Tag: Phil Kneen

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Isle of Man Art News – 29 May 2017

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Click here to support the Joey Dunlop Foundation

Gosh it’s all so busy at the moment! Last week the amazing Roger Dean opened his new show at The Sayle Gallery on Tuesday evening with a private viewing which went extremely well, followed on Wednesday by the fabulous Islexpo event with the Pecha Kucha’s kicking off the evening followed by Roger talking about his architecture in the Garden Hub. Unfortunately I missed the Pecha Kucha’s being otherwise engaged but I’m delighted to report that they were filmed and are going to be loaded up on to the Douglas page on the Pecha Kucha website shortly which you can find HERE. I’m really looking forward to seeing them. 

Private Viewing at The Sayle Gallery last Tuesday – with thanks to Dave Armstrong for the photos.

Roger’s ‘fireside chat’ with two times BAFTA winner and long time friend, Dave Mousley, centered on his architectural designs which are currently being considered for Knebworth and the Peak District. They’ll be absolutely amazing if/when they go ahead and real holiday and short break ‘destinations’. It would be fantastic to have something like that here don’t you think? There was a really good turnout and I heard a number of people saying that this was the first they knew about this aspect of his work so I think the different content went down very well. There were plenty of questions from the audience at any rate. The only thing missing was the ‘fireside’ and being dressed for the day rather than the evening having set out from the house in the sunshine earlier that morning I was nearly blue with cold by the time I was ready for home! Roger fortunately managed to escape Manannan’s cloak on Thursday morning to head back to the UK and I then spent a very relaxed few hours enjoying the second day of Islexpo, going from one extreme to the other with the sun soon burning through the clouds and leaving me with a rather pink schnozzle and a roasted left arm.

It was great to see so many people at the Villa and the sunshine was really helpful in showcasing the Island at its best. It was evident from a show of hands during one of the presentations that there were a good number of people who had traveled to the island especially for the event. I spoke to a lawyer from Liverpool who was thinking of relocating his back office here and an HR agent from Dublin who was hoping to be able to provide candidates to island businesses to give just a couple of examples. Inward investment, diversification and increasing our population with skilled workers into areas such as art, music and media will be key to the success of the Island as the changes on the horizon draw ever closer and challenge our status quo. Events like Islexpo are great for bringing out the local business community to help sell the benefits of island life so I think congratulations to Sam Jones, Kate Brier, Alex Wilson and loads of others at DED for putting on such a great conference are well deserved. 

I’ve kept back a few of the Yes logo’s which went into the delegate bags. If you’d like to win a set autographed by Roger, head over to the Directory’s Facebook page and Share the Event pinned to the top of the page and leave a comment (such as Yes!) so that I know you’re in it to win it. I’ll pick the winner at random on Senior Race Day.

As well as dashing around arranging private viewings and Islexpo doings I was also delighted to be invited to Ramsey Grammar School’s arts evening and was not at all surprised to see the quality of the work there, as we really do have some great talent here on the Island. I did mention RGS in last week’s post but ran out of time to do it justice, so here are a few of my photos from the evening. It was nice to see that Annette Baker, the headteacher, had also participated! Well done to all, it was a really good display of work. You can click on any of the pictures in these news posts to see them in the lightbox.

The very talented Sally Black has recently posted up some pictures of her new work which I absolutely love! They are really quirky and I can see these doing really well as fabric designs. I don’t know what plans she has for them but don’t forget that you can find Sally and lots of other Artists’ contact details through the Directory pages.

Juan Moore has devised a short survey about his work and where to take it. You’d be really helping him out if you could kindly spend a minute or two to complete it and you might even win one of his prints. Any excuse to post up one of Juan’s pics 😉   Click here for the link to the Survey.

There’s a new show on at the Hodgson Loom Gallery including a land speed record holding motorbike (goodness only knows how Julia managed to get it up there – she said it involved men and planks). It’s a show designed to delight our TT visitors with photos and artwork around the TT event (actually that’s a point, am I actually allowed to mention the TT or do I have to apply for permission to use it in my news?). After this show there’s the Manx Cancer Help event – if you haven’t got your canvas in already please deliver it asap to MCH headquarters in Tromode, the Sayle Gallery, Celtic Gold in Peel or the Hodgson Loom Gallery. More details to follow on that one.

On the subject of the TT, I don’t normally dip into media but I thought it worth mentioning ‘3 Wheeling’ which has been produced by Santon based Chris Beauman. It was filmed during last year’s TT and the clue is in the title – it’s about the sidecars rather than the bikes. Whilst I haven’t been to see it yet I’ve heard it’s superb and will get your adrenaline racing. It’s on twice daily at the Broadway Cinema at 12:00 noon and 21:30 through until 8th June.

