Vigorously Thriving

                                                                         A life is A life.

A year behind you know that feeling when you sure you have done something but when you cheak ether you have forgot to press the push button or you accidentally deleted everything. It seems I’ve became rather forgetful in writing blog posts and updating everyone on my going on’s this is a kick up the bum to return to the internet and social media.

 

update last year I submitted an idea for a solo exhibition at https://www.palacearts.co.uk The concept was inspired by the plant life cycle and growth being scientifically proven to grow to music.
Tenacious, relentless, fragile and vital. Plantlife and fungiare the lynchpins of life as we know it for the exhibition I attempted to represent a wide angle view of the essential cycle of growth, fruition and renewal through my sculptures, paintings and digital collages alongside three separate recored looped music.

                                               Vigorously Thriving solo exhibition at Palace Arts, Redcar. 

I been slowly updating my Etsy shop as this solo show was just a short two week exhibition wanted to make sure these print runs were available to buy. https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/CarolineDevine?ref=seller-platform-mcnav

 

                              Digital prints on recycled matt card 300gms on Etsy.

I been working on a submission for https://www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk for ‘Untitled 10’ An open call commission for new work at The Bowes Museum.

                                                       The Bowes Museum ‘Untitled 10’

I went along to an information day for potential applicants on Tuesday 19th March and meet up with the director Matthew Read. It was such a pleasant afternoon revisiting the Bowes and getting all the intel of The history and passion passed on from John and Josephine Bowes to the founders and current exhibitions keeping it all going to show everyone the appreciation of the Arts at its best. I will keep you [posted on if any success].

 

Throw Light On

It has been a while since my last post of taking a plunge building a website and applying for new commissioned artworks and collaborations. Recently I applied to http://eastdurhamcreates.co.uk to work and collaborate with http://www.cirquebijou.co.uk  umbrella project for Lumiere Festival in Durham 18-21 November http://www.lumiere-festival.com.

Let me just say it was brilliant! a worth while experience meeting new people collaborating with communities and being part of  Cirque Bijou not many people can say they danced down North Road with a l.e.d umbrella. :PHOTO CREDIT: NIC KANE.                             A few weeks before I applied for some of my Textiles products to sell in Hartlepool Gallery where I had that degree show many moons ago… https://www.destinationhartlepool.com/see-and-do/attraction/hartlepool-art-gallery.html They shown Interest which meant I had a full week on my sewing machine that I have just fixed myself thats another long story.

 Have you visiting my THC family? I made it up 2 weeks ago to stock up on my new lampshades checking on everything and as always a worm welcome with coffee it reminds me I have to drive to Crook to put up my framed piece its nice to play shop keeper the shop keeps going strength to strength. https://www.facebook.com/DL159BE/   In-between being a hermit sewing and applying I visited The Contemporary craft tour Luminosity, the 2017 craft tour celebrates LIGHT with an illuminating exhibition of contemporary works by UK and International artists including glass, sculptural textiles, film, electronics, jewellery and neon. Sandra Balmer Kiln-formed & Fused glass, Evagelia Hagikalfa Light Boxes, Heather Gillespie Glass Engraving, Jan Hopkins Mixed Media Installation Statira Jazayeri Sculptural Textiles, Jason Taylor Light Objects Stuart Langley Neon. http://www.highlightsnorth.co.uk/craft-tour.aspx     I fell in love with Statira Jazayeri Sculptural Textiles tightly woven magic that fold and bend I could play with this pieces all day.                                                                                                 Stuart Langley  Neon meets metal very satisfying and powerful piece, Brilliant exhibition.    

Making a plunge

alluding to diving in a body of water designing a new website to hopefully embark on producing new artworks to establish new networks and engage with more opportunities and mostly there is plenty of online space not like at home. Although online websites can cost a pretty Pennie so I won’t hold your breath if this site disappears after a year of trial I always have this WordPress blog as its stayed with me since I signed up around 10 year ago cough.

As a commissioned based Artist that has been responding  to open calls there are many things I would like to share and many projects that are not excepted but have great potential this gives me a kick up the backside to create a new site I need to make a push button ”someone may like/back this idea”   Anyway those who are interested in viewing my new site https://www.carolinedevine.org It’s a start in the right direction I know I got a lot of work to do on it also the Textiles & Surfaces space is not available yet that be put on hold until after the Holidays please feel free to send me some feedback would be gratefully appreciated.This is one of my recent idea’s I had that involves locality and the migration of rare seabirds that come and nest, breed and feed only for a short period of time on our local beach at Crimdon.

