Rockpool

Today I went to see the ‘Rockpool’ exhibition in Bolton Market Place by the Neoartists, and also find a little more about this group of artists/designers that have come together.

Basically, the Neoartists are a group of about thirty artists which consists of painters, sculptors, printmakers, photographers etc who enjoy fine art and design, and want to show the public their work. The members come from a variety of backgrounds; the majority are students from Bolton University and others from industry, schools, or just individuals who are passionate about art. A donated space within Bolton Market Place is used to exhibit and sell their work, along with trying to promote the group and used to spread the word. To find out more check the groups’ website out www.neoartists.co.uk.

The work I saw at the exhibition today was very diverse, yet interesting! Even though there was lots of inspired and exceptional work in the exhibition, there were two particular works that caught my eye, first was the cubist style painting below by Lita Narayan ‘Go For Gold’.

The painting is pretty explosive and combines a range of mixed media on canvas. It seems to have this mirrored effect occurring throughout the image, and comes across as an exciting scumble that is quite geometric. The colour palette choice meant the piece stood out in the exhibition like a sore thumb [which is good thing!] The mixture of gold and red gives me the impression of class and value, making the work more sophisticated and suave. The price tag of ‘Go For Gold’ is £375.

The second composition was created by Janine Williamson entitled ‘Resonance of Memory’ and is a thought provoking piece of work. The ceramic project uses 42 porcelain boxes on a table that each contain either text or image on the front, and an item inside. I think the concept behind the design was that the images and items are there to remind you of a time when you used these items [for example a photo of a bike].

The piece is very interactive, and whilst I was in the studio two children came in and started looking at different boxes. This eventually led to each of them talking about events where they used these items in life and brought back memories from the past. For this reason I thought this work would be ideal for a school environment, and the style of the design allows the porcelain boxes to be altered by giving users the freedom to reveal to different items. However, for a home situation it may not be as practical and will ultimately become boring.

Finding out about the Neoartists was a valuable experience for me, and I give these artists credit for promoting themselves as a team and bringing art and design to the public eye in Bolton. Who knows, if I feel in the near future I have the calibre to produce work like these artists, you may see my work being exhibited in Bolton!