Principal research themes and activities
Lecture Notes
Presentations, live or recorded, on a variety of platforms.
Zadie Smith 09/11/20 [Podcast: Buxton, 2020]
An entertaining, yet thoroughly serious, conversation between writer Zadie Smith and comedian Adam Buxton dwelling, amongst other things, on lockdown and the reasons for making art.
A discussion about the ‘point of art in general’ acknowledged that currently many so-called non-essential workers view their normal occupation as an ‘indefensible indulgence’. Of their own activity, Buxton reminded himself that ‘it would be boring without any stupid things and pointless things,’ and Smith concurred by declaring her art ‘inessential but… brightening’.
Smith described the debilitating impact of the pandemic on her creativity, and how this revealed to her a fundamental and terrifying purposelessness, the avoidance of which normally motivates her: ‘Sometimes people ask me, 'What's your inspiration?' and I always want to say, 'Death! Death is my inspiration… Can I think about something other than death for ten minutes? And anything will do, you know, everything that doesn't let me think about that too much is very welcome, always...’
I, similarly, appreciate that my artistic endeavours are strictly superfluous yet still believe there is every reason to seek to exalt the natural world. My two-part sense of contingent wonder – namely, (a) there is a world and (b) I’m here to see to see it – contrasts with a third observation: (c) this won’t always be so. I, too, find this motivating because of the sense of urgency that it engenders.
Matthew Burrows 02/11/20 [Live online artist's talk: Burrows, 2020]
Burrows began his presentation by showing Bellini's 'St. Jerome’, to introduce a comparison between two theologies or world-views and, by extension, two approaches to painting. These roughly equate to representational and abstract approaches. He declared himself in neither position.
Burrows discussed a number of his paintings, all of them clearly displayed. He pointed out repeated geometric features in them (specifically a circle and two horizontal lines) that were said to indicate landscape. The presence of landscape was described as ‘implicit’.
Many of the paintings are visually arresting.
To my mind they have only a vestigial connection with representation. I was unconvinced that the intellectually oriented content proffered by Burrows – including implicit reference to landscape –could be confidently discerned without his explanations. I found my own artistic position clarified in opposition to Burrows’ stance
Presentations, live or recorded, on a variety of platforms.
Zadie Smith 09/11/20 [Podcast: Buxton, 2020]
An entertaining, yet thoroughly serious, conversation between writer Zadie Smith and comedian Adam Buxton dwelling, amongst other things, on lockdown and the reasons for making art.
A discussion about the ‘point of art in general’ acknowledged that currently many so-called non-essential workers view their normal occupation as an ‘indefensible indulgence’. Of their own activity, Buxton reminded himself that ‘it would be boring without any stupid things and pointless things,’ and Smith concurred by declaring her art ‘inessential but… brightening’.
Smith described the debilitating impact of the pandemic on her creativity, and how this revealed to her a fundamental and terrifying purposelessness, the avoidance of which normally motivates her: ‘Sometimes people ask me, 'What's your inspiration?' and I always want to say, 'Death! Death is my inspiration… Can I think about something other than death for ten minutes? And anything will do, you know, everything that doesn't let me think about that too much is very welcome, always...’
I, similarly, appreciate that my artistic endeavours are strictly superfluous yet still believe there is every reason to seek to exalt the natural world. My two-part sense of contingent wonder – namely, (a) there is a world and (b) I’m here to see to see it – contrasts with a third observation: (c) this won’t always be so. I, too, find this motivating because of the sense of urgency that it engenders.
Matthew Burrows 02/11/20 [Live online artist's talk: Burrows, 2020]
Burrows began his presentation by showing Bellini's 'St. Jerome’, to introduce a comparison between two theologies or world-views and, by extension, two approaches to painting. These roughly equate to representational and abstract approaches. He declared himself in neither position.
Burrows discussed a number of his paintings, all of them clearly displayed. He pointed out repeated geometric features in them (specifically a circle and two horizontal lines) that were said to indicate landscape. The presence of landscape was described as ‘implicit’.
Many of the paintings are visually arresting.
To my mind they have only a vestigial connection with representation. I was unconvinced that the intellectually oriented content proffered by Burrows – including implicit reference to landscape –could be confidently discerned without his explanations. I found my own artistic position clarified in opposition to Burrows’ stance
Fig. 1 Strata II (2019)
Andrea Medjesi-Jones 28/10/20 [Live online artist's talk: Medjesi-Jones, 2020]
I’m not well versed in the idioms employed by Medjesi-Jones in her diverse works so their theoretical underpinnings remain incompletely understood. However, I was pleased to gain insight into some of her motifs and influences, e.g. the ‘SS’ employed in wooden sculptural pieces, Byzantine religious imagery, and Tito’s batons.
