 |
I am excited to be showing a selection of work, bringing together the past five years of my drawing practice, alongside Lizzie King’s immersive soundscape and work by printmakers Maggie Thompson and Susan Wright, in this exhibition at Salford Museum and Art Gallery. The preview is on Sunday the 23rd of March 1-3pm and the exhibition continues until the 21st of December.
 |
| Studio Shelf |
'Things of The Least: Lively exhibition-making through the material encounters of under 3's, 2023-2026
Things of the Least will create a series of gallery and live public experiences to stimulate the connection between artefacts and everyday life. The project aims to explore how very young children interact with the physical world, allowing children’s priorities to challenge powerful ideas about what’s valuable, who should see it and how it should be seen...
...The project will be based at Platt Hall, Rusholme, one of Manchester Art Gallery’s sites and will be supported by The Mary Greg Collection which comprises more than 4,000 objects relating to domestic and childhood life from the early 19th century. The collection’s emphasis is on the small, yet significant activities of daily life, which Ruskin refers to as “treasuring the least of the things“. These objects may appear small and modest, yet they provide a sense of belonging...
Project Team: Rachel Holmes (Manchester Metropolitan University), Becky Shaw (Sheffield Hallam University), Katy McCall (Manchester Art Gallery), Liz Mitchell (Manchester Art Gallery), Christina MacRae (Manchester Metropolitan University), Debbie Keary (Sure Start). Artists: Jackie Haynes, Becky Shaw, Naomi Kendrick, Josie Flynn, Josephine Hepplewhite, Charlotte Dawson.
Full project info https://manchesterartgallery.org/things-of-the-least/
From my Notes...
 |
| Metal object (Mary Greg Collection) |
 |
| Mother of Pearl object (Mary Greg Collection) |
 |
| Non synthetic clothing (Mary Greg Collection) |
 | ||
| Wax object (Mary Greg Collection) |
 | ||
| Sketch book, 'Raw Materials' of the Mary Greg Collection |
 |
| Under 3's ways with objects - Holding |
 |
| Under 3's ways with objects - Gathering |
 |
| Under 3's ways with objects - Sorting |
 | |||
| Under 3's ways with objects - Stiring/emptying |
 |
| Sketch Book |
 |
| Sketch book |
 |
| 'Banquet of Small Things' (#'1) in the Studio |
 | |
| Object for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, wool (felt) covered brass bell |
 |
| Object for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, vintage lace covered sea glass. |
 |
| Materials for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, polished river stone, bone folders and wool. |
 |
| Objects for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, felt, merino wool and lace covered 'buttons' |
 |
| Object for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, Glass and broken mother of pearl shells in a snow globe. |
 |
| Objects for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, Silk and felt covered clay 'conkers'. |
 |
| Objects for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, Wax forms. |
 |
| Objects for The Banquet of Small Things #'2, Imprinted clay conkers ready for gold leafing. |
 |
 |
| Testing Time for The Banquet of Small Things #'2. |
Naomi Kendrick – Open Studio
1-5pm Saturday the 30th of September
On the eve of International Older People's Day, artist Naomi Kendrick is opening her studio to show her latest work 'Nothing Gold can Stay', A new series of drawings which evoke thoughts and discussion on life, mortality and how we approach the ageing process. Naomi will be Joined by Patty Doran, a social gerontologist from the Manchester Urban Ageing Research Group at the University of Manchester. Patty’s research focuses on how communities can support our ageing population.
---------------------
On a rainy Saturday, Patty and I welcomed people to ‘Nothing Gold Can Stay’ an open studio showing my recent drawings (see previous post). Having noticed the drawings becoming a catalyst for conversation about ageing and mortality, during their making, I wanted this work to be shown in a way that encouraged these conversations further. As part of her research Patty is interested in having these conversations too, particularly on the absence of preparation for and discussion about dying. This was the first event of our collaboration, a testing ground for future ways of exhibiting the drawings and generating discussion.
The people that visited us were generous, not only with their time, but in revealing their thoughts and feelings on these sensitive subjects….
Visitors came to me in the studio to see the drawings one or two at a time on arrival, they then went to a different room where Patty was waiting with tea, cake and conversation about her research.
Some people responded to the drawings with tears and reflections on their parents, or their own ageing. Others filled the same space with compliments and questions about the physicality of the drawings; the materials, tools, process, how I would preserve them… Two people told me straight that they didn’t want to ‘go there’.