Here’s this week’s round up of images from Social Media – enjoy!

 

Dates for your Diary

 

31 May – Sarah Hendy’s arts show ‘Spotlight’ on Manx Radio, 5.30 – 6.00pm (and every Wednesday)

On now– REM-EMBERS EMBLAZONED – David Maddrell at Studio 42 (and lots of other lovely work too…)

On now – Hodgson Loom Gallery – ‘Salty Wheels’ and Fottofinders TT exhibition.

On now until 10 September –  “This is Summer” exhibition at the House of Manannan

On now and throughout the TT period –  ‘Thirty-Seven and Three Quarters’ – photographic exhibition by James Marvin at The Sayle Gallery; and
24 May – 15 June Roger Dean’s paintings at The Sayle

On now – ‘Catch and Release’ at the Isle Gallery – Nick Barlow and Julie Roberts

15 June – First Meeting of the Isle of Man Drawing Club, 6.30 pm at the British Hotel, North Quay, Douglas

15 June – Start of Paul Parker’s Water Colour Landscape Painting Course at Thie Ellyn

21 June – The Isle Gallery: Lino Block Printmaking One Day Adult Art Workshop, 10.00am – 4.00pm

 

That’s it for this week folks. Have a great and safe Practice Week and TT!

Jane x

Keep up-to-date by ‘Liking’ the Facebook Page or by ‘Following’ me on Linkedin or Twitter@manxart or Instagram @manxartdirectory or Pinterest. To get in touch please email:jane@graceandhall.com

 

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Isle of Man Art News – 3 April 2017

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The News is kindly Supported by the Isle of Man Arts Council.

What fun Friday evening was. I’ve not been to a ‘Wearable Art’ show before and decided to take along my friend Sarah for company. Neither of us had eaten and we were short on time so we called into the Terrace Chippy – a rare treat for me – and ate in the car before heading on in. It’s been ages since I’ve had a picnic in the car. There was a great turnout for the show and it really was very well organised and presented. I’d meant to take along my decent camera but had left it in Ramsey so had to go with my phone. Here’s a little clip for you (I thought the hat was particularly good).

 

Many of the designs represented something in particular, such as the 10 year anniversary of Rebecca House and one young lady had designed her outfit around Laxey. Another politically minded girl had selected Donald Trump as her theme and yet another design was representative of the rubbish we find on our beaches. In the case of Nicola Dixon, she had upcycled a charity find and painted it with her signature ‘Knoxy Knots’. As mentioned I ended up using my phone for the pics but at least they give you an idea of some of the fab outfits – there were professional photographers there too so no doubt at some point you will be able to see them in all their glory. Click to see the larger pictures in the lightbox gallery.

Unfortunately I didn’t make it to the opening of Alice and Julie Fayle’s show at the Sayle Gallery on Saturday evening but I did call in on Friday lunchtime to see how it was shaping up. Work was in full swing and I was very taken with some of the fabrics displayed in the embroidery hoops. I’ll have to call in this week but I’ve seen a few photographs on Facebook and heard it described as ‘refreshing’ so I’m looking forward to seeing it.

 

SALT QUARTERLY magazine, a publication due out later this year and the brain child of photographer Phil Kneen, is looking for contributing writers, photographers and graphic artists. This occasional publication will feature quality, contemporary photography, essays and journalism from around Europe, and beyond.

For further details or to pitch any ideas, please email only – mail@philkneen.com.

 

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On the subject of writing, the guest posts I have been publishing seem to be very well received. So far I’ve been lucky enough to be able to publish articles by Eloise White, Jane Jelski, Zoe Guilford, Emma Callin, Hannah Murphy, Rosie Wood and Fiona Helleur. I have a couple in the pipeline but if you would like to contribute an article please do get in touch: jane@graceandhall.com. If you’ve missed any of them and would like to catch up you can follow this link to filter just the Guest Posts:guest-articles.

 

Friday 7 April is the next #ilovethisbuilding competition deadline to have your image featured in Gallery IOM in May. Send a 1mb photo with 100 words saying why you love that building to isleofarchitecture@gmail.com and stand a chance of winning a weekend in the beautiful Manx National Heritage cottage. 

 

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Svetlana Cameron posted up a few photos of her latest commission, Sofia. As you would expect, the quality and attention to detail are stunning.

 

I haven’t done a give-away or a survey for a while so, inspired by the National Joint Arts and Culture Strategy hosted by the Arts Council and Culture Vannin recently, here is the link to my new survey: www.surveymonkey.com. Once you’ve completed it, please ‘Like’ the post and put ‘done’ in the comments –  in the original post- to be in with a chance of winning some fab new art supplies (Paper, Acrylics and 4 x Paintbrushes).

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Responses from young people are of particular interest, so please share the survey with as many people aged 30 and under and their friends as you can. Responses are anonymous.

I’ve had over 40 responses so far and hopefully will get quite a few more. The early indications are interesting and I will share the results after Easter. I’d also just like to say to person who responded to the question ‘How do you hear about what’s going on in the Arts scene’ with the response ‘I receive notifications from Middle Earth, delivered by dragons’ that if they are also the person who said they have never been interested in pursuing a career in the Arts and that Arts doesn’t feature in their life and is irrelevant to how they feel, they might want to have a re-think! 

 

There will be an Isle of Architecture lunchtime event in the Tynwald Chamber on 10 April celebrating 150 years of Manx democracy, with a potted history of the building, re-enactments of extracts from speeches and debates, personal anecdotes and music, all brought to you by historian, broadcaster and author Charles Guard and his talented friends, Caarjyn Cooidjagh, Greg Joughin and Jonathan King.

This free ‘Chamber Concert’ takes place between 1 and 2pm on Monday 10 April and anyone interested in the bits of history which are often overlooked should see www.isleofarchitecture.com/events for details of how to reserve tickets – places are limited and must be booked in advance as it is an all-seated event.

The event was devised by Charles Guard on behalf of Isle of Architecture: “We couldn’t have a celebration of the Island’s built environment without including Tynwald,” says Charles.  “The iconic ‘wedding cake’ building is as much part of Douglas as the Tower of Refuge, and is in daily use as the centre of our government.  I hope this concert combines the history of the building with the history of 150 years of Manx democracy, in a light hearted, entertaining way with wide appeal.”

 

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Charles Guard

 

Dates for your Diary

 

On now – From Syria with Love Isle of Man at Noa Bakehouse

On now – The Sayle Gallery – Cut from the same Cloth – Julie and Alice Fayle

On now – Olive Wassall and Karl Garrett at the Hodgson Loom Gallery, Laxey

5 April – Sarah Hendy’s arts show ‘Spotlight’ on Manx Radio, 5.30 – 6.00pm (and every Wednesday)

6 April – REM-EMBERS EMBLAZONED – David Maddrell at Studio 42 (Preview on the 6th – 6.30pm to 8.30pm)

6 April – 7.00pm – 8.00pm – Noa Bakehouse, Contemporary Architecture Talk – Hannah Corlett

8 April – 6.30pm – 10.30pm -Adults Pot Thrown & Hand Built Ceramic Workshop for 2 – The Isle Gallery

8 April – 21 April – Easter Treasure Hunt in the Milntown Gardens, Ramsey – take the kids and Rob Jones’s Drawn Steel Through the Seasons

10 April – 1.00pm – 2.00pm – Isle of Architecture Tynwald Chamber talk

11 April – 2 May – Noa Bakehouse – ‘Around The Mountain’ by Graham Rider

 

Here’s this week’s round up of images from Social Media. 

 

 

Have a great week!

Jane x

 

Keep up-to-date by ‘Liking’ the Facebook Page or by ‘Following’ me on Linkedin or Twitter@manxart or Instagram @manxartdirectory or Pinterest. To get in touch please email:jane@graceandhall.com. 

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Isle of Man Art News – 27 March 2017

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The News is kindly Supported by the Isle of Man Arts Council.

 

I’ve had a very self-indulgent weekend. Not only was it of course Mother’s Day yesterday but the sun was shining (it actually feels like it might be Spring) and the clocks changed. Woo hoo! Bring on the lighter nights. Add to this a full on arty weekend and there you have a perfect ‘keep Jane happy’ recipe.

On Saturday morning I attended the National Joint Arts and Culture Strategy hosted by the Arts Council and Culture Vannin with around 40-50 delegates from across a wide range of creative organisations and disciplines. This initiative was designed to get feedback on 6 core objectives:

  1. Inspire people of all ages and backgrounds to enjoy our arts and culture;
  2. Invest in the Island’s creative communities so that they are successful and sustainable;
  3. Promote our unique Manx culture and distinctiveness as central to our Island’s image, nationally and internationally;
  4. Champion the arts and culture as fundamental to our wellbeing and sense of place;
  5. Develop knowledge, skills and understanding about and for our creative and cultural industries; and
  6. Inspire people to explore new horizons through innovation, media and technolody.