I was intrigued by the thought of her being conscious of having been indoctrinated. This was evidenced in a youthful desire to participate in the celebration of the president’s birthday (subsequently assimilated into a mature view in a wholly different cultural context). This autobiographical element prompted reflection about my own upbringing – in a benign low church Christian setting - and its continuing influence into maturity. I am especially grateful for this insight.
Nicolas and Frances McDowall 17/10/20 [Video: Studio International, 2018]
The first of two online resources helpfully identified as relevant by the college’s printmaking technicians.
The two interviewees run the Old Stile Press and, in collaboration with a range of visual artists, have hand-printed and bound numerous artists’ books. This anecdotal interview helped confirm my intention to present a sequence of etchings in a simple book format.
Nick Loaring 16/10/20 [Video: Northern Print, 2020]
A second resource related to printmaking, also suggested by the college’s printmaking technicians.
The scale and ambition of experienced letterpress printer Nick Loaring’s work far exceed mine. In spite of this (or perhaps because of it) I glimpsed in this film some possibilities inherent in the technique and have persisted in its use.
I’m not well versed in the idioms employed by Medjesi-Jones in her diverse works so their theoretical underpinnings remain incompletely understood. However, I was pleased to gain insight into some of her motifs and influences, e.g. the ‘SS’ employed in wooden sculptural pieces, Byzantine religious imagery, and Tito’s batons.
I was intrigued by the thought of her being conscious of having been indoctrinated. This was evidenced in a youthful desire to participate in the celebration of the president’s birthday (subsequently assimilated into a mature view in a wholly different cultural context). This autobiographical element prompted reflection about my own upbringing – in a benign low church Christian setting - and its continuing influence into maturity. I am especially grateful for this insight.
Nicolas and Frances McDowall 17/10/20 [Video: Studio International, 2018]
The first of two online resources helpfully identified as relevant by the college’s printmaking technicians.
The two interviewees run the Old Stile Press and, in collaboration with a range of visual artists, have hand-printed and bound numerous artists’ books. This anecdotal interview helped confirm my intention to present a sequence of etchings in a simple book format.
Nick Loaring 16/10/20 [Video: Northern Print, 2020]
A second resource related to printmaking, also suggested by the college’s printmaking technicians.
The scale and ambition of experienced letterpress printer Nick Loaring’s work far exceed mine. In spite of this (or perhaps because of it) I glimpsed in this film some possibilities inherent in the technique and have persisted in its use.
Fig. 2 Oscillation (n.d.)
John Wood 07/10/20 [Live online artist's talk: Wood, 2020]
The main content of this presentation was a film celebrating thirty years of collaboration between John Wood and Paul Harrison. It was, by turns, mischievous, puzzling, blindingly obvious and laugh-out-loud funny. In my research I’ve considered my response to how transparent or how opaque artworks are, with a view to understanding where on this spectrum I hope to locate what I make. Wood and Harrison’s pieces contributed to this reflection. Their accessibility and humour proved refreshing and disarmingly generous.
The Fragile Contract 25/09/20 [Radio programme: Something Understood, 2020]
Playwright Polly Stenham considered the reasons for making art, partly in the company of singer Florence Welch (she of ‘the Machine’). Welch considered her creativity to be a spilling over of love: ‘You take that love and you turn it into forty people playing wind instruments, or you take that love and turn it into the biggest painting you can imagine.' Stenham partly assented: 'I'm reflecting on why I write theatre and thinking that it's... from a wish potentially to understand things, people, more, and that, I think, comes from a love.’
Other possible reasons for making art included the desire to communicate, the desire to make something ‘that feels right’ and, quoting Paul Klee, ‘in order not to cry’ since, says Stenham, ‘we're all just trying to understand, aren't we? The frightening, the incomprehensible...’ Then, echoing Zadie Smith (above), ‘perhaps our need to make these things arises from our vulnerability, our mortality, our fear... because the very opposite of dying is making... Alchemy. Magic.'
I recognise in myself most of the proffered motivations, to a greater or lesser extent.
