk / mike@thehinterlands.co.uk

FreshFaced+WildEyed

Applications are open for this years FreshFaced+WildEyed, an excellent opportunity for recent photography graduates to get their work seen, and possibly shown at The Photographers Gallery.

Now in its fifth year, The Photographers Gallery presents FreshFaced+WildEyed, a showcase for recent graduates from across the UK. Following an online application, selected finalists will have their work exhibited at The Photographers Gallery and online. For the first time this year, finalists will also be offered a 12 month mentorship program, which gives them the opportunity to work with a mentor whose profession/ creative background is relevant to their practice.

The 2012 judges are
Bridget Coaker: Co-founder of Troika Editions and a Picture Editor at The Guardian
Clare Grafik: Head of Exhibitions, The Photographers' Gallery
Anthony Luvera: artist, writer and lecturer
Karen Newman: Curator, Open Eye Gallery


The finalists will have their work shown at The Photographers’ Gallery, London from 15th – 30th September 2012, and online at ffwe.thephotographersgallery.org.uk

For more information on how to apply, visit the website here.
All applications must be submitted through the website by 18.00, Monday 2 July 2012


The work of last years finalists can be seen here

Exhibition at OSR Projects: Nothing Ever Happens

Open: 15 June - 8 July 2012
Launch Party: Thursday 14 June 6-9pm

BUS SERVICE to the launch party departs from G39 at 4pm returning by 11.30pm / £8 each - please contact Nia on nia_metcalfe@yahoo.co.uk for more information or to book a seat.

Nia Metcalfe, Cardiff-based curator and co-director of Elbow Room, presents 'Nothing Ever Happens' for OSR Projects in West Coker, Somerset. The exhibition brings together the work of three artists, each with very different practices and approaches but all referencing some kind of liminal, elemental state or space. With a dream-like reflection of the world around us into the gallery space, they perhaps hint at our dislocation from the landscape, or from our origin and our attempts to understand, categorise and control it. Running throughout is an inherent simplistic beauty - the beauty of landscape, natural form and material.

Interdisciplinary in its nature, Metcalfe's selection for this exhibition combines digital technologies with ideas and practices referencing the pace and aesthetics of the Arts and Craft movement; featuring video pieces by Sheffield-based artist, Michael Day, photographic collage and wall-scapes interpreting walks taken by Dafydd Fortt, alongside Ellie Doney's sculptural forms in ceramics and glass. This exhibition asks us to consider 'man's' search for meaning in nature, life-cycles and ideologies attached to the natural landscape, with underlying allusions to the human predisposition of expectation, control and failure. 

The Old School Room is an artist run studio and project space providing a platform for exhibition, collaboration and creative exploration.
 
The Old School Room
Church Street
West Coker
Somerset
BA22 9BD
01935 862201

Opening Times:
Thursday - Saturday / 11am-5pm
Sunday / 12-4pm

Nearest train stations: Yeovil Junction or Crewkerne - see their site for more transport info.

More information about the exhibition, the artists and the curator can be found on the OSR Projects site.

Image: (c) Ellie Doney,
from the ‘Applied Dreaming’ series.

TANT hosts publishing collective Bandrolsüz

This weekend, TANT will host Istanbul-based publishing collective Bandrolsüz in a book sale at The Printhaus Cardiff.

Bandrolsüz - meaning without a tax certificate - is a collective of 5 independent publication houses Bakkal Press, folio, Onagöre, REC Collective and Too Many Books who got together in February 2011.

Bandrolsüz aims to create possibilities for sale and distribution of artists' books and reproductions. During the times when electronic publications and magazines start to take over the printed medium, Bandrolsuz creates a space, away from large distribution companies and chain bookstores, where the book is considered as a location and a channel.

Tonight's collaboration with TANT is the first time that these publications have been available in Wales. Go and have a browse!