“Beautiful” “thought provoking” “I like the red one best”.
There were many conversations about skin; changing texture, bruising, raised veins in hands, how skin “gives you away” projecting age regardless of how you feel on the inside in any given moment. And of course, the extremes we take to mask it.
Someone was captivated by the idea that the more I worked on the drawings, the more time and effort I put in, the more fragile they could become, increasing their chance of destruction. Someone else put it more directly. “I think this is an act of madness, but I think you know that. And I like it”.
Tea and cake were welcomed (and devoured) as a “counter to the subject matter”.
One person was frustrated with a lack of conversation amongst her peers about their own ageing and deaths (beyond ailments and medication updates). And how the actual words death and dying are never used “even in church”, instead we pass on, are lost or gone.
I was told I am too young to think about ageing (I’m 45) but that it is ok as the drawings grew from my feelings about my parents aging. Which I thought was interesting, are we not all aging? is it not something we should all think about, talk about?
One of the questions from a visitor that particularly stayed with both Patty and I was where are the right spaces to talk about these things?
This Open Studio Event was part of the New Mills Festival
'A fault line in a system or process is an area of it that seems weak and likely to cause problems or failure'
'A break or fracture in the ground that occurs when the earth's tectonic plates move or shift, and are areas where earthquakes are likely to occur.'
We all have our fault lines.
The paper surfaces of these drawings are crumpled, creased and delicate. The ink lines I make trace and reveal these points of fragility, the parts that disrupt the smooth skin of the paper. While making these drawings I have felt at times like I am healing the creases, taking care of them with a steady hand and stabilising ink. My intention is not to erase these fault lines but to highlight them, telling their story.
 | |
Untitled 2022, white ink, white thread, dowl and glue on black tissue paper. This drawing pushes the balance between fragility and strength to its limits, with the drawn marks descending into a disintegrating surface, caught and held, by delicate thread. Exhibited in 'Re-Call' at Air Gallery Manchester 2022.
 | |
| Detail |
 |
Untitled 2022 gold ink and pastel on rice paper. Exhibited in 'Sixty Drawings + Ten at The Whitaker Museum in Rossendale 2022.
 |
| Detail |
 |
| Detail |
 |
| Detail |
 |
| 'Ukraine', ink on tissue paper, 120 x 250cm aprox, 2022 |
I began ‘Ukraine’ at the start of the invasion and completed it in June 2022, sadly of course the war continues. With each mark made as the horrific news stories rolled in, I was struck by the sense of darkness looming, gathering pace... and with it an increasing awareness of our fragility, as individuals and as communities.
This drawing was created for the exhibition 'Re-Call' which took place at Air Gallery in Manchester in 2022 and it was shown again at 'Drawing (Paper) Show' The Bridewell Studios and Gallery, Liverpool in 2023.
 |
| Detail |
 |
| Detail |
 |
| Detail |
 | |||
| Detail |
Drawing in Progress
I've recently been looking back at photographs on my phone from the pandemic, specifically the first year 2020 - 2021. A story unfolds, first in the general absence of photos and then a rhythm begins, of spring flowers and bees that gave fleeting moments of comfort in the park, interspersed with the results of activities designed to try and entertain my son; painted t-shirts, dens, the odd bit of schoolwork. Things made and posted to me from remote workshops weave amongst this. From time-to-time photographs documenting the progress of a single drawing appear, a drawing gradually being added to in stolen hours, over a year. The fragility and dogged persistence of this drawing sums up much about this time for me.
This drawing went on to be exhibited at the Air Open Exhibition at Air Gallery, Manchester in 2021 where it won the visitors choice award. It was then shown in the group drawing exhibition 'Drawn In' at The Turnpike Gallery Leigh in 2022.
 |
| Untitled B&W, ink on tissue paper, 2020-2021 |
Exhibition Label - Air Open
I am interested in exploring drawing in relation to different mental states. The fragile of the paper I use, And the delicate ink lines applied over many hours, are important because I see our minds as a kind of internal landscape, that constantly holds a tension between strength and vulnerability. As I apply the marks to my drawings, I am working towards a sense of something descending, rising, or closing in, I often feel that the surface could drown in the marks, or tear at any moment, but it never does. In the delicacy of applying those marks, there is also a sense of healing.
I started this drawing in April 2020 and continued working on it until its completion a year later.
 |
| Photo Air Gallery |
 |
| Photo Turnpike Gallery |
Posts
All Comments
