FRAGMENTS exhibition

This blog post has been written by Megan Courtis, who is producing a show in the BAS gallery this December.  Megan introduces the theme of the show, and the artists exhibiting.

 Fragments exhibition is comprised of a selection of works from recent Art and Design graduates from universities: Falmouth, Brighton, Westminster and Leeds. The exhibition is a continuation of their practice outside of university. 

The five graduates have come together as a collective to create a body of work responding to the title ‘Fragments’.  

Exhibition open: 6 - 9 Dec; 11am - 5pm
Private view: 5 Dec; 6pm - 9pm

ABOUT THE ARTISTS: 

(Tom Bond, Chloe Robinson, Megan Courtis, Phoebe Tallulah and Emily Smith)

Tom studied BA (Hons) Fine Art at Falmouth University. He creates filmic scenes and 

snapshots using video and collage by placing emphasis on the selection of objects within 

each scene.

          

                                                                     

 Chloe studied BA (Hons) Illustration at Falmouth University. Her work often explores and 

emphasises the surreal qualities, abstractions and subtle oddities within texts or subjects, 

attempting to create work that is at once surprising and familiar through print-making and 

collage. 

Phoebe Tallulah studied BA (Hons) Illustration at Westminster University. She creates 

delicate abstract drawings and forms through the use of analogue 

photography and digital collage. Her work explores themes of transparency, bridging the 

gap between two dimensional and three dimensional illustration. 

          

Megan studied BA (Hons) Performance and Visual Art Theatre at the University of 

Brighton. Her work explores the ephemeral qualities of light by creating sculptural 

landscapes through the mediums of video, sculpture sound and text.

The work, often made from found objects and reflective materials extend the physical 

sculptural space, through her careful consideration towards light and shadow. 

    

Emily studied BA (Hons) Photography at Leeds College of Art. Her most recent work includes 

a mixture of  photographic approaches combining google street view images and her own. 

Displayed within the exhibition she presents “Virtually Unseen”, a body of work that 

explores the  representation of place.

Gallery Residency: Sophie Erin Cooper

Our Gallery Residency in July & August will host Sophie Erin Cooper. Sophie's residency will culminate in an exhibition within the BAS Gallery.

'Drawing Breath'

Private view: 8 Aug, 6 - 9pm

Exhibition:  9 - 17 Aug, 11am - 4pm

Sophie makes drawings of ephemeral and fleeting objects and moments, working both on paper and as installations.


'Through drawing, Sophie explores expressive and intricate marks. She is drawn to the dream-like and curious to create works that achieve this aesthetic. She often twists natural forms into something ethereal, playing with fragmentation and emphasising their fragility.  Sophie works mostly in graphite, fine line pens and watercolour, working both on paper and applying drawing directly to the space. For the residency Sophie is interested in the interaction between her mark making and different materials. She will continue to pursue a variety of outcomes for the work, the space allowing for experimentation with large installations.'  

The vision for this show was to have a beautiful space with curiosities devised from either natural materials or drawings evidently focusing on, influenced by or depicting natural forms. The exhibition was subtle in tone with bursts of colour from the flowers used in the installations. 

Visitors were invited to add to the wall drawing of trees in the gallery space prior and during the Forest of Imagination exhibition, including non artists and little ones. 

Come out and Play...

This pencil drawn forest aims to celebrate creative diversity whilst emphasising what can be made with a simple tool - the graphite pencil.

Visit Sophie's Website

and Residency Blog

The Forest of Imagination

Rachel Kan & Angela Liang join us for their week of work experience

Rachel Kan & Angela Liang of Kingswood School joined the studios education team this week, find out what they got up to.....

''On the first day, we were given a tour around the studios. We then stayed with Paula in the morning and learnt about her art inspired by the Japanese culture. We really liked the little booklets she created by herself. We were with Amy Milford in the afternoon, learning about how she organises her art classes and helping her out in her administrative work. We learnt what it’s like being a self-employed artist.

