Bespoke Films at Bespoke Space
- Article Information
- Published on Tuesday, 25 October 2011 11:55
- Written by Kim Thornton
The first film by Gin Dunscombe , La Lavandaria de Nicaragua, looked at the repetitive task of washing and contrasted the everyday beauty of a line of drying linen at a beautiful Buddhist retreat with that of migrant workers on a roundabout encampment in the capital city Managua. Despite the Buddhist belief that when you are doing a repetitive task you should think of others doing the same to feel a sense of connectedness it is obvious that these two washing scenes are very far apart. Gin’s second film Smokestack documented a nostalgic yet surprising London journey.
Also dealing with repetitive actions was Jackie Brown’s film Sieve documenting the process of sieving a yard square of earth and sorting its contents. This was teamed with Yard Square framing each step on the walk to her marked square of earth. Jackie’s films relate domestic chores to the earth and focus on what is beneath our feet and how we overlook the way soil underpins our manmade habitat.
Bridging the gap between repetitive actions and identity was Leonie Cronin’s Jamon. This featured a scantily clad woman ineptly carving a traditional Spanish ham in a rural outdoor location and comments on female objectification. The film captured an impromptu performance by Leonie raising the question of the distinction between documentation and films in their own right. Also looking at the culture of the body was the work by Katushka Borges, Sensory Connection. This features a voyeuristic and sensual look at sunbathing bodies but with political overtones about the commoditisation of the body.Tamar Lev-On’s films Homes and Mothers looked at identity and whether a parent defines a child or is it the other way round? The nostalgic journey Tamar’s childhood house makes in Homes explores the metaphorical issue of people carrying their home with them until they find a safe place to put it.
Our guest filmmakers both dealt with memory but in very different ways. In Voices in a Landscape Sandra Masterson explored the traditions of the Welsh peat fields with the focus on ecological issues, blurring the boundaries between art and documentary film. Jan Savage’s Oblivion was a hauntingly poignant display of photographic memories hinting at loss and trauma but also giving a sense of tapping into someone else’s life.
Maria Beddoes’ investigation of memory resulted in a much more upbeat conclusion. Her piece Girls on film showed two scenarios with children playing happily. The first was a nostalgic look at sisters playing unselfconsciously in the garden whilst the second features the seemingly never ending joyful bouncing of a child on a pogo stick.
It was an animated evening with plenty of lively discussion. In addition to informing and entertaining everyone there it also provided a very useful peer group review session for the participants. A big thank you to everyone who took part and to Laura Moreton-Griffiths for organising the evening.
SLWA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
- Article Information
- Published on Monday, 13 June 2011 00:00
- Written by Leonie Cronin
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
JUNE 21 2011, 6.40 FOR 7.00PM
THE LINBURY ROOM, DULWICH PICTURE GALLERY
THREE YEARS OLD AND MAKING OUR MARK
SLWA’s won 4 out of the 6 prizes at the Friends of Dulwich Picture Gallery Exhibition.
43 SLWA artists participated in Dulwich Open House
Individual SLWAs win prizes and are selected for top shows.
MOVING ONWARDS
Come and have your say at the AGM workshop
It is a workshop not a dry old AGM so come and
Shape SLWA for the next three years – Jenny is moving on to become Chair of the Friends of DPG
Share ideas on the new SLWA Website
Sign up for Bankside 2, May 2 - May 7 2012
Help plan more SLWA exhibitions, more Pop Ups, more ……..
Network – meet other SLWAs and find new people to work with and exhibit with
Get involved – we are asking members to join in - seek opportunities to take a part.
The AGM will discuss the Steering Group’s decision to increase the membership fee from £10 to £15.00.
There will be an opportunity to pay membership fees during the evening.
Dulwich Open House May 14/15 2011
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- Published on Saturday, 14 May 2011 21:41
Did you spot our headline news board?