The main content of this presentation was a film celebrating thirty years of collaboration between John Wood and Paul Harrison. It was, by turns, mischievous, puzzling, blindingly obvious and laugh-out-loud funny. In my research I’ve considered my response to how transparent or how opaque artworks are, with a view to understanding where on this spectrum I hope to locate what I make. Wood and Harrison’s pieces contributed to this reflection. Their accessibility and humour proved refreshing and disarmingly generous.
The Fragile Contract 25/09/20 [Radio programme: Something Understood, 2020]
Playwright Polly Stenham considered the reasons for making art, partly in the company of singer Florence Welch (she of ‘the Machine’). Welch considered her creativity to be a spilling over of love: ‘You take that love and you turn it into forty people playing wind instruments, or you take that love and turn it into the biggest painting you can imagine.' Stenham partly assented: 'I'm reflecting on why I write theatre and thinking that it's... from a wish potentially to understand things, people, more, and that, I think, comes from a love.’
Other possible reasons for making art included the desire to communicate, the desire to make something ‘that feels right’ and, quoting Paul Klee, ‘in order not to cry’ since, says Stenham, ‘we're all just trying to understand, aren't we? The frightening, the incomprehensible...’ Then, echoing Zadie Smith (above), ‘perhaps our need to make these things arises from our vulnerability, our mortality, our fear... because the very opposite of dying is making... Alchemy. Magic.'
I recognise in myself most of the proffered motivations, to a greater or lesser extent.
Study Visits
Gallery visits were not possible for most of this period of study. As well as a small number of exhibitions, this list includes additional equivalent activities.
'Landscape Painting Now' September – December 2020 [Landscape Painting Now, 2020]
Bradway’s 2019 book of this name has been an important resource throughout my period of formal study. A linked social media feed has often thrust before my gaze numerous works by the book’s featured artists, and others besides. This insistent medium calls for a response. Images I find uninteresting I’ve quickly swiped into oblivion, others that catch my attention I’ve captured as screenshots. I have subsequently added the most notable examples to a page on my blog, amassing a personal directory of artists of interest (below). This cumulative resource has served as a virtual gallery to fuel reflection, mostly about formal features, such as line, gestural marks, the inclusion of drawn elements, and more.
Gallery visits were not possible for most of this period of study. As well as a small number of exhibitions, this list includes additional equivalent activities.
'Landscape Painting Now' September – December 2020 [Landscape Painting Now, 2020]
Bradway’s 2019 book of this name has been an important resource throughout my period of formal study. A linked social media feed has often thrust before my gaze numerous works by the book’s featured artists, and others besides. This insistent medium calls for a response. Images I find uninteresting I’ve quickly swiped into oblivion, others that catch my attention I’ve captured as screenshots. I have subsequently added the most notable examples to a page on my blog, amassing a personal directory of artists of interest (below). This cumulative resource has served as a virtual gallery to fuel reflection, mostly about formal features, such as line, gestural marks, the inclusion of drawn elements, and more.
Fig. 3 Directory of Artists (detail) (2020)
Maureen Gallace: Clear Day November 2020 [MoMA, 2017, and additional online articles, not listed]
Maureen Gallace is one of several ‘Landscape Painting Now’ artists selected as subjects for research in this period of study and is included here since she featured in my assessment presentation. The distinctive look of her paintings hints at her subject being something other, or something more, than the houses, flowers and skies that fill each small panel. By general consent she has contemporary relevance. Why this is so interests me.
(Other artists studied include Eric Aho, Hannah Brown, Lois Dodd and Nicole Wittenberg.)
Chantal Joffe: For Esme - with Love and Squalor 10/10/20 [Exhibition]
Figurative content, gestural brushwork, a focus on the everyday, and several series of paintings displayed with clear chronologies (representing a few days, to a year, to a lifetime), and all loaded with a sense of the inevitable passing of time and a determination to trap, consolingly, these fugitive moments. Though the imagery is markedly different from mine, the formal and conceptual overlaps are considerable, hence my enthusiasm for these works.
Hassan Hajjaj: The Path 10/10/20 [Exhibition]
Comprising exuberantly colourful photographs and a thoroughly captivating video piece, 'My Rock Stars Experimental, volume 1', Hajjaj’s show offered ‘a timely exploration of global culture across continents’. Feeding into my pre-existing interest in the relative accessibility of artworks, this exhibition was an object lesson in welcoming its audience in.
