11 December 2012
Northampton... Alan Moore... Jimmys End
Northampton comic book hero Alan Moore has made a film with Mitch Jenkins, which reminds me a little bit of Chris Morris but without the punchline. Maybe a little bit funny, but mainly just peculiar... or just weird...
...Just the sort of thing for Christmas.
...Just the sort of thing for Christmas.
16 November 2012
14 November 2012
30 October 2012
23 August 2012
7 August 2012
Return to the Sketchbook
I have been making figurative drawings ever since the tail end of my degree, following a trip to the Whitney Biennial in 2004.
At art school, especially at college, I felt very discouraged from making anything which could be seen as illustrative. It wasn't really until I saw the work of artists such as Zak Smith, Barry Mcgee, Ernesto Caivano, Amy Cutler, that I decided to explore the other work that I had been doing alongside my abstract paintings. At this point I made the decision to step away from the canvas and I have never really felt any desire to go back.
Recently, I documented a lot of my old work from Uni and by doing so I started to think about where I am now in relation to that relatively short burst of work that I made for my degree show. The conclusion that I came to was that the work I am making now, although obviously more accomplished than those previous drawings, had lost an element of spontaneity and variety.
The reason for this I think is simple enough, that my drawings rely increasingly on sampled imagery which make it more and more difficult to sustain. The selection process for the images themselves is too laborious and too random, which was having a negative impact on the time that I have to actually make the drawings as well as impacting the critical ideas that underpinned them. In short, the selection method was too subjective and so was too broad to allow any exploration of ideas relating to a specific type of image. The slip in methodology can only harm the coherence of any body of work unless there are other factors which tie the images together. In the case of my drawings, it could be argued that the process did this job. Then you ask the question, how far does the subject affect the creation of a drawing and how much of it is actually reliant on process?
This is where abstraction comes back into consideration. If the subject is not absolutely necessary, then the obvious resolution is to dispense with it.
The conclusion that I have come to is that for the time being, I am going to return to exploring the potential in the application of process, without too much consideration for the end product. I have already been doing this in the automatic drawings, and I think this is where I am now heading.
I have been making figurative drawings ever since the tail end of my degree, following a trip to the Whitney Biennial in 2004.
At art school, especially at college, I felt very discouraged from making anything which could be seen as illustrative. It wasn't really until I saw the work of artists such as Zak Smith, Barry Mcgee, Ernesto Caivano, Amy Cutler, that I decided to explore the other work that I had been doing alongside my abstract paintings. At this point I made the decision to step away from the canvas and I have never really felt any desire to go back.
Recently, I documented a lot of my old work from Uni and by doing so I started to think about where I am now in relation to that relatively short burst of work that I made for my degree show. The conclusion that I came to was that the work I am making now, although obviously more accomplished than those previous drawings, had lost an element of spontaneity and variety.
The reason for this I think is simple enough, that my drawings rely increasingly on sampled imagery which make it more and more difficult to sustain. The selection process for the images themselves is too laborious and too random, which was having a negative impact on the time that I have to actually make the drawings as well as impacting the critical ideas that underpinned them. In short, the selection method was too subjective and so was too broad to allow any exploration of ideas relating to a specific type of image. The slip in methodology can only harm the coherence of any body of work unless there are other factors which tie the images together. In the case of my drawings, it could be argued that the process did this job. Then you ask the question, how far does the subject affect the creation of a drawing and how much of it is actually reliant on process?
This is where abstraction comes back into consideration. If the subject is not absolutely necessary, then the obvious resolution is to dispense with it.
The conclusion that I have come to is that for the time being, I am going to return to exploring the potential in the application of process, without too much consideration for the end product. I have already been doing this in the automatic drawings, and I think this is where I am now heading.
Robert Hughes 1938-2012
We need to question the true values of art and lift the veil of prescribed quality to expose the vacuity of capital. We need to see the soul in art and not a knowing product of the reflection of consumption and capital. But of course, there is another question, what else is there to reflect on?
2 August 2012
Sketch 5
I haven't posted for ages, but I'm returning to the automatic drawings. More documentation. More stuff. It's easy to get caught up in thinking about why we're making things and why they are relevant, or if they are relevant at all. So I'm going to return to making art for myself again. A return to drawing and a return to sharing that creative drive that refuses to go away.
