Cathryn Kemp - Pure Artist in Residence Saint Ronans School, Hawkhurst

# 11 www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking  [28 November 2011]

To-Do List

Finish Book (v urgent - only 8000 more words to go)

Call publisher - extend deadline to Dec 6 as been ill

Take off writing head and put back art head

Printmaking - remember to swap Saint Ronans day to Thursday this week to teach some of the extra art pupils monoprinting

Finish Telling Stories: Margate catalogue by end of week - held up due to nasty chest infection

Send off details of exhibition in January to gallery

Write & design info for gallery

Meet with new committee members for Telling Stories: Hastings - fundraising ie me and Xav off to meet the friendly chaps at The Foreshore Trust

Prepare for FT meeting - go to Xav's by end of week with budget/figures/ACE documents to be absolutely clear what we still need to raise

Alex weekend - think up xmas things to make with stepson this weekend

Buy tree

Cathryn Kemp - Pure Artist in Residence Saint Ronans School, Hawkhurst

# 10 www.a-n.co.uk/artists_talking [11 November 2011]

Working collaboratively - journeys through current projects..

It has been a busy time - reflected in how little I have been able to blog recently. Several substantial projects appeared, started and developed within a few short weeks of each other and it has been a challenge to keep grounded within my own work while meeting each project as whole-heartedly as I wanted. I have been trying very hard to keep a clear sense of identity as an artist, and as a collaborator as well.

First up there was SALT which was a collaborative residency with five other artists in Hastings at the end of the summer. I've written a little about our process of creating a single work from six very different artists, and it was one of those projects that flows smoothly from start to finish. Everyone gave of themselves, everyone committed completely to the project and we created something stupendous as a result, in the form of a working, hand built, industrial zone including a six-metre-long conveyor belt, a tea station, protective clothing and a tonne of de-icing salt. Then as that was finishing, I started a year-long residency at Saint Ronans School in Kent in September; a private school in which I am the first artist-in-residence. I feelall eyes are on me as I carefully negotiate the complex rituals, energies and behaviours of a school such as this one. It is the first time I have ever seen inside a private school and, in all honesty, I wished I'd gone there as a child the minute I stepped through the doors. It seemed to me to be a gentle bastion of old-fashioned good sense and decency. The pupils hold doors open for teachers while the teachers themselves are engaged, clearly pleased to be there.

I'm an outsider though, and not so much on the grounds that I was Grammar school educated. I am a member of staff but I'm not. I slip in and out of the walls and grounds like I'm on the hunt for something. I know all eyes are on me as I'm the first artist-in-residence at the school and that makes me feel, in turn, nervous and proud to be there and be the first. I am aware that each day I spend in the classrooms I am making tentative inroads into the collective emotional and psychological make-up of the school and its pupils and that is a privilege and a pressure too. I have moved a few things into my space but I'm still finding my way, learning who to run things past, feeling through my way as part of the intricate hierarchies of such an historic place.

And just as I started the residency, I literally had to drop the artist hat and put on my new project manager and curator hats to install the first of my Telling Stories exhibitions, in Margate. This was the hardest part of the journey for several reasons, not least because there was just so much work to do organising an exhibition of seven artists and their work.

I've dug out one of my to-do lists - dated Monday, October 3 - four days before the opening night - I had 27 things on my urgent list for that day with an extra 'mother-list' which ran for three full pages! But the biggest challenge was not the immense nature of the workload - it was shifting between being artist and one of the group showing work and going through process and into dialogue together, to then being project-manager and responsible for organising it and evaluating effectively for ACE.My relationship with the other artists changed minute-by-minute at some points which was at times difficult. The opening night was amazing though. As a group we attracted the warmth and good will of Margate with its many interesting practitioners and locals. Performance artist Yumino Seki brought her powerful and strange chemistry to the space, creating a series of movements as a dance piece which drew tears from some of the onlookers (for the right reasons). Margate has ended now, but it is time to start the long and intense process of drawing together the next group of artists, 14 in total to develop the concept into Telling Stories: Hastings for 2012. I haven't a clue how it will come together right now - I just know what work moves me and makes me want to dig deeper and learn more. All the time learning more, embedding down into a process to draw from it its treasure.

Amanda Hughes - K College article.