Maureen Gallace is one of several ‘Landscape Painting Now’ artists selected as subjects for research in this period of study and is included here since she featured in my assessment presentation. The distinctive look of her paintings hints at her subject being something other, or something more, than the houses, flowers and skies that fill each small panel. By general consent she has contemporary relevance. Why this is so interests me.
(Other artists studied include Eric Aho, Hannah Brown, Lois Dodd and Nicole Wittenberg.)
Chantal Joffe: For Esme - with Love and Squalor 10/10/20 [Exhibition]
Figurative content, gestural brushwork, a focus on the everyday, and several series of paintings displayed with clear chronologies (representing a few days, to a year, to a lifetime), and all loaded with a sense of the inevitable passing of time and a determination to trap, consolingly, these fugitive moments. Though the imagery is markedly different from mine, the formal and conceptual overlaps are considerable, hence my enthusiasm for these works.
Hassan Hajjaj: The Path 10/10/20 [Exhibition]
Comprising exuberantly colourful photographs and a thoroughly captivating video piece, 'My Rock Stars Experimental, volume 1', Hajjaj’s show offered ‘a timely exploration of global culture across continents’. Feeding into my pre-existing interest in the relative accessibility of artworks, this exhibition was an object lesson in welcoming its audience in.
Fig. 4 My Rock Stars Experimental, volume 1 (2020)
Centre of Gravity 14/10/20 [Exhibition]
Sometimes it’s helpful to spell out what one is not. To identify differences rather than similarities.
Of one work in this exhibition I wrote: ‘I’m left feeling insulted by the lack of effort involved in its making, uninterested by its appearance, affronted by the obscurity of the ideas said to lie behind it, disinclined to think about it at all and moved only to annoyance’. This was emphatically not my response to the whole show, but it, and elements of other works, caused me to reflect variously on:
Richard Diebenkorn October 2020 [Diebenkorn, 2015]
I revisited Diebenkorn’s Royal Academy exhibition through its catalogue. It’s a show I viewed in 2015, since when its significance for me has only grown. I was originally drawn to his middle period figurative paintings, but have discovered the colours and brushwork of his late and, especially, his early period abstractions to be of increasing relevance.
Sometimes it’s helpful to spell out what one is not. To identify differences rather than similarities.
Of one work in this exhibition I wrote: ‘I’m left feeling insulted by the lack of effort involved in its making, uninterested by its appearance, affronted by the obscurity of the ideas said to lie behind it, disinclined to think about it at all and moved only to annoyance’. This was emphatically not my response to the whole show, but it, and elements of other works, caused me to reflect variously on:
- the place of humour/absurdity in catching my attention (works by Wood and Harrison and Neville Gabie succeeded in this regard)
- the influence of pre-existing expectations (i.e. seeing work by a familiar artist, in this case Veronica Vickery, and the influence of that prior encounter, for good or ill)
- the need for a back story to unravel some works that would otherwise remain opaque (in particular, a photographic piece by Huma Mulji prompted this thought)
- the place of skilful execution.
Richard Diebenkorn October 2020 [Diebenkorn, 2015]
I revisited Diebenkorn’s Royal Academy exhibition through its catalogue. It’s a show I viewed in 2015, since when its significance for me has only grown. I was originally drawn to his middle period figurative paintings, but have discovered the colours and brushwork of his late and, especially, his early period abstractions to be of increasing relevance.
Key Research Events
Preparing my presentation November – January 2021
As is always true, I found the discipline of clarifying and condensing my thoughts to present them to others to be instrumental in making new knowledge explicit to myself. Feedback following the presentation of a draft version amplified several nascent ideas and helped firm up my proposal.
Writing an exhibition proposal November 2020
I worked collaboratively with two fellow students to write a proposal for a possible future exhibition in the Michael Pennie Gallery. This helped clarify similarities and differences between our respective practices, and developed several professional skills. If our bid is successful (and the show is possible) it will provide a significant opportunity to develop additional skills, notably of curation.
Reading about Raymond Mason October 2020 [Edwards, 1994 and additional titles, not listed]
The serendipitous discovery of a tiny black and white image of a sculpture by Raymond Mason (‘The Grape-Pickers’) in a catalogue otherwise devoted to the School of London painters (Morphet, 1984) led to a sympathetic encounter with the work and views of this thoughtful man. I was initially curious to learn the size of the illustrated work (a fact that I always find important) and on discovering that it was very many times larger than I had supposed, and polychrome to boot, I wanted to learn more.