8-9 June 2012 | Reception on Friday 18:00-21:00 | Open on Saturday 12:00-17:00

'Space and Change' FORUM tonight at G39

Space and Change FORUM: Thursday 31st May 2012: G39

We're looking forward to this evening's FORUM!
With presentations of video and sound works from Matt Cook and paintings concerned with transient spaces by Jan Williams. 

G39, Oxford Street, Cardiff. CF24 3DT. 
029 2047 3633

Also G39, in their new venue on Oxford Street, open their inaugural exhibition The Autobiography of a Super-tramp tomorrow from 6pm.
Featuring artists:

• Bedwyr Williams
• S Mark Gubb
• Peter Finnemore
• Huw Andrews
• Rebecca Gould
• Paul R Jones
• Paul Emmanuel
• matthews and allen
• Rachel Calder
• David Shepherd
• Cerith Wyn Evans
• Simon Proffitt
• Owen Martell

For more information about the exhibition and G39 click here.

Dialogue workshops & performances coming soon at Chapter

Dialogue is an evolving music event organised by post-graduates from the University of Wales Newport's Creative Music Practice MA course.
This month they will be showcasing works in the Stwdio at Chapter Arts Centre on Friday 8th June from 7pm.

Admission is FREE and the event features a range of activities including experimental new performances, video works, demonstrations of new technology and software and no-nonsense, cutting-edge pop and dance!


Follow the event on facebook for more information.

Aesthetica Art Prize – Open for Entries!

The Aesthetica Art Prize offers a great opportunity for artists to showcase their work and further their involvement in the international art world.  The prize is committed to innovation in the arts and welcomes entries from artists working in all mediums.

Artists can submit into four categories:

• Photographic & Digital Art
• Three Dimensional Design & Sculpture
• Painting & Drawing
• Installation & Performance

Previous finalists include Marcus Jansen, a leading modern expressionist who joins a legacy of artists featuring in Absolut Vodka’s artistic campaigns; Bernat Millet, also shortlisted for National Portrait Gallery’s Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize, and Julia Vogl, who was shortlisted for New Sensations: Saatchi Gallery and Channel 4’s Prize, and has exhibited at Zabludowicz Collection.

The Aesthetica Art Prize is open for entries until 31 August 2012. For more information please visit their website.

FORUM/ Archives and Collections

Hosted at Ffotogallery, Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff on Thursday April 26^th 2012.

Forum kicked off to a great start this month, as it coincided with the opening night of Chapter Gallery’s current exhibition, ‘The Institute of Critical Zoologists’. If you haven’t already, I really recommend you have a look. (http://www.chapter.org/26352.html) Curated by Ffotogallery’s Helen Warburton and Lauren Jury, the ICZ show investigates our relationship with animals through archival and photographic material that blurs the lines between reality and fiction.

The ICZ is really just one person, artist Renhui Zhao. Helen was the first to chat about the show and how it came about, offering an insight into the process of curating such a large exhibition in close collaboration with the artist. Helen first encountered Renhui’s work at Format in Derby and decided to approach him about a project in Cardiff.

The original basis of the exhibition was to present a sort of retrospective, including all the documents and archival material usually hidden away or locked in museum vault: making the invisible, visible. Helen, Lauren and Renhui were keen to experiment with alternative ways to present the work- the view-hole light-boxes in the second room of the gallery should not to be overlooked! Renhui’s practice investigates an overall concern with what is real, imagined and invented. What information do we really gain from the media and wildlife photography? The UV Plumage of birds informed the back gallery pieces which were entirely digital. Artistic simulations are present throughout the show, although it is down to the viewer to deliberate what may be real or invented.

Some pieces challenge the boundaries of the morality of food: Renhui has a particular interest in the issue of whaling, as expressed in the ‘Whiteness of a Whale’ project. His political views are interesting; the work is not dogmatic; rather, his core interest is how the media represent the subject of our relationship to animals rather than an attempt to make us feel a particular way. The work stands alone and is open to interpretation though it inevitably causes one to reflect on our relationship with other living creatures and how we share and occupy the world. For example, in one piece, what appears to be whale blood is actually human waste. As an ‘ex-activist’, he is not looking to be an ethical ambassador, rather he is still grappling with the idea of the institute he’s created. Part of Helen and Lauren’s role was a desire to develop the way Renhui presented his work and explore how he reflects his ides though collaboration.

