Make Work That Is Ambitious
This was one of the points that stuck out to me in my conversation with Danielle. I was discussing a large scale ambitious piece that I am excited to do but to realise in full would require funding and an appropriate site because of its scale. I have actually submitted this proposal to the Jerwood Open Forest commision bid but realising that the odds of achieveing such a bid are relatively small I proposed to Danielle my plan to make the piece regardless. This would have to be a significantly scaled down version. Her answer was a resounding no. “Never cut a work short” was her opinion “You must make work that is ambitious!”.
She is right of course. Better to wait, be patient, to invest time in researching locations and funding partners that could help realise the work in full than make a mediocre version of it.
So lesson 1 – be ambitious in your work.
In this situation that requires – faith in the work, patience, persistence, investment in exploring potential resources, creative thinking, bravery to ask, and presenting the concept of the piece in a professional way that the idea can be “sold” to someone.
First Mentor Session
I’ve just had my first a-n Re:View funded session with my mentor Danielle Arnaud.
The house/studio had been nervously over-tidyed, old and recent artworks dusted off and a range of coffees bought in just in case. Within the first 10 minutes i had learnt that she drinks white tea, like to eat fine dark chocolate (supplies in her bag – my kind of lady!) and is incredibly intelligent and perceptive.
We talked about my practice to date, how I started and how it has changed/progressed. I had to do what I had feared the most – discuss individual pieces of work and why I had made them. When Danielle spoke I felt she was as careful with what she didnt say as with what she did say. She steered away from giving her direct opinions on pieces of work and focused on general things for me to consider practically and mentally.
We talked for around two hours and have agreed to space out the remaining 2 sessions over a fairly long period of time so that it gives my practice time to develop in between. She plans to attend the show at the Guildhal in London that I am creating a site specific work for and then we will meet after that.
In the meantime I will share with you over a number of posts some of the useful things Danielle shared with me today or has prompted me to think about.
I feel incredibly priviledged to be in the position of accessing this level of guidance and I am very thankful to both Danielle and a-n for that opportunity.
And The Mentor Is . . .
Well I was hoping to share with you what I learned from my first meeting this week but unfortunately, due to circumstances, its been postponed a couple of weeks till the 21st.
Instead I thought I’d share with you who my mentor is actually going to be. I feel very priviledged that the bursary will be funding 3 studio sessions with Danielle Arnaud.
Danielle is director of Danielle Arnaud Contemporary Art – a fantastic gallery based in a Georgian townhouse in Kennington. The remit of the gallery is to “encourage artists to develop their practice without the constraints of market through a programme of curated exhibitions, solo shows and projects, both within the gallery and the public realm”. The gallery has showcased some great work. Artists I’ve particularly enjoyed include – Sarah Woodfine, Rieko Akatsuka, Helen Maurer and Sophie Lascelles.
She is also a founding member of Parabola (a commissioning and curatorial body dedicated to the production of contemporary art and critical debate) and co-curated Tatton Park Biennial in 2008, 2010, and 2012.
I have great admiration for Danielle Arnaud and so was absoultely delighted when, in applying for the bursary, I approached her and she agreed to work with me on the scheme. I am confident she will be a fantastic mentor and I’m really looking forward to learning from her.
Intuition & Intellect
One of the things I have been reflecting on this week is a piece of advice I read by Kitt White (artist and MFA professor in New York). “Work from your intuition, and analyze with your intellect”.
I really liked this reasoning as this is how I’m instinctively drawn to work and yet often worry that I should intellectually work through the piece completely before beginning. However, while having an intellectual concept underpining the work is good, to reason your way through the piece entirely before beginning leaves little room for discovery along the way.
This thought was echoed by White as he suggests that by using intuition we “draw upon what lies beneath normal cognition in an uninhibited way”. This always for unfiltered and unfamiliar thought to enter the work. From this point we can then use our rational intellect to analyse what has been done.
Exciting News
Nothing to report on the bursary front this week as I havent yet had my first meeting but as I wanted to commit to writing on this blog on a weekly basis I thought I’d share some good news instead.
Over the last 6 months I’ve been in dicussions with the curator of The Guildhall Art Gallery who has invited me to show some work as part of the major show “Victoriana: The Art Of Revival”. The show is planned for this September and will showcase artists from the last 20 years who have been inspired by nineteenth-century values and aesthetics.
I will be showing existing pieces that play with the Victorian idea of decadence, theatricality and artifice.
This week I went to visit Sonia for further discussions and was delighted when she asked if I’d be interested in creating a site specific piece for the show as well! I’ve been given what is essentially a small store room off one of the main gallery spaces. I’m hoping to construct a room within this room that will transform the utilitarian space into a shrine-like grotto. Using a highly ornate vocabulary (including fake gold, artificial flowers and altered trinkets) I’ll be questioning values of “worth” and looking at blurring the line between worship and idolatry.
During my meeting I was also blown away to hear some of the other artists whose work had been confirmed in the show. Turns out I’ll be exhibiting alongside works by Paula Rego, Grayson Perry and Yinka Shonibare!
