Work, Re-Work & Work Again
I am delighted to present this work by some of the participants in my Finding Fragments online course. I love the variety of approaches that students have chosen to take, as their initial work has gone through multiple processes of alteration and transformation to create this exciting exhibition of contemporary mixed-media work. Everyone began with the same starting point: small fragments, gathered and observed. ‘Field Notes’ were made on location, to be used and reworked later in the studio. Stitching was explored by looking at traditional methods but then adding a contemporary twist and taking an experimental approach.
Then students were encouraged to work, re-work and work again, pushing themselves to just try one more thing: add another layer, take something away or conceal an area. Making changes through intervention as well as allowing nature to make alterations over time. Work was fragmented, rearranged, and reconstructed almost to the brink of destruction before rescuing and repairing it - leaving work bearing all the history and physical scars of the process. It is always difficult to know how far to go and when to stop. As artists, sometimes it is only by pushing on, even to the point of failure that we can truly make exciting discoveries and develop our own unique way of working. I had hoped to see the continual revision and reconsideration of the same piece until it evolved and transformed into something new and visually exciting. I was not disappointed and I am thrilled by all the amazing exhibition submissions. It has been a privilege to watch the development of this work and I thank everyone who took part in the course for trusting me to guide them through the process, but the real joy has been watching everyone take an idea and explore it to make it their own. I hope that viewers will enjoy the exhibition and the incredible detail of these fabulous, richly layered works of art.
Shelley Rhodes