On the second day, we spent our morning with Mary-Jane and she was talking about how she became a ceramics artist. Surprisingly, she was the resident of Kingswood three years ago.  We were impressed by her porcelain art; especially the turquoise colour she created by heating on glazed porcelain. Mary-Jane also gave each of us a lovely porcelain necklace she made.

In the afternoon, we helped out in Felicity’s life drawing session. We helped in setting up and did some life drawings ourselves. We observed different people’s approaches in starting their drawings, and learnt some basic life drawing skills. After that, we went to the Art club in Kingswood Prep School with Lorna Bode to help out in the art class after school. We got along well with the Year 1 and 2 students and helped them in preparing for the exhibition at the studios next week.

We were with the development group on Wednesday. We did a piece that is inspired by the paper cutting artist, Henri Matisse as the topic was to do a piece that’s in the style of this work. So we were just playing around with the colour paper and the thread, which we thought its quite interesting exploring different types of paper.In the Wednesday afternoon, we helped Gillian to glaze the pots, which were done by the children. We were also cutting out the circles for the display of the exhibition.













On the Thursday morning, we were helping out with Mary CC to sort out the postcards into different categories. Then we did the bunting for the children’s exhibition as we went to the prep school in Kingswood on Tuesday afternoon with Mary and Lorna.''

FAB Exhibition at the Studios

Part of Fringe Arts Bath 2014
Private View May 23  6 - 9pm
Exhibition Continues May 24 - June 8
Mon - Fri  11-4
Sat- Sun    11-3
Bath Artists' Studios

Building Volumes invites a playful and inventive response to the theme of building, architecture and construction. Through a diverse and exciting range of artwork, exhibiting Artists explore exteriors and interiors, scale, material, design and surface texture. Ranging from recorded audio within the home, photography, print, collage, ceramics, hand-built structures and constructed books.

When deciding on a concept for the show, it seemed very obvious what theme would be appropriate for an exhibition at the Studios. I have been working here for just over a year now and during my time it has become apparent how important the building is to the Artists here.  

For a while the long term future of the Studios has been shaky and the Artists have been tirelessly fundraising to secure the purchase of the building so that the studios can remain in Bath. 
This passion and warmth for the building inspired Building Volumes.

The Studios are not just a workspace for most, but a place to escape, a sanctuary and a home.

      
                                                                            Exhibiting Artist Otto Dettmer

The initial callout was to curate a show of book based works designed around the theme of buildings and architecture. I received a great variety of work through the callout and decided to open up the show to encompass all works based upon the theme. It's shaping up to be a really exciting show and I'm looking forward to setup week.

Exhibiting Artist  Mel Kew

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

                               Exhibiting Artists Above: Irina and Silviu Szekely

                                                                                                       

Exhibiting Artist Neill Fuller

Keep an eye on the FAB blog for regular updates on exhibiting Artist profiles...

Come along to Bath Artists' Studios to view the exhibition for yourself!

Twitter @BuildingVolumes

Mel Kew: Artist in Residence

Melanie Kew has been resident in our gallery during February and March. She has been creating and constructing some very exciting, contemporary pieces whilst resident in the Gallery. Her playful approach to working is evident, through her use of found and recycled materials.

We are looking forward to seeing her exhibition come together at the end of this week.

Exhibition open: 14 - 16 Mar, 11am - 5pm

Private view: 14 Mar, 6- 9pm

Mel is interested in cyclical rhythms, random selection, order and obsession. This thought process inspired her exploration with circles and cycles. She is also interested in the human fascination with bright and shiny materials, and has used an array of vibrant plastics in her work.

''By spreading everything I had collected out, my theme started to develop. I am reflecting on myself in the sense of being ‘green’ as everything I am using in this project has been reused or is recycled. My usual practice is in ceramics creating large 3D pieces,  however I wanted to take time out of this area as it was becoming repetitive. I am enjoying this creative journey, allowing me to investigate ideas within other new materials.''

For more information about Melanie's exhibition visit our website. 

www.melkew.co.uk