Monday, 24 October 2011

Fine Art Graduate makes her mark at Port Lympne

Congratulations to Amanda Hughes, a recent graduate from the College’s BA Fine Art who has won a prestigious residency at Port Lympne Wild Animal Park. Amanda has created a stunning sculpture of one of the parks residents, Rukwa, a beautiful Black Rhino. The sculpture has been created utilising manipulated steel and natural material such as hazel, scavenged wood and flora sourced from the park itself.

Amanda created the piece on site at the park, welding the piece in the Rhino shed itself over a two month period. The piece is designed to highlight the plight of the Black Rhino and the work of the park. Rukwa, Amanda’s subject, is a female Rhino who has been part of the parks breeding programme and whose offspring have been reintroduced into the wild. Amanda spent time studying the Rhino’s and even met one of them whilst developing the sculpture.

Amanda has used unusual materials to creative some of the Rhino’s most notable features. The horn has been sculpted from an oak tree, blown down in the 1987 hurricane; the animals ears have been sculpted from rolled steel and the tail is made from chain which mimics the movement of the Rukwa’s tail. The frame is covered in hazel, an essential part of the Rhino’s diet in the park as it helps to prevent liver failure.

Amanda is represented by Pure Arts, an organisation that supports the work of promising artists. Amanda first became involved with the organisation through a visit they made to the College. Following a very successful end of year exhibition, where Amanda shows other work inspired by the animal kingdom Amanda was named as one of the organisations selected artists. Pure Arts are supporting Amanda’s professional development and are currently exploring a range of further exciting opportunities to promote her work. 

Amanda was joined at the unveiling of the sculpture by friends and family, including a number of students who studied on the BA Fine Art with her. We wish Amanda and her fellow graduates all the best in their future endeavours and are positive that this talented group of graduates will have many inspiring achievements ahead of them.

The Sculpture is now on semi- permanent display in the front of the Restaurant at Basecamp and the working drawings can be seen at Carnivore Territory until 31st October and online at www.puregallery.org.

For more information about Pure Arts Group visit: www.pureartsgroup.co.uk

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence blog entry 14. The Handover.

21/10/11

The finished sculpture has now been moved down to Base camp, which will be its home for the next year,  and I have secured it into place with horseshoe type pins over the feet plates.

I have decided to use the Latin name of the Black Rhino; "Diceros bicornis michaeli",  as this uniquely identifies the Black Rhino as the sub species that has the prehensile lip. Together with the name of the Rhino I based the piece on; "Rukwa".... talking of which...Rukwa was actually checking out the piece as I was pinning it down!

After setting up the working drawings and the 'Gifted' picture at Carnivore Territory, I was ready for the 'Official Handover', where I would meet Bob O'Connor, the Director of the Zoo Park, for photographs and to hand the Rhino over to Port Lympne for a year.

I must say, it was manic! I have never been so photographed or interviewed in my life! Bob and I were pose-able dummies for half an hour, which was quite fun and he was in good spirits with the whole scenario. I was lucky enough to have my family and University peers present, as well as the PR staff from the zoo. The handover was a very successful event, the weather was kind and the sun was shining, I could not have wished for a better day!

I would like to thank Pure Arts group for the support I received and the PR staff at the foundation and Bob O'Connor for his time. I would also like to thank the Rhino keepers for their help with foraging and access to areas and staff whom supplied me with hot coffee when it was cold as well as the friendly grounds staff who watched the build with great interest. It was a real privilege to be based at one of the most beautiful parks in Kent to produce a sculpture of such a remarkable and tender animal. I hope it justifies this endangered species and gives the park and general public visual pleasure.

Now, what next???....Watch this space!

Amanda x

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence blog entry 13

07/09/11

Throughout the week I have been weaving the Rhino frame in preparation of finishing on Friday, as the Rhino shed is going to be renovated prior to the Rhino's return for the Winter.

With some help from my relatives, we collected a mass of Hazel, so I could crack on with the weaving process. I found the thicker pieces hard to manipulate, so there was a lot of cutting, bending and brute force to apply the heavier pieces to the frame.

I used a sharp pair of secateurs, a pair of loppers, a hammer and a pair of gloves to work with the hazel.

This part of the project is exciting as the piece suddenly becomes more solid and comes to life, creating it's own character due to the organic formal elements of the Hazel that create the shapes.