Shining Lights and Open Calls

After the success of Nightfall I started looking into Open Calls for Exhibitions think it’s the right thing to do so been busy writing, planning and even sent off for three open calls this month.  One is already happening a exhibition at Spectrum at Seaham industrial estate started with an open call the general theme is quite open and is ‘music’ and were looking for a diverse range of works in style and medium and were happy to take submissions from all art forms.I submitted LIFE ON MARS project inspired by revelatory modern N.A.S.A images of Mars’ surfaces, the 40th anniversary of the first soft landing on Mars and the peculiar natural beauty of where I lives, I created my own interpretation of the Martian landscape, realized using a mixture of digital collage and textile printing. The backing music is ‘Go Roll One (Spaced Mix)’ by Spooky Mushroom and was made by her partner using the recordings of various NASA missions which were released to the public via soundcloud.com a few years back. https://bandcamp.com/spookymushroomI would love to extend LIFE ON MARS after seeing it in a different space ideas kept popping up now I would love to make a Mars tunnel that people could walk though even thought how I could make it… Any way exhibition open for two weeks all is welcome  https://www.facebook.com/SpectrumCulturalHub/?hc_ref=PAGES_TIMELINE&fref=nf

Applying for Brilliant Lumiere Now can’t tell you much about what my idea is until I received information or conformation from Artichoke but can tell you BRILLIANT is a competition where anyone originally from, or currently living in the North East can apply with an idea for a light installation at Lumiere Durham 2017. The idea this time of keeping it simple my proposal is a connection to a place and something that happens every year with the possibility of light. Past BRILLIANT winners have taken every day objects as their inspiration. Do you work with something already that could be transformed with light.The first application itself is easy to follow plus this is my third time filling one out just your idea but in a busy street in durham so location is key as well as thinking of your audiences along a specific route now just waiting to see if they like the idea and then Stage two. I got home yesterday after doing my 2-4 shift in the gallery email was waiting i plucked up the courage to open it and it was a email before the email my heart skipped a beat just saying they have a huge amount of entrees so have to wait Monday 27 March….””,,,,Fingers Crossed….”””,,,, http://www.lumiere-festival.com

NightFall Stargazer

Hey its been a long while I’ve been neglecting my blog for some time now, but have some new things to be sharing…

I been looking out for new adventures in the Art world and I have found a few things of interest so started to applied for them,  One of which is happing this Friday 14 October NightFall Stargazer Tents to be held at Centre Square next to ‘Mima’ Middlesborough institute of modern art  http://www.visitmima.com/whats-It all started with a open call by Navigator North and partners Stellar Projects were looking for five emerging artists, living or working in Teesside and County Durham. Selected artists will create site specific installations as content for a series of Stargazing Tents – this will be a cluster of tents in which will be accessible to the public as part of the Nightfall event on Friday 14th October.  http://navigatornorth.co.uk/?page_id=1723  http://www.stellar-projects.co.uk/nightfall

After sending an application and c.v I received a lovely phone call with a congratulations you successfully received a place for NighFall the commission with a bursary budget, NightFall’s brief was to based around the Zodiac constellations, space and the night sky.My chosen subject and title LIFE ON MARS.

Heavily inspired by NASA (MRO) data of images of Mars’ surfaces, maps and field recordings alongside my own photographs of Blackhall beach with its rustic rocks and yellow pools. I plan to design and make a mixture of textile pieces including hangings, organic type sculptures inspired by the patterns, textures and features on Mars. The artwork will be a mixture of techniques using abstract painting, screen and digital printing and fabric manipulation to create miniature landscape forms.

Most of my Artworks involve fluorescent colours to varying degrees and UV black lights. Alongside working with new to me light sources fibre optic and EL wire incorporated into a fabric landscape inspired by thee Martin landscape 
I would like to involve sound. NASA have also released recordings from space for public use that will be used by my partner in producing some ambient soundscapes here some of his tunes https://soundcloud.com/spookymushroom.

Depending on good weather, audiences be able to step into and through the tent. The artwork will be divided into two separate sections with a path cutting through wish me luck.