Renhui is currently undertaking a residency at the National Museum of Wales. Lauren and Helen proposed that Renhui engaged with Cardiff through his work. The Museum, of course, is an ideal platform for this having been fascinated with the abundance of hidden archival material held in the vaults. This paved the way for Renhui to inspire a new body of work, becoming fascinated with slides, depicting bizarre exchanges between animals. The Institute of Critical Zoologists continues at Chapter Gallery, Cardiff until Sunday 17^th June.

 Chapter Gallery, ICZ installation shot

Rory Duckhouse presented his recent project, ’25 people with cameras’. Rory is currently undertaking his MA in Swansea in Photography and Contemporary Dialogues.

“The work comes from an archive I bought from eBay, which had a collection of images from the 1960-1970's. The last geographical location of the archive was from the seller in Williamsburg, MA and therefore become known as the Williamsburg archive. With this series I am interested in the process of taking an image, what it mean in the present, and as a historical document. Through a series of re-appropriations, I attempt to explore the limitations of the images as informational document of events. Culturally we photograph events we deem of historical importance, however, what is the value of the images once they are removed from the contexts that deem them important. The work then becomes a metaphor for the shifting nature of the documents over time.”

The core of the work lies in an interest in archives and historical records. Rory presents photographs in which he has erased figures, in order to dislocate the person from any determinate social, historical or cultural links.  From these photographs, he retains the image of the camera, the core tool used to preserve a memory or document an occasion. How does a photograph either document or become a document of an event? What becomes of a photograph?

The image is defined by its quality and what surrounds the figures. Influenced by James Elkins, Rory explores the possibility of an objective experience of a photograph. In one particular image, all that remains of the figure are the hands holding the camera. Posing, in itself, often acts as an indication of culture and body language. A debate on context ensues; by removing the person do we still reserve any historical or cultural references? The camera itself dates the image, as does the object of the photograph: it’s size, format, quality etc. The clothing, furniture and jewellery all say something about a person and their surroundings. One person suggests the responsibility a photograph holds on a ‘document’ of that era, time, or event. Rory investigates how, through mild suggestion or fictionlisiation, he may remove this responsibility.

You can see Rory’s work exhibited at Swansea’s MA show, which opens on the 15^th June- don’t miss it!

 Rory Duckhouse, 4 Minus Person, 2012

James Green trained as a painter at CSAD before completing an MA in Painting at The Royal College of Art, London. He is currently half way through his Phd at CSAD, researching through is practice: ‘To what extent does a piece of art have a mind of it’s own?’.

“The work I create as an artist often results in pieces that straddle between artistic disciplines, and is inspired by a wide range of artists and ideas, in particular artworks and belief systems of Non-Western cultures, physics, nuero-science, art history, and the daily goings-on of the Rhondda Valley. Hopefully, the result will be a subjective and visual inventory of parts of the twentieth and twenty-first Centuries.”

These cards, collectively titled ‘A Day in the Life…’ represent just a small fragment of James’ prolific practice. He began producing these pocket-sized collages around eight years ago whilst studying in London, as a creative exercise to realise ideas on a small scale. He would habitually make one or two every morning to keep active, even when ideas were running dry to keep the ball rolling. Now an ongoing ritual, these little cards are purely spontaneous and have ‘no particular grand theory’ behind them.

Nonetheless, they inevitably act as little indications of pop culture, having been collaged from newspapers, magazines and general visual debris found on his bedroom floor. By now there are hundreds of them, kept in boxes. Only recently have they begun to be dated. As a result, they have become an archive of each day of his life now documented, reading as a whole as a sort of visual diary. They are often carried around in his pocket, and sometimes given away to friends. This evolving archive has become a kind of small, intimate gallery which the viewer can hold in their hands, flicking through them just as kids used to do with their sticker collections: A collection that James plans to continue for the rest of his life- hopefully it will be much larger by then.

