Hybrids Collaboration | CSA ONLINE

Hybrids "is an invitation to invent your own hybrid creatures, or plants - think science or folklore and myth; you could think about evolving or improving a creature or plant, combining together one or more creatures or plants. You might want to think about something that would have new powers or specialisms - or it might just be something ridiculous and funny".

This piece was produced as a result of a collaboration with Elizabeth Chapman. We spent a lot of time looking at how we were going to collaborate at a distance (because - Covid).

We quickly established that neither of us were that keen on working from print-outs. I know Liz was already busy working with lots of other projects/work; my printer access was limited - so we needed a quick, simple solution.


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We decided on a theme (a hybrid line) - and decided in order to keep things simple, we'd each produce a selection of marks/lines that were reflective of our own practice - and find a way to 'join them up'.


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I sent a package to Liz; we had an e-mail conversation as to the form that the line would take and ways in which we could present the line - particularly in respect of it being 'exhibited' on Instagram. I'd intially thought of producing a concertina book - comprising several square pages, to anticipate the Instagram format.


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Liz sketched out several ways we could use the Instagram grid as a set of 3 x 3 'tiles'. In the end - we decided on a frame of lines enclosing a central 'tile' featuring the caption/credit for the piece.


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Many thanks to Liz for all her hard work in making this jigsaw work. I really enjoyed taking part in the collab and hope Liz did too! Our collab just went live on CSA Instagram, along with many others. Big thanks to Anna and CSA for keeping things going especially during lockdown!


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Further reading:

"What do you get when you fuse mixed media art with science and technology? You get an entirely new form of art called hybrid art".

CSA instagram #hybrids

Another (favourite) fab CSA collab here

Founded by Liz, Artists Discussion is a forum for artists to, network, share artwork, advice and peer support for artists of all disciplines, on Zoom. The peer support sessions are free, online and delivered on a voluntary basis. 

 


Hybrids | CSA ONLINE

A continuation of a series of online exhibition features that CSA ran last year on Instagram.

Hybrids "is an invitation to invent your own hybrid creatures, or plants - think science or folklore and myth; you could think about evolving or improving a creature or plant, combining together one or more creatures or plants. You might want to think about something that would have new powers or specialisms - or it might just be something ridiculous and funny".

My response was to submit a piece that I've often thought about, but never produced work around.

I've always been fascinated by birch trees (Betulaceae) - in particular Betula Pendula - the bark is darker at the base of the tree (as it grows) and the emerging slender twigs and branches look like elegant 'arms', clad in long black gloves. The bark of these particular birches is wonderfully textured and marked in lines and organic shapes, suggesting secrets and sigils.
 
Rotating the image changed it totally from tree to something else - the arms and hands hanging downwards gave it an eerie, humanistic feel; like the trees were sauntering around.

More at https://www.instagram.com/crossstreetarts/

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I'm also working on a collaborative piece with another CSA artist on the same project - more to follow!

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CSA | Exhibition Series 5: Flight

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Prompt 5: Flight, June 2020
 
3 pieces from the archive

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An Arctic Tern can live for 25 years, and their migration paths can cover over a million kilometres - I wanted to explore this tremendous passing through day and night; dusk and dawn; heat and cold; motion and change.
’Over mountain and dark sea, the sun made our wings bronze’ (above) seeks to describe this transformation and the ‘becoming’ of migration.

Originally shown in 'Migrate' - a show at Cross St Arts Gallery as part of a collaboration with A6 Dialogue.
 
 
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Fly to Heaven is from a tryptich of pieces produced for VS - a joint exhibition by New Art Spaces Leigh and Cross Street Arts in conjunction with Castlefield Galleries and NeoArtists, Bolton. This piece was shown alone.

 
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And then he turned and flew away was produced during a monoprinting session. I think the title sums this one up ...



 

CSA | Exhibition Series 4: Fragments

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Prompt 4: Fragments, May/June 2020
 
I try to use up every scrap when I'm painting and keep things like these bits of masking tape in my workbook. I love these slices of colour and texture and the way they are held so tightly within the form of the tape - within and without, all at once. 

 

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CSA | Exhibition Series 3: Space

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Prompt 3: Space, April/May 2020
 
Throwback to CSA exhibition centreing on St Wilfrid's Church, Standish, November 2018
 
 
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My work for this examined and interpreted the church building itself as a space/vessel of sanctuary and hope; and as reliquary of prayer and faith expressed in light. I chose to capture light in an orb or enclosure to further echo the sense of holding something precious yet ethereal.

 

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I expanded this into a series of monoprints using the same 'orb' motif to record how stained glass adds veils of colour to stone. All work using acrylic media on paper. 


CSA | Exhibition Series 2: Contact

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Prompt 2: Contact, April 2020


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I've chosen to interpret the theme 'contact' by thinking about marine horizons and the kiss of sea and sky. This contact has been used by astronomers to measure the position of the Earth relative to the rest of the stars and other reference points in the sky. The combination of the relative positions of the horizon and moon/sun is also used with a sexton in celestial navigation. 
 
Makes SatNav look a bit sterile :)

More work on CSA Instagram #contact

 

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CSA | Exhibition Series 1: Inside

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Prompt 1: Inside, April 2020


Whilst we're all on lockdown, Cross Street Arts are arranging a series of online 'shows' across social media for members/associates.

"We thought it would be good to encourage members to take part in a positive project during our time of social/physical distance. Many of us are limited at the moment with regards to our art practice, but this might be an interesting creative challenge."


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I've been working on what has evolved into a small series of monoprints based on the 'inside' structure of plants/leaves/trees - inspired by botany cross-sections and slides showing phloem and xylem. Hard to decide on a single image (my current favourite is shown above) - so a long scroll-through follows!

The third image shows the monoprint 'plate'/base.

More work on CSA Instagram #inside



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