I tend to look at the individual pieces of wood and try to utilise the natural forms to mirror the curves of the particular subject, which I view as abstracted parts of the Rhinos anatomy.

Whilst I am weaving the frame, I reflect on the piece and take photographs so that areas do not get over worked and keeping aware of where the weight falls and the skin folds undulate.

Now the piece is essentially finished, I will move it out of the shed to take photographs, which can be processed into postcards, for the park to sell, with the help of Pure Arts Group.

The piece will then be moved down into the arranged site at base-camp on Tuesday 11th with a trailer, where I will attach it to the floor using horseshoe type pins and then add a little more weaving to the legs to finish it off and hide the pins.

.....I hope Rukwa will like her new friend next to her paddock...

Amanda x

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence blog entry 12

04/09/11

Once the welding was finished I tidied up the frame with an angle grinder, which I scuff the metal with to aid rusting. I aim to have the frame rust coloured and will wait for the metal to oxidise, then I will treat it with an oil application to hold the colour and rust in place, plus this aids the longevity of the sculpture and produces a natural color which works well with the wood.

I am now ready to proceeded with weaving the framework with the Hazel collected, using the heavier pieces to pack out the ribs, to give weight and form, without over working it, as I aim to keep the weave loose to create an illusion of fragility, relating back to the fragility of the species as a whole.

I feel the piece will need another week for weaving and collection of Hazel, which I will forage from the plantation on site.

This type of fauna is fed to the Rhino's to prevent ailments of the liver, so this material links directly to the piece in question.

Amanda x

Editors note: The Weather is now turning autumnal and Rukwa will need his shed back, therefore, Amanda is reaching the closing phase of this sculpture and her residency at Port Lympne.

The Completed sculpture will go on show to the public at Port Lympne in front of Basecamp in time for October Half Term.





To see working drawings and images that evolve from this residency, please go to the Amanda Hughes Gallery at www.puregallery.org

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence blog entry 11

30/09/11

Returning to Rhino ears...

To get the right shape of the ear I studied the images of the Rhino's at different angles closely. I then created a simplistic sketch which I then replicated with card. This could then be held to the head of the sculpture, allowing me to tweak any measurements and shapes prior to using the mild steel sheet.
When I felt happy with the size and character of the ears, I drew the shape onto the steel and cut them out using a plasma cutter (thanks to Ian in the mechanic's shed at Port Lympne). I curved these round by hand, mimicking the cardboard prototype ears and welded them onto the frame.

I then proceeded to weld any areas that needed extra form and structure, completing the welding process prior to weaving Hazel whips into the frame to give a heavier anatomy.

As I began creating the eye area, I felt it needed a pupil shape, as the Rhino's have amazing eyes that look right at you. For this I decided to use pennies for the shape and as a metaphor of how the animals have been viewed as money when they are killed for their horns.



More to follow....

Amanda x

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence blog entry 10

26/09/11

After marrying the horns up to the sculpture, I realised they needed re-shaping and the main horn needed to be thinner, so with a little bit of trimming and adjustment, the horns were born!

I then proceeded to weld spigots onto the head for the horns to slot onto to hold them in place. All they need now is a little more drilling and then they should fit on a treat!

The body has been built up with more metal and the head stabilised with bridging steel work to carry the weight of the horns and a tail from chain has also been attached, which i will tack weld to give a better form and character.

The next mission is ears, I will be using thin mild steel sheet for this and I shall contact my friend who is a fabricator to play with plasma cutters and benders
...ears to be continued...

Amanda x

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence blog entry 9

20/09/11

Project Rhino Horn!

I have found the perfect shape for the Rhino horns which i want to be carved from wood. There is a stump of an old Oak tree that had fallen in the 1987 hurricane which has the right form to work with and also a fallen giant, like the species of the Black Rhino.

Using the sawing skills of my father, we have extracted the required shapes from the root; the wood is beautifully seasoned and very hard!

To get the right size I traced the shape from my scale drawing, which the Rhino was built from.  I then used my father's carpentry knowledge to jigsaw, axe and plane the shape of the horns.

This part is quite an exciting turning point as this is the unique attribute of the Rhino and the reason the species is in decline, due to the poaching of them for their horns.

I am aiming to get the shape as close to Rukwa's as I can.  The material has worked well as the horn and the root both have a fibrous texture. The next job is to make sure it is the right shape and size, then attach it...