Mason’s monograph (Edwards, 1994) proved enlightening. Despite profound formal differences between his work and mine, I found myself in sympathy with much of what he said and made, specifically:
Preparing my presentation November – January 2021
As is always true, I found the discipline of clarifying and condensing my thoughts to present them to others to be instrumental in making new knowledge explicit to myself. Feedback following the presentation of a draft version amplified several nascent ideas and helped firm up my proposal.
Writing an exhibition proposal November 2020
I worked collaboratively with two fellow students to write a proposal for a possible future exhibition in the Michael Pennie Gallery. This helped clarify similarities and differences between our respective practices, and developed several professional skills. If our bid is successful (and the show is possible) it will provide a significant opportunity to develop additional skills, notably of curation.
Reading about Raymond Mason October 2020 [Edwards, 1994 and additional titles, not listed]
The serendipitous discovery of a tiny black and white image of a sculpture by Raymond Mason (‘The Grape-Pickers’) in a catalogue otherwise devoted to the School of London painters (Morphet, 1984) led to a sympathetic encounter with the work and views of this thoughtful man. I was initially curious to learn the size of the illustrated work (a fact that I always find important) and on discovering that it was very many times larger than I had supposed, and polychrome to boot, I wanted to learn more.
Mason’s monograph (Edwards, 1994) proved enlightening. Despite profound formal differences between his work and mine, I found myself in sympathy with much of what he said and made, specifically:
- finding inspiration in one’s immediate surroundings
- a desire to exalt the real world (in its unsophisticated, everyday, sense)
- an avowed commitment to making works that are understandable.
Fig. 5 The Grape-Pickers (1982)
Tutorial #25 (DD) 29/10/20 ‘Punctum’
A question about a partly finished painting (‘Where is the punctum?’) prompted an analysis of a range of landscape images, mostly drawn from the ‘Landscape Painting Now’ Instagram feed (above). In the short term this led me to change the painting I was working on, and, in the long term, raises a problem requiring attention and (if possible) repeated resolution.
Tutorial #24 (AM-J) 27/10/20 ‘Five words’
The constraint of encapsulating the essential features of my artistic activity in a few words proved revelatory. It set an agenda for further development, and acted as a touchstone throughout this period of study.
A question about a partly finished painting (‘Where is the punctum?’) prompted an analysis of a range of landscape images, mostly drawn from the ‘Landscape Painting Now’ Instagram feed (above). In the short term this led me to change the painting I was working on, and, in the long term, raises a problem requiring attention and (if possible) repeated resolution.
Tutorial #24 (AM-J) 27/10/20 ‘Five words’
The constraint of encapsulating the essential features of my artistic activity in a few words proved revelatory. It set an agenda for further development, and acted as a touchstone throughout this period of study.
Fig. 6 Five Words, Approx. Annotated (2020)
MF7003 Feedback (MN) 28/09/20
Feedback from the preceding studio-based module of study set the scene for this one, and provided encouragement at the outset.
Reading about Romanticism September - October 2020 [principally Brown, 2001 and Honour, 1979]
Romantic themes are strongly present both in what I make and in my reasons for making them, so it’s been necessary for me to understand this movement. In particular:
Reading about Phenomenology September - December 2020 [principally Merleau-Ponty, 1962 and Sokolowski, 2000]
If John Wylie (2013) is correct in stating that ‘landscape and phenomenology share… a common genesis’ in Romantic attitudes, then my fledgling interest in phenomenological themes is unsurprising. I detect rudimentary connections between my work and phenomenology’s doctrines of ‘parts and wholes’, ‘presence and absence’, and the characteristic understanding that perception is always an achievement. I believe I may be able to draw on these themes in future work.
The Treasures of Darkness December 2020 [Jacobsen, 1976]
Human perception and knowledge are always culturally situated, so the idea of eternal truths is unconvincing. However, some things last longer than others. One could be forgiven for thinking that the Romantics were the first to stand in awe of nature, and the existentialists the first to gain insight into being. Reading Thorkild Jacobsen's authoritative history of Mesopotamian religion undercuts any self-flattering elevation of modern thought. He presents example after example of an ancient human response to being-in-the-world that is no less profound than anything available today.
Being contemporary and being novel are not the same thing.
Feedback from the preceding studio-based module of study set the scene for this one, and provided encouragement at the outset.
