Creative Residency Exhibition

Way back in June 2011 I took part in a Creative Residency tutoring a group of wonderful students in screen-printing and textiles. Last night the organisers of this amazing opportunity held an exhibition of the completed sketchbooks, fabric. and prints and to say I was a little proud would be a hugh understatement. It was great to see how they had changed and progressed, hear what their plans are for the future and know that a week of being creative can send you on a journey you might not expect (for me and them). Check out the great work below, I wish I had been this good when I was in my mid teens...Enjoy!

Above: Sketchbook work, this student had an amazing eye for combining different found and bought materials and adding in his own sketches too.

Above: Another great sketchbook, getting the students to record information quickly, add notes and not be afraid if something goes wrong to carry on were some of the key points they learnt in just 5 days!

Above: Printed works inspired by Oban, the students weren't afraid of a bit of colour...great!

Above: And not everyone just printed, it was great to get them to manipulate and have a play with textiles too, this was looking at recreating ropes found at the harbour but using lots of fun colours.

Above: Work inspired by Oban, different students created these pieces but they compliment each other perfectly...loving the anchor.

Above: And some wonderful hand painted onto screen seahorses, which were printed onto paper and fabric. Don't they look impressive framed too...very professional.

WASPS Spring Exhibition...it came...it went!

Wow! What a weekend. The Selkirk WASPS open studio was the weekend just past and was an amazing event, really happy that so many people came to support the group of artists and designers and many sales were made which is an added bonus! The Private View on the Friday night was buzzing, just a shame that we were all so busy having a good time that we forgot to take some photos...opps. Above is Saturday during the day, a really nice feel as people chatted and viewed the stunning artwork on show. Find out more about the individual artists here.

This is my pile of well lit cushions in the corner, thanks must go to Rob for sorting out the lighting for me as they looked really good and stood out with the light on them.

And here is the rest of my stand, I tried to go for an artwork hanging on the wall approach again to try and keep it within the style of the event, however I've been given a couple of good ideas for next time which I might try. I spent the weekend replacing the Tea-towels and Canvas Bags as they sold which I suppose can only be a good thing! Also I had a couple of framed prints which was a little different than usual.

And here is the other goodies that were for sale, plenty of cards for those (like me) that can't afford the artwork! Such a good idea as you can easily frame them and have your own mini artwork at home. I believe the next open will be in October and that one is nationwide so looking forward to that...keep checking the WASPS site for more information.

WASPS Spring Exhibition

WASPS (workshop and studio provision scotland) in Selkirk will be holding an exhibition of their members work between Friday May 20th to Sunday May 22nd. That includes me (!) and a whole host of other very talented practitioners from the Scottish Borders region. Hope to see some of you there...get in contact if you would like anymore information.

Taking Time: Craft a Slow Revolution, Edinburgh

I was invited to a special event in Edinburgh on March 10th to view an exhibition on Craft and listen to a couple of speakers talking about their practises and the current exhibition taking place at the Dovecot Studios above. It was an event for all craft-makers who had received funding from several different Scottish funding boards over the past year. I received funding last year from CABN (Creative Arts and Business Network) to attend a fantastic conference in Holland run by the Surface Design Association http://www.surfacedesign.org/. It gave me the chance to meet several international surface designers as well as attend lectures, seminars and exhibitions all related to my field.

The exhibition itself Taking Time: Craft the Slow Revolution had a diverse range of work from textiles to digital, wood work to jewellery. My favourite has to be the ceramics (above) by Paul Scott and Ann Linneman, this one is named Tree in a Vegatable Patch. I'm always drawn to craft that I've never tried myself and I just love the saucers which can hold a piece of cake too!

Meet Your Maker Exhibition, National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

I'm helping out with this fantastic exhibition in Edinburgh at the moment, it's well worth a visit. It's called a 'living exhibition' as some of the artists exhibited are creating work within the exhibition space throughout the duration. It's been set up by CraftScotland who are on the up and up at the moment; check out their website for more details. www.craftscotland.co.uk