Amanda x

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence blog entry 8

10/09/11

This week I have had to step up the pace a bit, due to the real Rhino's need to go inside to sleep over the wintertime.

I have started filling out the Rhino's form and building the head; this part is where the sculptures real character becomes apparent.

Then the next plan of action is to apply a wooden set of horns, a chain tail and some flat steel ears.

Once this is done the sculpture will be weaved with Hazel whips, foraged from the Zoo parks very own plantation, which is used for browsing fauna to feed the animals, including the Rhino's themselves...quite appropriate for the piece really!

The Rhino's need this type of browsing to keep them healthy, as the tannin in the bark stops them from getting liver problems which are bought on by the climate where they live.

Once this is in place the Rhino Sculpture will be moved towards Basecamp, which is next to the field where Rukwa lives, who the piece was based on, in preparation for the exhibition to take place in October.

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-residence blog entry 7

Friday 02/09/11

The Rhino sculpture is progressing well, it is beginning to have more form to it and with a little help from the resident welder at Port Lympne, I have steel foot plates that have been plasma cut into the shape of the Rhino's footprints. This gives the piece greater stability and spreads the weight of the sculpture evenly.

The public are showing more interest now and I have started displaying images within my sketchbook whilst I am working, and I have only quashed one child's dream of seeing a Real Rhino in the Rhino Shed this week ... the signs seem to be helping!... although I do smell like one by the end of the day, which is a small drawback of working in a Rhino's bedroom!

For the next stage of the build I need to go away and create some drawings of the head and neck to use as a stencil when bending the metal, as the Rhino's head is a very unique shape and will need a lot of thought put into it to get the anatomy correct and the character of the piece right before fabricating it into place.

Amanda x

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-residence blog entries 5/6

24/08/11 Blog entry 5

Today, with the help of the Rhino keepers, I gained access to the shed where I will be working.

The shed is a good size and heated, so its a good space....although a bit aromatic from its last inhabitant Rhino!

I have decided on a Rhino standing with its head down, to aid balance of the sculpture, when it is made.

The next step is to draw out the image I want to base the sculpture on and put a grid over it to extend it onto larger paper. This takes a few hours to get the correct shape and form, it is important at this stage to get the lines right as this is essentially the foundations to the overall form of the piece.

Once drawn out it became apparent that the piece was a little over sized, so with a few tweaks I've got the height to 4'.5"-5' in height and 9' in length, now the lines are less elongated and how I want them.

For the size I have used a size chart that I found on the Internet, but after seeing the Rhino's close up, it seems captive bred species are slightly smaller...this benefits my building of the piece, as it will give the piece more stability and strength within the materials.

The Rhino shed doors are open for the public to view, but I dont seem to have the same impact as a Rhino... children expect a Rhino, but instead see a lady with a Rhino drawing... I have shattered some excited children's illusion of a Rhino in the shed...I must get the Rhino made soon to make up for this!!...and some signs!

Now to start bending metal..... to be continued....

Amanda x

25/08/11 Blog entry 6

Now comes the exciting bit!... drawing with steel, this is the part where the character of the animal starts to come alive.

I have an ambition to get the first lines set in place and it to be up on its feet by the end of today.

The shed now has a sign explaining who I am (Thank you Sam Harwood - Marketing) and people are taking more interest in what is going on...rather than looking for the Rhino!

I use a basic technique of bending steel bars by hand, this allows me to mimic the contours and curves of the animal by eye, not machine.

I create the outline form; like in a drawing, from the side.

Once this is complete, I think about how it will look from the front and rear view and the I build the form around this.

I form the metal bars into the lines of my 2D Rhino's design, I offer them up to the picture; to make sure I am creating the right shape. When I have a selection of steel lines, I then use my gasless MIG welder to spot-weld these into place, creating a 3D image (see below).

It was quite a struggle for me to get the piece up from the ground and I will need help with the next stage....bring on my glamorous assistant... he 6'5" and wears army boots.... Craig my partner!

I will return at the weekend to get the piece stable enough to start packing out its form in steel and create some feet plates.

Amanda x

Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-residence

Blog entry 4

Today I had the go ahead to start building the Rhino sculpture.  I will be at the Zoo tomorrow for 8am to unload metal and tools into a spare Rhino shed, where I will start bending steel to create its form, which will then be welded by myself.