7 June 2012
26 April 2012
19 April 2012
Automatic Drawings... again
I have done a few automatic drawings again recently... here they are. I have been working on some new stuff, but all my time seems to disappear somewhere. I wish I could find it...
12 April 2012
Squarepusher
New Squarepusher album out in May. If every track is like this then it might be worth checking out...
11 April 2012
wolfe von lenkiewicz
Some work by Lenk Von Lenkiewicz. There is an exhibition of his work in London at the moment...
5th APRIL, 2012
Other Criteria3
6 New Bond Street, Mayfair,
London, UKW1S 2RP
www.othercriteria.com
5th APRIL, 2012
Other Criteria3
6 New Bond Street, Mayfair,
London, UKW1S 2RP
www.othercriteria.com
10 April 2012
Joel-Peter Witkin
This stuff might have been shocking at some point. Now you can google executions and fatal motorway crashes, so maybe its not so shocking anymore, but there is still a certain amount of creativity in using a dead guys head as a vase.
Oh, and suprisingly, it's not very popular with Christians
But N.I.N liked it...
Oh, and suprisingly, it's not very popular with Christians
But N.I.N liked it...
6 April 2012
5 April 2012
Not Alone
I threw together a bit of a remix of Olive's 'Your Not Alone'. I kind of made the track and then thought I'd lay the vocal over the top... I think it works quite well, although overall it seems quite melancholic.
Oh year...
Happy Easter!
Oh year...
Happy Easter!
30 March 2012
New work
Hey, so I haven't posted anything for a while. Maybe I'm just getting lazy. Yeah, that's probably it. Also work has been pretty busy. I do have excuses, but maybe not very good ones. What else... er, I read The Hunger Games for my book group. Its not too bad if you can get past the fact its basically a Twilight version of Battle Royale with some 1984 thrown into the mix.
Its not the usual sort of book I'd read, but then that's the point of being in a book group, to read the kind of rubbish other people read. I had to buy 'The Psychopath Test' by Ron Jonson at the same time to even out the purchase. I enjoyed that more. Next up is Dante's 'Inferno'.
So what else... After going to see the Jeremy Deller exhibition at the Hayward, I've been thinking about some of my earlier work and how I can bring this back into my current drawings.
Its nothing like Jeremy Deller's stuff, but I think some of the ideas are similar in terms of maybe traditions and the absurdity of the human condition.
Anyway, maybe I'll write up some of my ideas in another post. Here is a drawing I did this week. Continue reading for some older stuff...
Its not the usual sort of book I'd read, but then that's the point of being in a book group, to read the kind of rubbish other people read. I had to buy 'The Psychopath Test' by Ron Jonson at the same time to even out the purchase. I enjoyed that more. Next up is Dante's 'Inferno'.
So what else... After going to see the Jeremy Deller exhibition at the Hayward, I've been thinking about some of my earlier work and how I can bring this back into my current drawings.
Its nothing like Jeremy Deller's stuff, but I think some of the ideas are similar in terms of maybe traditions and the absurdity of the human condition.
Anyway, maybe I'll write up some of my ideas in another post. Here is a drawing I did this week. Continue reading for some older stuff...
19 March 2012
15 March 2012
14 March 2012
Automatic Drawing 14.03.12
I haven't posted any automatic drawings for a while... but here's one I did yesterday on some bright green paper I seem to have a lot of!
13 March 2012
Retracing the Unsinkable
Retracing the Unsinkable
SouthamptonCity Art Gallery’s Biennial Open Exhibition 2012
17th March – 29th April 2012 (on display in the foyer and Gallery 1 and 2)
300 works of art created by residents of Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Wiltshire and Dorset were submitted for the Retracing the Unsinkable 'open exhibition' all on the theme of the Titantic.
A panel of judges from Southampton City Art Gallery and Aspex Gallery in Portsmouth selected 130 works for display created by artists of all ages from 8 years old upwards.
As well as paintings you will also see 3D works, collages and textile creations.
Three of the artists have been awarded prizes, generously donated by Liquid Divers Scuba School and Southampton Sailing Club.
I have had the two drawings below selected for the exhibition which opens on Saturday at Southampton City Art Gallery...
smaller.jpg)
smaller.jpg)
SouthamptonCity Art Gallery’s Biennial Open Exhibition 2012
17th March – 29th April 2012 (on display in the foyer and Gallery 1 and 2)
300 works of art created by residents of Hampshire, Isle of Wight, Wiltshire and Dorset were submitted for the Retracing the Unsinkable 'open exhibition' all on the theme of the Titantic.
A panel of judges from Southampton City Art Gallery and Aspex Gallery in Portsmouth selected 130 works for display created by artists of all ages from 8 years old upwards.
As well as paintings you will also see 3D works, collages and textile creations.
Three of the artists have been awarded prizes, generously donated by Liquid Divers Scuba School and Southampton Sailing Club.
I have had the two drawings below selected for the exhibition which opens on Saturday at Southampton City Art Gallery...
smaller.jpg)
smaller.jpg)
4 March 2012
Fallout
Hey, it's been a ropey weekend of revising for me but I'm back. I've been working on a few pieces to submit for exhibition this coming week, so that and doing other stuff to satisfy requirements for the day job has taken its toll. Hopefully I'll be getting on with things again as of tomorrow.
Anyway, here are a few drawings I did a couple of years ago on a bit of an atomic theme which I haven't posted and quite possibly haven't been seen out of the shoe box before.
I remember exhibiting the yellow one....
Anyway, here are a few drawings I did a couple of years ago on a bit of an atomic theme which I haven't posted and quite possibly haven't been seen out of the shoe box before.
I remember exhibiting the yellow one....
26 February 2012
Squarepusher 'Ufabulum'
New album from Squarepusher due out in May 2012, according to Warp...
"I've started thinking about pure electronic music again. Something very melodic, very aggressive" - Squarepusher
Sounds good to me.
23 February 2012
Urban Drawings
I haven't posted anything for a few days as I have been pretty busy. The daily drawings will hopefully pick up again in a week or so when I have cleared up all the stuff I'm trying to do at the moment... which have become quite time consuming.
Today I'm posting some drawings of car parks that I did a few years ago. I've got boxes full of drawings kicking around, so maybe I'll post some more soon.
I'm glad it's Friday tomorrow.
Today I'm posting some drawings of car parks that I did a few years ago. I've got boxes full of drawings kicking around, so maybe I'll post some more soon.
I'm glad it's Friday tomorrow.
20 February 2012
Drawing 20.02.12
Sorry I have been a bit slack uploading stuff this month, but I've had a few other things on the go all at once. Anyway, hopefully some more interesting stuff to come...
17 February 2012
Automatic Skull Drawings
Last weekend I spent a while drawing a skull money box. It looks just like a real skull, so I thought it would be cool to draw it, being as skulls are sooooo in right now. I mixed it up with the automatic drawing project and made some drawings without looking at the paper.
One of the things I like about this way of working is the unexpected qualities that are created. I was deliberately trying to be as confident with the technique as possible.
More after the jump...
One of the things I like about this way of working is the unexpected qualities that are created. I was deliberately trying to be as confident with the technique as possible.
More after the jump...
15 February 2012
Drawing 15.02.2012
14 February 2012
Hope & Poverty Exhibition @ Paintworks, Bristol
Happy Valentines day everyone! Not that there is much left.
Yeah, a great day for an opening night for an exhibition and also a great night for causing travel chaos by throwing yourself under a train... apparently.
This was how I spent my evening, drinking all the free red wine and complaining.
Here are some of the photos. See if you can spot my drawing, cleverly positioned just above eye level and just above a radiator pumping out hot air right into your face:
Yeah, a great day for an opening night for an exhibition and also a great night for causing travel chaos by throwing yourself under a train... apparently.
This was how I spent my evening, drinking all the free red wine and complaining.
Here are some of the photos. See if you can spot my drawing, cleverly positioned just above eye level and just above a radiator pumping out hot air right into your face:
Brilliant day out all round.
10 February 2012
Fantazia Revolution
I'm off to Fantazia later on to re-live the old days... that I kind of slightly missed first time around. I remember taking an old rave tape with stuff like Altern8, SL2, Shades of Rhythm and all that on it to a disco at school and they wouldn't play it. It's an experience I got used to and People still don't want to play my stuff now!
Anyway, here are a few drawings I did at some point with obvious head nod to rave scene.
Top one, nice one, get sorted.
Hardcore will never die
Anyway, here are a few drawings I did at some point with obvious head nod to rave scene.
Top one, nice one, get sorted.
Hardcore will never die
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