best vacation spots: screenprinted

Tampilkan postingan dengan label screenprinted. Tampilkan semua postingan

Kamis, 06 Maret 2014

03.31

songs from the beginning of the world

by Travelling around the world, in screenprints

The first part of my research based arts project "Chasing the Ghost of Angus Mcphee" a bespoke hand made and very limited edition grey cloth box containing a set of six new screenprints. The prints examine contemporary Scottish culture and its fractured relationship with the past through an exploration of identity which pulls together many diverse strands and influences such as outsider artist Angus McPhee in the grass woven costumes worn by the children as well as tribal fetishes and outsider art versions of everyday cultural icons that the children of the grass choose to worship.

This work provides a bridge between an ancient past and an unknown future for a hebridean culture and the broader Scottish culture. These tiny fragments are all we have left of our ancient Scottish nation and who we once were when we were culturally whole. Are the children ghosts from the past haunting our present or are they confused cultural warriors fighting to create a new future?

The ruins of old caravans, desolate vessels representing family and a transient relationship with memory and home lurk in the backgrounds of some of the images. In other more hopeful images we see new Ark structures built, Arks constructed from the debris of old boat hulls and deconstructed allotment sheds.

The texts reference political systems, ideologies, collective memories and calls for unity and are intentionally ambiguous, some ominous, some celebratory, some even threatening.

The background textures are an abstracted study of the orange lichens found by the coast in the Hebrides and explore both geology and mapping.

BOX SIZE : 51CM x 36 CM x 3CM

BOX EDITION – 8

BOX GREY CLOTH BOUND BOX WITH INSET SCREENPRINT ON COVER

PRINT SIZES : 6 IMAGES : EACH 50 CM x 35CM

5 colour screenprints on fabriano white paper

Produced in September 2013

The editions were produced at Highland Print Studio and the hand made boxed produced in collaboration with Sollas Books in North Uist with funding support from Creative Scotland and University of Edinburgh.

The second part of the new body will be a series of large-scale mixed media pieces created from salvage collected on my travels in the Hebrides and be ready in the New Year after I complete my current creative Scotland residency for Year of Natural Scotland with SNH to be followed by a large scale sculptural Public art installation.

Tidak ada komentar:

Jumat, 19 April 2013

09.32

InBetween Artist Residency - the witches shrine

by Travelling around the world, in witches

the panels are all found materials, considered worthless like the outsider women of this shrine.

the shrine was placed in a long abandoned stationers shop which had simply been locked and left when the owners wife died, a very sad and dispossessed presence in the back streets of dumfries perfect for a shrine such as this

reflections and found materials play a big part of this installation

the panels reflect many states of mental anguish, anger, exhaustion and defiance that the woman must have experienced throughout their ordeal

a single model was used to capture these ten women - their individual personalities were accentuated by different patterns in their clothing as well as different very difficult emotional reactions conjured up by the model kathryn milligan

copper leaf, found materials, spray paint and tranfer prints were used to give the shrine both a decorative yet very ordinary feel. the panels often being the backs of old household furniture, cupboards and the like.

all of the individual panels were bound togethor by red twine which was historically used to ward off witches

the witches stones which ground the shrine are made from stone collected from locharbriggs quarry - historically witches gathered at locharbriggs to carry out their ceremonies. bound playing cards are another way of protecting against witchcraft, often inserted into documents. the key comes from st michaels kirk which stood at the time of the witch trials and was party to these atrocities against the women.
the stones were carved for me by an old pal darren campbell, witches stones were hung in barns and cottages to protect "ordinary" people from evil!

the patterns found here run through to the other more holistic shrines reminding us constantly of this terrible time in dumfries and scotland's history

one of the women managed to bribe and buy her freedom but had her cheek branded by a molten hot iron causing smoke to come out of her mouth according to witness records. she was then banished from the district and all her friends and family

the location allowed great interplay with both the building and the street in the reflections

mirrors on either side of the window extended this interplay with the shrine

at night the shrine was lit allowing a series of late night vigils for the women which lasted all winter long

the witches shrines commemorates one of the darkest episodes from dumfries's past. in 1659 ten women were accused of witchcraft by dumfries kirk session. the women were held and tortured to extract a "confession" and during this terrible ordeal one of the women who could stand no more hung herself in her cell. the other 9 women were found guilty and on the 13th of april 1659, probably on the white sands although this is disputed among historians, they were tied to stakes and brutally strangled from behind by soldiers then their bodies were burnt to ashes.

agnes (comenes) cairnes, janet mcgowan, jean tomson, margaret clerk, janet corsane, helen moorhead, janet callon, agnes clark, janet mcnaught and helen harris. all ordinary women guilty of no crime.

there were many similar instances at this time of hysterical witch trials but this stands out by the sheer inhumanity of the collective execution of nine innocent women. one of the women was a known healer, the others were simply outsiders, perhaps unpopular with their neighbours, perhaps a little bit unusual in their beliefs, paganism was still popular as were other alternative belief systems. this is how dumfries treated its outsiders in 1659!

the organic patterns that start in this shrine extend through the outsider art shrine where a more humane system for treating outsiders began and into the clothing of todays custodian outsiders who protect dumfries. the patterns drawn from the engravings and carvings of flowers from the churches of dumfries remain the link between all the shrines and echo through the layers of history in my project as a constant warning about how we perceive and treat each other.

Tidak ada komentar:

Kamis, 08 Maret 2012

10.53

children of the grass - 3 new screenprint editions

by Travelling around the world, in winter in my eyes

a set of 3 new editions completes the cycle of creativity in inverness attached to the public art project and large scale wall installation I created there last year - Inverness Old Town Art commissioned me to create the new editions and I produced a limited run of 13 of each - they were printed at the excellent Highland Print Studio overlooking the river in Inverness - the editions each reduce to their essence the three parts of the wall installation - children of the grass, winter in my eyes, the wolf beside me. the three titles are taken from a gaelic verse created by Fiona J Mackenzie in response to the work. contact Inverness Old Town Art if you wish to purchase a set of prints.

Tidak ada komentar:

Kamis, 09 April 2009

19.03

screenprinted book//pharmaceutical bottles

by Travelling around the world, in screenprinted

the book and pharmaceutical bottles bring in a time based aspect to the experience allowing me to explore many different elements of non traditional narrative.

Tidak ada komentar:

best vacation spots

Kamis, 06 Maret 2014

songs from the beginning of the world

Jumat, 19 April 2013

InBetween Artist Residency - the witches shrine

Kamis, 08 Maret 2012

children of the grass - 3 new screenprint editions

Kamis, 09 April 2009

screenprinted book//pharmaceutical bottles

Author Details