Meanwhile, I have been creating some studies using my favourite wash technique... I am finding the Rhino's increasingly endearing, especially when you can see them looking into the camera lens.

I am looking forwards to the 3D drawing in steel next...watch this space.

Amanda x

Cathryn Kemp blog entry 4 - St Mary-in-the-Castle Crypt, Hastings.

 

Cathryn Kemp 

'In Memoriam'

Installed Petticoats & Sound August 2011. 

Photo: Cathryn Kemp.

Posted 8 August 2011

Time is really creeping on. I can't believe the opening night for In Memoriam was two weeks ago. Everything builds up to the private view and then there's this space where the work just has to be itself, and I hover round it like I can't quite bear to leave.

Things will change again tomorrow. My friend and fellow installation artist, Franny Swann, will join me with some new drawings of dead moths.

Together we'll install them and see what happens. I have my camera ready to gently record whatever new interventions we shape in there.

I wonder how they'll sit in the crypt. They have competition from 14 suspended petticoats and some very creepy distorted whisperings!

My work is very much about fragility in a corporeal world - and the quiet power of delicacy and femininity.

I look forward to sharing my strange burial chamber with dead moths - and new blood!

Cathryn

Cathryn Kemp blog entry 5 - St Mary-in-the-Castle Crypt, Hastings.

Cathryn Kemp & Franny Swann

'In Memoriam' by Cathryn Kemp

Posted 21 August 2011.  

Photo: Cathryn Kemp.

Dead moths and petticoats in the crypt....

There was a feeling of something special happening in the crypt on Friday when artist Franny Swann moved her Moth Boxes into the space.

From the moment I asked Franny to share the burial chamber I've been working in for six weeks, I knew her work would meld into mine in a gentle, poignant collaboration.

I was right. Franny's Moth Boxes found their own fragile splendour in the first of the four alcoves with two cabinets containing tiny, delicate drawings of dead moths sitting under the suspended petticoats as if they'd been there all the time.

The boxes themselves sit on an old, dirty crate which looks like it was left there by the last set of crinolines which swept through the crypt.

It has been a small yet profoundly moving collaboration - the dead moths speak of our transient lives in a way the pettocoats can't - and were never meant to.

The suspended skirts are representations of the unlived lives of the young women brought to Hastings for the sea cure at the turn of the 19th century - but who died here and were buried then left by their families returning home.

I wanted to give them a taste of the frivolity and lightness of the life they never lived - while Franny's beautiful insects remind us we are all eventually dust and bones.

It is a day of endings. Today I must dismantle my work in the crypt at 3pm. I am really sad to leave the space - it has been an emotional journey, treading gently through the fact and fiction of the past.
I won't leave those girls there though. There is so much more to find out. I have learned of the hostels in Hastings and St leonards where young women looking for work would leave their families and come here to live in tiny, cramped quarters together. Also there were various institutions for girls in trouble and an asylum, which draws me further into this emotional excavation.

The theme of In Memoriam sits so well with my work that I cannot leave that behind either. I have decided to stay with this blog and stay with this work. Franny has a blog Footsteps.... which is a beautiful read

Cathryn

Amanda Hughes - Blog entry 3

Today I met up with Head Rhino Keeper, Paul at Port Lympne, he was going to introduce me to one of the Rhinos.

We went to meet RUKWA, who is the grand old age of 40 years and one of the first breeding females that have been based at PL. Originally she was wild and was introduced to Howletts following capture. (Howletts is PL's  counter part Zoo near Canterbury). 


Rukwa is now retired from the breeding programme (there are 16 Rhino's in the programme) and has daily talks based around her...and carrots!


Her offspring have been successfully reintroduced into the wild, so she is a very important part of preventing the decline of the Black Rhino in their native habitat, as they have been poached to the brink of extinction for their horns. 


The horn is made form keratin (Like fingernails) and has a wood like quality to it... strangely this is used by natives  as an aphrodisiac and is available on the black market ... you would get the same by chewing your own nails!...naivety and lack of education can be so destructive!

I feel Rukwa should be the main subject for the sculpture I aim to create, as she has been an integral part of PL's conservation of this beautiful creature.

