Post 6
Francesca Gavin – 21/May/2014
Francesca understood the work and the motivation behind it straight away – making interesting links and picking out associations. In addition, she commented how I am almost drawing with paint, which I completely recognise.
I had asked her to look for a few minutes only at my website before the meet up so she could point out any disparities between the work communicated through web presence and the actual works.
We spoke about the strengths within the work of which she was especially drawn to my base gesso effects including overlapping and marbling which I have been developing.
She liked Parallel Harlequin / Scatter 2013 (pictured in Post 1) which I made and exhibited for Sluice__ www.sluice.info/2013.html in Oct 2013.
We spoke about ideas surrounding display including shelves, stands and/or the conceptualisation of the ‘plinth’. She asked about relationships to some images and also the use of materials and colours I select.
She commented that I was dealing with structures within the paintings. And that the mix of painting styles/methods was compelling. But she was most drawn to areas which had more looseness to them. She said because when you are technically able and can represent we discussed how I was and had to continue about being mindful of that.
We talked about trends and fashions within contemporary art which lead her into saying that now is a moment in abstraction in painting and what she was seeing in these works is really interesting especially when we see snippets or implication of figure or body but are not quite sure what it’s doing.
Francesca was most interested in Scatter (2013), Tessellate (2014), Drift (2014) and Dust (2014) – of which the latter she said would be something you would even see at NADA www.newartdealers.org – which I have to admit I had not come across before.
She made some suggestions about what she thought would make the work even stronger.
We spoke about my plans for the next few months, the importance of continuing with experimentation and with the new ideas which I have started working upon and the works’ scale/size.
Francesca was very clear about the importance of solo exhibitions as one of the best ways to enable the work to develop whilst considering even more rigorously your audience.
We also spoke about the social side in promoting your work; Competitions. Associated artists work. Importance of editing. Rejection. Confidence within the work. Exhibition venues and spaces.
She gave me some specific advice about my website which I am already in the process of making anew before the autumn.
Overall, it was a great experience to talk with Francesca very openly and it also felt very honestly discussing the work whilst surveying potentials she had noted and which will make me think practically about raising the profile of the work. It has had a knock-on effect in ramping up my motivation to get the things we discussed into motion.
Dust. 2014. Oil paint, spray paint, fixative and carbon paper on pigmented gesso panel 42 x 30 cm Sarah West