Reading about Romanticism September - October 2020 [principally Brown, 2001 and Honour, 1979]
Romantic themes are strongly present both in what I make and in my reasons for making them, so it’s been necessary for me to understand this movement. In particular:
- I’m happy to acknowledge the influence of a Christian sensibility on my artistic activity, so the description of the Romantic sentiment as ‘spilt religion’ (Honour, 1979: 299) seems apt, even though the comment was originally a disparaging one. Like Friedrich, I find myself relating to the world 'with something of the same reverence that had formerly been reserved for God’ (Brown, 2001: 132).
- In accord with Novalis’s description of ‘Romanticizing’, I seek in my choice of subject to ‘endow… the commonplace with a lofty significance… the familiar with the merit of the unfamiliar…’ (Honour, 1979: 72) and to value highly that which is ‘personal, local, peculiar, of its own time’ (Honour, 1979: 18).
- Like Wordsworth and Constable I try to root my activity in the ‘observation of reality’ (Brown, 2001: 132). Concomitant with this is the Romantic tendency to set considerable store both by the sketch and the plein air painting as authentic sources of visual material.
Reading about Phenomenology September - December 2020 [principally Merleau-Ponty, 1962 and Sokolowski, 2000]
If John Wylie (2013) is correct in stating that ‘landscape and phenomenology share… a common genesis’ in Romantic attitudes, then my fledgling interest in phenomenological themes is unsurprising. I detect rudimentary connections between my work and phenomenology’s doctrines of ‘parts and wholes’, ‘presence and absence’, and the characteristic understanding that perception is always an achievement. I believe I may be able to draw on these themes in future work.
The Treasures of Darkness December 2020 [Jacobsen, 1976]
Human perception and knowledge are always culturally situated, so the idea of eternal truths is unconvincing. However, some things last longer than others. One could be forgiven for thinking that the Romantics were the first to stand in awe of nature, and the existentialists the first to gain insight into being. Reading Thorkild Jacobsen's authoritative history of Mesopotamian religion undercuts any self-flattering elevation of modern thought. He presents example after example of an ancient human response to being-in-the-world that is no less profound than anything available today.
Being contemporary and being novel are not the same thing.
Fig. 7 Book cover showing a statue of Ninurta, god of the thundershowers and floods of spring, c. 3000 B.C,
Reading about Aesthetics and Epistemology December 2020 - January 2021 [principally Cazeaux, 2017 and Dewey, 1958]
The relationship between 'art' and 'knowledge' is fraught. It's not obvious to me how I might generate new knowledge that is reliably transmitted to others by making art, yet this is what the enterprise of artistic research in the academy entails.
The first half of Cazeaux's 'Art, Research, Philosophy' offers helpful clarification of many of the issues at stake, even if the second half is shakier, maybe specious. His review of what knowledge has meant historically and his interpretation of how Kant's transcendental idealism might relate to art practice are especially helpful.
Dewey, on the other hand, remains consistently convincing, with a down-to-earth pragmatism that is clear and inspiring in equal measure. His 'Art as Experience' was written well before major developments during the second half of the twentieth century, so is out-dated in some respects. However, as my work is figurative and media-based this is not a significant shortcoming as I consider the relevance of his insights to what I am attempting.
The relationship between 'art' and 'knowledge' is fraught. It's not obvious to me how I might generate new knowledge that is reliably transmitted to others by making art, yet this is what the enterprise of artistic research in the academy entails.
The first half of Cazeaux's 'Art, Research, Philosophy' offers helpful clarification of many of the issues at stake, even if the second half is shakier, maybe specious. His review of what knowledge has meant historically and his interpretation of how Kant's transcendental idealism might relate to art practice are especially helpful.
Dewey, on the other hand, remains consistently convincing, with a down-to-earth pragmatism that is clear and inspiring in equal measure. His 'Art as Experience' was written well before major developments during the second half of the twentieth century, so is out-dated in some respects. However, as my work is figurative and media-based this is not a significant shortcoming as I consider the relevance of his insights to what I am attempting.
Spirit of Place December 2020 [Owens, 2020]
A highly readable overview of the British landscape as seen through the eyes of writers and visual artists. This book helpfully drew together themes I had previously encountered.
A highly readable overview of the British landscape as seen through the eyes of writers and visual artists. This book helpfully drew together themes I had previously encountered.
'Informal crits' September – January 2021
Coordinating and participating in regular online conversations with fellow students has imperfectly replaced incidental studio-based conversations, so important for maintaining energy and enthusiasm. The benefits have been largely intangible, but no less important for that.