Paul enabled me to gain access to the area next to Rukwa's pen and called her over for a fuss. She has a surprisingly soft muzzle, with an elongated lip, that is used in a similar fashion to a trunk. Her skin was covered in mud, which keeps her from drying out, but even on her hide she has malleable flesh. Due to Rukwa being an older lady, she has a slightly enhanced slump in her form and places her feet down more gracefully... this will be beneficial to the shaping of the said sculpture; it will accentuate the form.

The shed I will be working in is being prepared, as the door needs fixing, but once this is done i will start to draw out the Rhino in steel and start creating. Can't wait...

Amanda x

Creative Times Article

Artists in Residence Programme Article by Lesley Samms

Pure Arts Group is a “not just for profit” Arts Marketing and PR business. One of the things we do, simply because we can and its good for all involved, is run an Artists-in-Residence (air) programme for our selected artist group.

The Pureair programme is designed to encourage the creative, intellectual and personal growth of emerging and established artists, providing opportunities for developing their careers and practice.
We are very proud of this programme and our 2011/2012 residents have their own blog which you can follow: www.pureartsgroupresidencies.blogspot.com

Residencies enable artists to take time out from their normal pattern of life and experience different environments, thus stimulating growth personally and artistically.

They have a history that stretches back much further than is often thought. Air programmes have not appeared out of the blue, they have been part of the international art world for over a century.
The first wave of artist-in-residence programmes came at the beginning of the last century. Take the Corporation of Yaddo, founded in 1900 by art loving benefactors and the Woodstock Guild/ Byrdcliffe Arts Colony founded in 1903, both established in the State of New York. The Corporation of Yaddo regarded offering guest studios to individual artists as a new kind of patronage. The Woodstock Guild was founded and run by artists on their own terms: a sense of community being very prominent. Both models were typical of many other air programmes which were set up during the first decades of the 20th century, both in the United States and Europe. The Corporation of Yaddo is still thriving today, a perfect testament to its foundation. Yaddo

Amongst European examples is the artists’ colony at the small village of Worpswede near Bremen: founded in 1889 by, amongst others, the artists Heinrich Vogeler and Rainer Maria Rilke. They soon managed to draw attention to Worpswede internationally. In 1971 the colony was given a new boost with the foundation of Kunstlerhauser Worpswede, which has grown into one of the most renowned international residential art centres. 

Another European example is the Gregory Fellowships, dating from 1951 and funded by the Yorkshire printer Peter Gregory. These fellowships placed painters, sculptors, poets and musicians in the University of Leeds. The University was, at that time, primarily a technical institution with very little arts activity, and the presence of the artists was intended to humanise the university. The Gregory Fellowships helped to set the framework for subsequent air schemes.

A new wave of artist-in-residence programmes emerged in the 1960s, adding two new models to the ones that already existed. One offered artists the opportunity to withdraw temporarily from a society which was considered bourgeois, to create their own utopia in seclusion. The other aimed for social engagement and greater connection with the public. Guest studios in villages and cities served as a base for society change. A significantnumber of new foundations elaborated on this new tendency during the seventies and the eighties.

During the nineties a third wave of residency programmes proliferated all over the globe: from Brazil to Taiwan, from Estonia to Zambia, from Japan to Vietnam. Characteristic of this new wave was the rich diversity of residency models: from minimum hospitality at one end of the spectrum, to almost commission-like projects at the other end of the spectrum. Because of its global expansion and its seemingly unrestrained popularity, these new air opportunities have attracted significant attention in the art world. However, we should not forget that new residency opportunities have their roots firmly placed in history and that established programmes are still offering their expertise, contacts, advice and support to the new opportunities.

The newest models of air programmes include cooperation between local government and a more capitalistic approach. The Village of the Arts in Florida (see Wikipedia) for example enables artists to live in homes with attached galleries located close to one another forming an artists community. This is the basis from which the UK Open studios programmes have developed.

About the Pureair programme:

Each Pureair is unique and bespoke to each individual host. Air’s vary from single to multiple disciplines and are designed to ensure they have a lasting impact for both the artists and host. All of our residents are closely managed and monitored by Pure Arts Group, to ensure maximum value is gained by all involved.