Women Artists Educate Next Generation
- Article Information
- Published on Wednesday, 27 October 2010 00:00
Paola Minekov: Dancers, circuses and emotions
- Article Information
- Published on Thursday, 07 October 2010 13:20
- Written by Susan Wood
Paola's first solo show opens on 18 October in City Tower, London, followed by a second solo exhibition which opens on 12 November and runs till the end of the year at Carnegie Library in Herne Hill. Her work had been spotted at Dulwich Library, Bankside Gallery and Dulwich Open House and South London Dance Studios earlier this year.Did you always love art?
As a child I had to choose between dancing, the piano and painting, and chose art. Between the ages of 9 and 11 I had art lessons every day, in order to gain a place at the highly competitive National School for Fine Arts in Sofia, one of the very few secondary schools in Bulgaria specialising in art. After this very technical training in painting I studied at the Avni Institute in Tel Aviv for 18 months, then did my degree at the Willem de Kooning Academy in Rotterdam, where I studied Multimedia Design for three years, including work on videos, art installations and websites. It was then that I decided that what I really wanted to do most of all was art.
What made you move to London?
I fell in love with London the very first time I came here on a holiday back in 2003. I think I immediately knew I wanted to live here one day. It’s such a cultural centre and perhaps one of the best places in the world for an artist to be! I’ve lived in a few different countries since leaving Bulgaria at the age of 18 and wasn’t afraid of moving again. When I move to a new place I like to feel the atmosphere and come to know its people. Now I'm finding my way here and meeting a lot of amazing and interesting people. Through researching websites I found SLWA and Dulwich Open House. It's my first year of being a professional artist, and I've been exhibiting non-stop since January 2010 and sold some work. This October I'm organising the SLWA Exhibition at Dulwich Library (31st October – 27th November 2010), together with Gabrielle Bradshaw, Torie Wilkinson and Jenny Sweeney, and my first solo show is coming up later this month.
Where is it?It is in City Tower and is organized by MWB Business Exchange who are also sponsoring the Private View reception. It's also linked to a Ballet Gala Night at the Britten Theatre which will take place on November 7. It's to raise funds for a charity called Honeypot, which uses the money to support vulnerable children. At the night of the gala I’ll exhibit seven original paintings and six giclee prints on canvas, and a percentage of the sale money will go to the charity.
What sort of work are you showing?
I'm very interested in movement, and am exhibiting work from my 'Dancers' and 'Circus' series.At the moment I’m working on two new paintings especially for the gala and have recently had the chance to sketch Celisa Diuana, a ballerina from the Royal Ballet, as well as dancers from Ballet Black, a company of professional dancers of Black and Asian descent.Dancers VI is about movement, reflections and energy, about how elegant, fragile and vulnerable the dancers are, but how they can express a range of emotions and are actually very fit and strong.
There's another theme too?
The theme of my new series 'Echoes of Romance' relates to women, relationships and sexuality, and is based entirely on my own experiences. While very personal, these works are much more stylised and monochrome when compared to the 'Dancers' series. I find that not only many of my female friends, but also many men relate to the works. In 2006 a psychologist chose my painting Every Woman to represent his research project on genetic breast and ovarian cancer in women at Leiden University, which concerns how doctors should discuss these matters with patients. This is another subject I’m very passionate about. The Outsider is about the person somebody wants to be with, the pressure, worry and insecurity that women often feel in a relationship – feelings that men are not always aware of and therefore remain 'outsiders' in the joint experience.
Do you have favourite artists?
The Impressionists, Rembrandt, Monet, Klimt and Schiele are favourites of mine. I also like Damien Hirst! Two years ago I had an exhibition with my father, sculptor Ivan Minekov, and realised that his sculptures work well with my paintings. He created the statuette for the Special Grand Prix Award for International Ballet Competition 2008, and I'll be showing it at the gala in the Britten Theatre along with 2 more of his bronzes.
You're also working on your website?
My portfolio website is www.paolaminekov.com and I also have an on-line gallery, mainly prints, but also some original work that you can order online.
Thanks very much for your time, Paola, and good luck with the solo show!