Practical activity September – January 2021
(See supporting material for my proposal for additional information)
Observation: regular plein air drawing (sketches in graphite, charcoal and oil paint), plus filming video clips as a source of low quality still images
Painting: experimentation with multi-part works
Printmaking: experimentation with letterpress, etching, lithography and the creation of simple artist’s books, plus regular workshop sessions to edition prints
Sculpture: hand-building in clay, then glazing, plus experimentation and instruction in mould-making techniques using latex and silicone rubbers and plaster casting.
Coordinating and participating in regular online conversations with fellow students has imperfectly replaced incidental studio-based conversations, so important for maintaining energy and enthusiasm. The benefits have been largely intangible, but no less important for that.
Practical activity September – January 2021
(See supporting material for my proposal for additional information)
Observation: regular plein air drawing (sketches in graphite, charcoal and oil paint), plus filming video clips as a source of low quality still images
Painting: experimentation with multi-part works
Printmaking: experimentation with letterpress, etching, lithography and the creation of simple artist’s books, plus regular workshop sessions to edition prints
Sculpture: hand-building in clay, then glazing, plus experimentation and instruction in mould-making techniques using latex and silicone rubbers and plaster casting.
Bibliography
Brown, D. B. (2001) Romanticism London: Phaidon
Burrows, M. (2020) ‘Postgraduate lecture’ [Online artist’s talk] MF7004 Aspects of Contemporary Arts Practice Bath Spa University. 2 November
Buxton, A. (2020) Episode 130: Zadie Smith [Podcast] August 2020 Available at: https://www.adam-buxton.co.uk/podcasts/7-bfk9m-4l8kp-blcga-jwabs-blbb8-b9mjx-fj3gr-j4lyp (Accessed: 14 November 2020)
Cazeaux, C. (2017) Art, Research, Philosophy Abingdon, Oxon.: Routledge
Centre of Gravity (2020) [Exhibition] The Soapworks, Bristol. 3 October – 1 November
Chantal Joffe: For Esme – with Love and Squalor (2020) [Exhibition] Arnolfini, Bristol, 3 September – 22 November
Dewey, J. (1958) Art as Experience New York: Putnam's
Diebenkorn, R. (2015) Richard Diebenkorn Royal Academy of Arts, London, 14 March – 7 June [Exhibition catalogue]
Edwards, M. (1994) Raymond Mason London: Thames and Hudson
Hassan Hajjaj: The Path (2020) [Exhibition] Arnolfini, Bristol, 30 July – 1 November
Honour, H. (1979) Romanticism London: Allen Lane
Jacobsen, T. (1976) The Treasures of Darkness: A History of Mesopotamian Religion New Haven: Yale University Press
Landscape Painting Now (2020) Available at https://www.instagram.com/landscape_painting_now/ (Accessed repeatedly)
Medjesi-Jones, (2020) ‘Postgraduate lecture’ [Live online artist’s talk] MF7004 Aspects of Contemporary Arts Practice Bath Spa University. 28 October
Merleau-Ponty, M. (1962) Phenomenology of Perception Translated from the French by C. Smith, London: Routledge
MoMA (2017) Maureen Gallace: Clear Day Available at: https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/3828 (Accessed: 23 November 2020)
Morphet, R. (1984) The Hard-Won Image: Traditional method and subject in recent British art Tate Gallery, London, 4 July – 9 September [Exhibition catalogue]
Northern Print (2020) The Lumen Print Collection: Nick Loaring [Video] n.d. Available at: https://vimeo.com/467669307 (Accessed: 16 October 2020)
Owens, S. (2020) Spirit of Place: Artists, Writers and the British Landscape London: Thames and Hudson
Smith, Z. (2020) Intimations: Six Essays London: Penguin Books
Sokolowski, R. (2000) Introduction to Phenomenology Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Something Understood (2020) BBC Radio 4, 6 September, 06:00
Studio International (2018) The Old Stile Press [Video] 2 October. Available at: www.studiointernational.com/index.php/the-old-stile-press-frances-nicolas-mcdowall-video-interview (Accessed: 17 October 2020)