Being an artist-in-residence is an invaluable experience for most artists, but we appreciate it does not suit all. The nature of a residency is that you have to be prepared to be flexible and adaptable; fit in with your host environment and enjoy the experience, the cultural differences and opportunities offered. You may not have everything you would ideally like immediately to hand, but, if you network with your fellow artists and explore your local environment, most residents are able to access most of what they need. Ultimately, a residency gives an artist time to think and often takes them down new, unexpected and interesting routes with which to develop their practice.
Pure Arts Group ask that each one of their air’s gift a piece of completed artwork to the host at the end of the residency. This gift is not intended for on sale.

About Pure Arts Group:
Pure Arts Group annually select approx 60 artists to support and promote for a 12 month period, alongside their invited group.

2011/2012 Pure Arts Group selection has now been completed. Call for entries will reopen on 1 Apr 2012. If you would like to register with us please email lesley@pureartsgroup.co.uk.

www.pureartsgroup.co.uk

Amanda Hughes - Blog entry 2

 Blog entry 2
 
Thursday 11/08/11

I decided to spend the day at PL, so that I could really get a feel for how the Rhino's move and get their personalities onto paper. The images will help in preparation of creating the Rhino sculpture, as the act of drawing makes the eye study every little curve and wrinkle....and my, do the Rhino's have some!!

The images are a collection of data, so that I can take on and compose them into larger images or to enable me to draw them with the steel bar.

The weather was not great today so drawing was a bit limited...paper and water do not mix well! So  I decided to take to the Safari, to enable me to see more Rhino's in the dry. I was privileged enough to have the last part of the journey on my own and the driver stopped for me to photograph some subjects. I have taken pictures of every part of the Rhino's anatomy to understand every part of their form.

I  was back in time to listen to the Rhino talk, to absorb more information about them and to see the Rhino's being fed.

Their horns are more precious than gold... an idea to colour the armature or horn of the sculpture, maybe?

I explained myself and was introduced to the Rhino keepers, who allowed me to get up close and personal with the Rhino's, beyond public access ... it was awesome!...they are so maternal and gentle, yet can be so powerful and volatile; a real 'Yin and Yang' of the animal world.

I'm going back on Monday, as the shed I will be working is ready for me to move into with the metal and I am going to be allowed access behind the scenes to see the Rhino's...behind barriers, of course!... I cant wait! 

Amanda x

Pure Arts Group Artist-in-Residence Programme 2011

We are delighted to confirm our 2011 artist-in-residence programme is now complete and all residencies have been confirmed as follows;

Reem Acason - The PowderMills Hotel, Battle
Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Wild Animal Park
Cathryn Kemp - Saint Ronan's School, Hawkhurst
Martin Pinder - Crowhurst Park Holiday Village
Helen Samuels - Nobles Restaurant, Battle

This blog has been created to keep everyone up to date on how the residencies are progressing. Weekly updates will be posted by the individual artists.

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Amanda Hughes - Port Lympne Artist-in-Residence

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Tues 02/08/11
I was elated when I found out I had been chosen for the Port Lympne residency and to make a piece for the Aspinall Foundation. The Zoo Park is a short distance from my house so I have a familiar fondness about it, I also have a close affinity with nature and animals, so this residency felt perfect for me.
The proposal I sent in was for a Timber Wolf or a African Hunting dog sculpture, made from steel and Ivy, but after seeing pictures of my previous work (especially the Bull) in the interview, I was asked whether it would be possible to make a 'Rhino'!....I have always wanted to make a Dinosaur and this isn't far from it!!
This species is endangered and I felt honored to be able to celebrate them in the form of sculpture.
After a bit of jiggery pokery, I managed to work out the funding for a full sized Rhino and started mulling through constructional ideas, prior to getting to know the creatures themselves.

Amanda

Mon 08/08/11
Once all the boxes were ticked and arrangements for access were discussed I was let free with my sketchbook.

With 'Official Artist' badge in hand I started sketching the Rhino's on Tuesday afternoon. They were surprisingly agile and illusive, but I managed to get a few motion sketches and sat watching the mother of the calf with more detail. There are a lot more sketches to be done before I start building the piece in steel, as I need to get the awareness of how the weight is distributed and their overall characters, to be able to make a piece that does this magnificent beast justice.

Amanda

Reem Acason - A glimpse of work in progress..

a glimpse of work in progress....
Pure air @ The PowderMills Hotel.