The delegates were divided into 6 groups who considered each objective in turn, rotating onto the next objective after 15 mintues. It was a really interesting, engaging and fun morning with lots of lively discussion and good suggestions being put forward. The strategy will be finalised shortly and it will be really interesting to see what it looks like and what ideas are taken forward.

 

One person who would have been at the strategy meeting on Saturday but tragically didn’t make it was Jonathan ‘Jonno’ Gollow. Jonno was a member of the Arts Council between 2007 and 2011 and had planned to be there this weekend. His untimely passing has been devastating and many of his friends have posted the most beautiful and fitting tributes to him and his legacy of JonnoPromotions. Jonno’s funeral is today in North London near his parents’ home. God Speed, Jonno, to the Great Gig in the Sky. 

 

On Saturday afternoon, after a quick trip to Manx Radio to record a few minutes with Sarah Hendy for her Spotlight programme (Wednesday evenings, 5.30-6.00pm), I headed off to the Hodgson Loom Gallery in Laxey for the opening of Olive Wassall and Karl Garrett’s show. Unfortunately I missed seeing Karl by a few minutes but it was lovely to meet Olive who has traveled quite extensively since retiring. Many of her paintings are of African animals. Here’s a small selection of Olive’s pictures.

 

Yesterday saw the opening of Jimmy Duggan’s new show at The Isle Gallery, ‘False Idols’, which unsurprisingly includes some large-scale pieces. I was particularly taken with the beautiful horse he has painted onto cardboard boxes and the large portrait. He told me he was thinking about putting the horse in an open public space and just let whatever might happen to it happen, but I could see this in somewhere like the Children’s Centre as an educational piece or a public space like the Airport or the Sea Terminal. I was chatting to artist Sally Black about it and she suggested painting the horse’s innards on the other side which could be fun.

 

I’d spotted on Facebook the beautiful labyrinth that has been installed in the grounds at Peel Cathedral crafted by Ongky Wijana but I hadn’t realised, until I was chatting to Sally at the show, that Ongky is actually her son-in-law. Ongky is a master stone carver and the whole thing has been made by him in Bali, Indonesia, each piece individually cut and fitted, and then shipped to the Island to be installed by Stokes Building and Restoration. It’s taken Ongky many months to carve it and it’s been no mean feat to install it either so huge congratulations to everyone involved. I think you’ll agree, they have done a beautiful job. You can see more here.

 

Colleen Corlett has been working on a range of clocks using her new pyrography skills having already made a few ceramic ones. Colleen said she is hoping to have an exhibition later this year – I wonder if it will be a whole exhibition of clocks? Anyway, she is a very talented lady and here are some pictures of her latest time pieces.

 

Am I a bit jealous? Yes, probably. Phil Kneen has been teaching his partner, Hannah Yeowell, photography and so far she’s doing a pretty good job of it. Having said that, however, I think part of the deal involves not wearing much in the way of clothing for some of Phil’s photos and I certainly wouldn’t want to subject anyone to that.

Here are a few of Phil’s recent photos from the Welsh Streets in Liverpool (and a couple of Hannah not wearing very much) ……

 

….. and a couple of Hannah’s recent shoot in Peel with the beautiful and talented Mae Challis as her model – pretty good eh?

 

Dates for your Diary

On now – From Syria with Love Isle of Man at Noa Bakehouse

29 March – Sarah Hendy’s new arts show ‘Spotlight’ on Manx Radio, 5.30 – 6.00pm (and every Wednesday)

31 March – 7.00pm – 9.00pm – Manx Wearable Art Catwalk Show at the Youth Arts Centre, Kensington Road (Doors open to public 19.00. Admission £6
To reserve tickets call 07624 437339)

31 March – Cut Off for IOM Art Festival Entries!

1 April – The Sayle Gallery – Cut from the same Cloth – Julie and Alice Fayle

6 April – 7.00pm – 8.00pm – Noa Bakehouse, Contemporary Architecture Talks – Hannah Corlett

8 April – 6.30pm – 10.30pm -Adults Pot Thrown & Hand Built Ceramic Workshop for 2 – The Isle Gallery

8 April – 21 April – Easter Treasure Hunt in the Milntown Gardens, Ramsey – another great reason to call and see Rob Jones’s Drawn Steel Through the Seasons

11 April – 2 May – Noa Bakehouse – ‘Around The Mountain’ by Graham Rider

 

Here’s this week’s round up of images from Social Media. 

 

 

Have a great week!

Jane x

 

Keep up-to-date by ‘Liking’ the Facebook Page or by ‘Following’ me on Linkedin or Twitter@manxart or Instagram @manxartdirectory or Pinterest. To get in touch please email:jane@graceandhall.com.