Wood, J. (2020) ‘Postgraduate lecture’ [Live online artist’s talk] MF7004 Aspects of Contemporary Arts Practice Bath Spa University. 7 October
Wylie, J. (2013) ‘Landscape and Phenomenology’ in Howard, P., Thompson, I. and Waterson, E. (eds.) The Routledge Companion to Landscape Studies London: Routledge, pp.54-65
Burrows, M. (2020) ‘Postgraduate lecture’ [Online artist’s talk] MF7004 Aspects of Contemporary Arts Practice Bath Spa University. 2 November
Buxton, A. (2020) Episode 130: Zadie Smith [Podcast] August 2020 Available at: https://www.adam-buxton.co.uk/podcasts/7-bfk9m-4l8kp-blcga-jwabs-blbb8-b9mjx-fj3gr-j4lyp (Accessed: 14 November 2020)
Cazeaux, C. (2017) Art, Research, Philosophy Abingdon, Oxon.: Routledge
Centre of Gravity (2020) [Exhibition] The Soapworks, Bristol. 3 October – 1 November
Chantal Joffe: For Esme – with Love and Squalor (2020) [Exhibition] Arnolfini, Bristol, 3 September – 22 November
Dewey, J. (1958) Art as Experience New York: Putnam's
Diebenkorn, R. (2015) Richard Diebenkorn Royal Academy of Arts, London, 14 March – 7 June [Exhibition catalogue]
Edwards, M. (1994) Raymond Mason London: Thames and Hudson
Hassan Hajjaj: The Path (2020) [Exhibition] Arnolfini, Bristol, 30 July – 1 November
Honour, H. (1979) Romanticism London: Allen Lane
Jacobsen, T. (1976) The Treasures of Darkness: A History of Mesopotamian Religion New Haven: Yale University Press
Landscape Painting Now (2020) Available at https://www.instagram.com/landscape_painting_now/ (Accessed repeatedly)
Medjesi-Jones, (2020) ‘Postgraduate lecture’ [Live online artist’s talk] MF7004 Aspects of Contemporary Arts Practice Bath Spa University. 28 October
Merleau-Ponty, M. (1962) Phenomenology of Perception Translated from the French by C. Smith, London: Routledge
MoMA (2017) Maureen Gallace: Clear Day Available at: https://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibitions/3828 (Accessed: 23 November 2020)
Morphet, R. (1984) The Hard-Won Image: Traditional method and subject in recent British art Tate Gallery, London, 4 July – 9 September [Exhibition catalogue]
Northern Print (2020) The Lumen Print Collection: Nick Loaring [Video] n.d. Available at: https://vimeo.com/467669307 (Accessed: 16 October 2020)
Owens, S. (2020) Spirit of Place: Artists, Writers and the British Landscape London: Thames and Hudson
Smith, Z. (2020) Intimations: Six Essays London: Penguin Books
Sokolowski, R. (2000) Introduction to Phenomenology Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Something Understood (2020) BBC Radio 4, 6 September, 06:00
Studio International (2018) The Old Stile Press [Video] 2 October. Available at: www.studiointernational.com/index.php/the-old-stile-press-frances-nicolas-mcdowall-video-interview (Accessed: 17 October 2020)
Wood, J. (2020) ‘Postgraduate lecture’ [Live online artist’s talk] MF7004 Aspects of Contemporary Arts Practice Bath Spa University. 7 October
Wylie, J. (2013) ‘Landscape and Phenomenology’ in Howard, P., Thompson, I. and Waterson, E. (eds.) The Routledge Companion to Landscape Studies London: Routledge, pp.54-65
List of illustrations
- Matthew Burrows (2019) Strata II [Oil on linen on board] 153 x 120 cm Available at: https://www.artsy.net/artwork/matthew-burrows-strata-ii (Accessed: 10 November 2020)
- Nick Loaring (n.d.) Oscillation [Linocut and letterpress print, edition of 20] 70 x 50 cm Available at: https://northernprint.org.uk/collections/nick-loaring/products/oscillation-1 (Accessed: 10 December 2020)
- Heath, T. (2020) Directory of Artists (detail) [Blog] Not published
- Hassan Hajjaj (2020) My Rock Stars Experimental, volume 1 [Video] Available at: https://www.bbc.com/culture/gallery/20171017-hassan-hajjajs-technicolor-journey (Accessed: 10 December 2020)
- Raymond Mason (1982) The Grape-Pickers [Polyester resin and acrylic paint] 280 x 325 x 170 cm) Edition of 4
- Tim Heath (2020) Five Words, Approx. Annotated [Stamp print, acrylic ink on paper] 28 x 48 cm In artist's possession
- Jacobsen, T. (1976) The Treasures of Darkness: A History of Mesopotamian Religion [Book cover] New Haven: Yale University Press