See more of James’ practice and his research developments at www.jg-gallery.co.uk. He is also curating a group show of Phd student’s work at Howard Gardens Gallery on the 21^st June. 

  James Green, 'A Day in the Life', 2006-

FORUM/ Art Fairs

Hosted at G39, Cardiff on Thursday 29^th March 2012

Gordon Dalton/ Amber Mottram

Following the Dan Rees talk, we had a great turn out at March’s Forum. Gordon Dalton got the ball rolling by discussing the nature of Art Fairs, experience he has gained within his own painting practice and as a curator and co-founder of Mermaid and Monster.

Mermaid and Monster is a Swansea based contemporary art agency. They represent both emerging and established artists and promote their work through curatorial projects, publications, events, and art fairs. Their artists include Nicholas Dietrich Williams (currently exhibited at Chapter’s Art in the Bar), Paul Emmanuel, Helen Sear and Alistair Owen.

M&M have had a range of experiences at various art fairs. Generally the commerciality of the experience is described as a necessary but arguably unfortunate aspect of gallery representation. The spaces are small and compact. The necessity for the buyer to meet the maker is considered during the discussion. It certainly helps, and self-promotion appears to be integral to any form of success, commercially or otherwise. Conversely, if a piece of art appeals to a buyer or dealer at an art fair, (whether that be for it’s artistic merit or simply because it matches their sofa,) they’ll buy it. Gordon describes positive experiences at smaller art fairs such as Manchester Contemporary (http://www.themanchestercontemporary.com) who support a wider range of regional galleries. Still in it’s early years, The Manchester Contemporary aims to encourage and develop a market for critically engaged contemporary art in Manchester, with a focus on curating higher end galleries alongside those that are new and emerging. (http://www.creativetourist.com/features/time-to-collect-and-pass-go)

The question is raised; is there room for an event like this one in Cardiff or South Wales? How would it function, or affect the art being produced and promoted? March’s Forum occurred days before two artist-run, non-profit events: The Art Carbootique and Made in Spring, both aimed at promoting the diverse arts community in Cardiff and South Wales.

Gordon Dalton is an artist, curator and writer, recently having co-curated Motorcade/ Flashparade’s ‘The Man Don’t Give a Fuck’ in Bristol with Tom Goddard. See his website www.gordondalton.com to see more of his work and www.mermaidandmonster.com for news on their upcoming projects and events. You can also subscribe to their mailing list, just contact mail@mermaidandmonster.com.

 Gordon Dalton, Installation shot, 2012

Since graduating from a BA in Fine Art at CSAD, Amber Mottram has recently exhibited her work at Chapter’s ‘Art in the Bar’ and currently occupies the TestBed space at Oriel Davies Gallery in Powys.  She describes her recent experiences at two art fairs in London through Woodbine Contemporary Arts, a gallery based in Uppingham.

Amber creates visceral works that lie between painting and sculpture, using thermoplastic screed (road paint). Manipulating the material’s depth and tactility, she experiments with chance against intention. Oscillating between representation and abstraction, the work represents an organised chaos in which her overflowing, organic forms are confined by gridded frames and structures. She explores the materiality of the substance to its limits and has recently departed from her explorations of colour, creating several monochrome works for the Oriel Davies exhibition and Battersea Art Fair. See Amber's Axis profile at http://www.axisweb.org/seCVPG.aspx?ARTISTID=15728, and the Oriel Davies website http://www.orieldavies.org/en/exhibition/monopours for more information on the Monopours exhibition. It is well worth a visit, especially alongside the Oriel Davies Open 2012. Both exhibitions continue until the end of June. 

Amber Mottram, Monopours, 2012