Reem Acason - Artisit-in-Residence at The PowderMills Hotel, Battle

Blog entry 1

When I was selected to be Artist in Residence over the summer at Powdermills Hotel I was delighted. It is a stunning location with beautiful architecture, history and grounds- so lots to be inspired by! I have been to the hotel and have taken lots of photos and have done some preliminary research into the site which has given me ideas and starting points for artworks. Due to my children being at home for the summer holidays I haven't been able to spend as much time as I would have liked at the hotel. I have been working at home though and have started a painting and 2 printed pieces- nothing complete enough to unveil yet though!

Reem

Stunning privately owned 18th Century listed Country House Hotel nestling in  150 acres of beautiful parklands, woods and large lakes.

Cathryn Kemp blog entry 3- St Mary-in-the-Castle Crypt, Hastings.

blog entry 3

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Cathryn Kemp, 'Ghost - Crypt Series', 

Textile and Sound Intervention, August 2011. 

Photo: Cathryn Kemp.

# 3 [1 August 2011]

The crypt is really getting to me now. When I'm not there, I think about it, and when I am there I sink into the dark crevices of the distinctive space like a creature terrified of the light.

It is ghoulish, it is eerie and strange. It is all the things you would expect of a place where bodies once lay. But it has a gentle silence which is captivating and eloquent, and a quiet coolness which feels eternal and precious.

The space feels like it is working with me now - whereas at first it felt slightly ill at ease with my presence.

It doesn't breathe or speak to me in any way except in the absence of anything in there.
It feels curiously blank - like it's a negative area - a place which holds nothing rather than anything.
It is only a few footsteps from the 'real' hyper-fast modern world of cafes and seaside shops but it holds its own in time and space like nowhere else I've ever been.

I am learning to love the crypt - despite its long-since deceased inhabitants. It has de-mystifyed death for me in a way that perhaps I wasn't expecting. After all, the only other occupants are the bones behind the gravestones - and they feel more animal than human in origin now.

Life and death - the ultimate rites of passage. And all they really represnt is time and space themselves.

And maybe there's really nothing to be afraid of in here. It's what's 'out there' that's scary.......

ST MARY-IN-THE-CASTLE CRYPT
HASTINGS OLD TOWN
PRIVATE VIEW - SATURDAY, AUGUST 6, 6-8PM

www.cathrynkemp.com

Cathryn Kemp blog entry 2- St Mary-in-the-Castle Crypt, Hastings.

blog entry 2

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Cathryn Kemp, 'Martha Breeds', 

Photograph, July 2011.  

Photo: Cathryn Kemp.

# 2 [26 July 2011]

The more time I spend in the crypt, the greater the emotional impact the space has on me.
I am aware that I feel a superstitious fear about sitting in the burial site, in the actual space where bodies lay before being exhumed and moved to a room alongside this space in St Mary-In-The-Castle Crypt.

Aside from that fear though is a palpable sense of sadness, which grows and blooms the longer I stay here. At times I almost feel like I have summoned the spirits of the young women and girls whose anonymous stories I am collecting and recording.

I have drawn on the knowledge of a local historian - who tells me the predominance of young women's bodies in this crypt was due to the girls being brought here at the start of the 19th century for the 'sea cure'. Suffering from consumption (TB), these poor souls lasted little time and died here, in Hastings, many miles from their homes and families.

Whether it is the unlived lives of these girls, or whether it is some trace of the emotional stains of loneliness and loss, I cannot say. But the feeling grows stronger and more intense as the hours pass.
I don't feel spooked by it. Instead, I feel a deep pathos. The first night I came home and sat in a steaming bath, weeping hot, fat tears for them all. For all the names and dates of birth and death which is really all there is of these women's lives.

Most of them were unmarried, so lived and died without the social status or respectability marriage conferred, and so are remembered as the daughters of their father. There are scant details about them themselves.

I sit, in my small alcove, with a rather charming (borrowed) standing lamp casting a soft orange light by which I can see well enough to type. I am writing on a vintage Underwood typewriter (again borrowed from a  friend) and somehow the sounds of the clacking keys and the orangey glow bring some comfort and warmth to the cold, damp space.

Maybe this corner is my refuge. Or maybe it's the place where I call up the lost souls of the women and girls who died so young, and so alone. Maybe I am surrounded by them as I write their names, invoking them into my emotional, spiritual and physical space. Or maybe, as I was once a lost young woman myself, I connect into the yearning which, for me, was always the yearning to come home.

www.cathrynkemp.com