Sheyda Porter’s decision to go straight from a fine art BA to a curating MA is not the curveball it might first appear. Her practice is underpinned by what might be described as a curatorial approach, selecting and combining everyday objects into sculptural arrangements.
Originally from Istanbul, Turkey, Porter graduated in 2016 with a BA Fine Art from Northumbria University. She is doing her one-year MA at the University of Sunderland and has a studio at Commercial Union House, Newcastle upon Tyne.
Runner-up in the 2016 Woon Foundation Prize, the momentum from this and her well-received degree show led to a solo show at Vane in Newcastle earlier this year. Her work was also recently featured in the Arte Laguna Prize exhibition in Venice and she is currently working on a number of artist and curatorial projects.
So, how was your degree show?
It seems like a really long time ago now! When you start your final year you’re already thinking about your degree show; it’s in the back of your mind, it never goes away. I had really firm ideas about what I wanted to do, but around Christmas time I decided to change everything. It felt like I was clinging onto ideas that were a bit too comfortable.
What impact did that have on your show?
Preparing for my degree show was a very slow, building, cumulative process. My work relies on collecting objects – the accumulation of these objects and how I treat them, how I play with them. I’d never used found objects, so this was a new thing for me. I treat the surfaces with mixes of plaster and sometimes gesso, and then I add the colour.
What did you get out of the show?
I had a lot of talks with random people; people coming up to me and asking questions, saying they liked my work, which was really satisfying. All the things I started doing for the degree show I’m still doing and building upon, so for me it was just a door to open up to the professional world. It was just the beginning of the momentum for me.
What prompted you to do an MA in curating?
It really was the next logical step because I always felt like I had a good eye when it came to selecting and working with what I’ve got. It’s bringing up some real challenges, particularly in the practical areas of curating. I didn’t know how to approach a gallery with my ideas, how to write a proposal, how to write a grant application – these things are lacking in a lot of BA courses. I wanted to have these practical skills to realise my ideas in projects.
You were one of five a-n members who did degree show takeovers of the a-n Instagram last year. What did you get out of that?
My a-n Instagram takeover helped me put the notion of a ‘degree show’ in a broader perspective, and to get a sense of the tendencies of final-year artists. It also enabled me to engage with other artists’ degree show works more deeply and critically. It was excellent practice in critical art viewing, which is undoubtedly beneficial for my MA. The social and critical skills I gained – and put to use – are still helping me today with my curatorial projects.
Sheyda Porter was interviewed by Chris Sharratt for a-n’s Degree Shows Guide 2017. Read the full article on issuu:
