Stella Tripp - Box Set

Passing underneath the Blackfriars Bridge on this cold and damp Friday morning reminds me just how atmospheric this part of London can be as it changes its covers from being a hotspot for tourists and theatre goers to a mysterious and isolated part of the river walk during those in between times of the day and night……eerie and then back to being a part of the commuter stretch into and out of work mode.

Social Advent no.13 - near Blackfriars station 

Here we find our next Cardboard City artist; Stella Tripp just a coin roll from Blackfrairs station suspended in mid air thanks to the intuitively minded Alban Low. 

Stella shares with us her piece; 'Box Set', which sounds like a suitable gift for any occasion or is this just a play on words? 

Born in Somerset, Stella trained locally before attending Camberwell School of Arts and Crafts where she went on to lecture part-time. At the

Stella Tripp - Box Set

beginning of the eighties Stella travelled to America, Illinois where she developed much of her over arching themes and work practices, such as the decision to stop using rectangular stretched canvases and instead building makeshift constructions to paint on. These better reflected her situation and state of mind. She wrote a thesis exploring the nature of art by comparing art from different cultures and was excited by the possibilities that surface when exploring the nature of art in the light of cultural and societal conditioning: "things don’t have to be as they are; anything goes; anything is possible".

Opening the Door on Stella Tripp

This kind of open minded belief is something that was very close to the heart of our Social Advent call out and is one of the qualities underpinning our inclusive ethos. It's also a great way to share a gift with the wider community - perhaps offering an alternative to getting caught up in the maelstrom of wrapping whilst sharing our best wishes with loved ones…..

SJS

Siobhan Tarr - Perfect Imperfection

Door #12 - Top Left

As we inch our way along the south bank of The Thames, Stuart and I have been aware of the changing architecture, there seems to be a never ending carousel of buildings sites where voids are miraculously filled by taller and taller creations. Amongst them are those landmarks that have been here for centuries, yet are unashamedly taken for granted. Blackfriars Bridge for instance was built in 1869 and was opened by none other than Queen Victoria. Today this is where we find artist Siobhan Tarr's entry behind door number 12 and it has been opened by someone who is just a little less famous than her majesty.

Siobhan Tarr, door #12 is open

Siobhan Tarr is a well travelled bundle of creativity. Born in England, she lived many years in Australia before settling in Germany. It is from her base in Bad Oldesloe that she commands her mosaic empire, sending her reconstructed creations out into the world. She has been exhibiting with us since Lightbite, the magnetic street art exhibition in Nottingham (2011). I have been a great admirer of her work ever since but it is her desire to break the rules as well as the tiles that keeps me captivated.

Siobhan Tarr - Cocoon

Once again Siobhan Tarr stretches the boundaries with her submission, "Cocoon". A mosaic that is released from its normal flat confines but still speaks to us of containment. The form is unmistakably sarcophagus, its digit shape representing death itself. There is a serenity  in the face that peeks out, she is at peace even though she is wrapped in her broken dreams, or perhaps a shattered life.

I feel a kinship with Siobhan Tarr's image, although I do not publicise my insecurities and shortcomings I do not hide them either. They are part of an exoskeleton that is broken and pitted but hopefully has a fascination too.

AL.

Rose Davies - Palace Corner Advent

Opening the door on Social Advent no.11

Winding our way along the Southbank ever closer to Blackfriars Bridge and the renowned Tate M we find ourselves on the jetty outside the more modest OXO Gallery.

On the 11th day of Christmas we are saying hello to artist Rose Davies and on this chilly morning she shares with us her piece; 'Palace Corner Advent' - a fitting title for a Cardboard City themed brief.
Rose is a seasoned blogger herself, going by the name of Rosie Scribblah she responds with on site drawings and then writes up her experiences on her blog: http://scribblah.wordpress.com

Here's an excerpt from a recent blog moment:
I had an early start today and walked across the city to do some shopping to make cakes for the

Rose Davies - Palace Corner Advent

exhibition opening tomorrow and on my way back I spotted these two men asleep on the pavement down a side street. It was about 9.15 am and I was quite shocked. There’s one regular street person who tucks himself down every evening; he’s been doing it for decades and refuses offers of housing, preferring to live on the streets. But I’ve never seen anyone else out in the open like this. There are all sorts of reasons why people might be in this situation, but really, in one of the wealthiest countries in the world, it isn’t right. Why haven’t we cracked this problem yet?


Graduating from Art College at the end of the 70’s, Rose refers
 to this period of her life as; 'surviving punk, post-modernism and the rise of Thatcherism with a belief in traditional art values,

Social Advent - on the jetty near the
OXO Tower

particularly drawing, intact'. Like many other struggling young artists at that time she developed a secondary career, working with the homeless and drug dependent people. Her work with the excluded influenced her and reflects her admiration for the beauty and resilience of the human body, which seems able to withstand the harsh conditions of the modern city. 

With todays artist bringing such a strong connection to our themes of Social Advent & Cardboard City what will tomorrows artist bring to the table?

SJS

The Mysterious Malc Dow

It isn't quite peasouper density but the London fog has now cleared and reveals Social Advent Door No.10.

Cardboard City #10

The hazy and atmospheric conditions are certainly in keeping with today's artist, Malc Dow who remains one of the mystery men in our band of Creatives.

Once again we find ourselves at the foot of the Oxo Tower, as tourists start to unhitch their vast telephoto snatchers and the London commuters suck in their collective breaths for another day at the office.



Malc Dow's open door

Malc Dow has been exhibiting with us since the Brighton Open in 2011 when we placed his 'Naked Ape' magnets along the seafront of the popular arty town. Since then he has been a regular contributor to both exhibitions and our publications, including FreedBook and Patternotion. Despite regular contact he still remains an enigma, his art graces the cover of a Fernando Poo record and he leaves snippets of his life in my inbox which lay tiny thought-bombs in my mind. Dow is an artists who is passionate about communications, non coercive learning, freedom of speech. So our philosophies here at Collectconnect have comfortably rubbed shoulders with his.

Malc Dow's submission to the Cardboard City exhibition, Minimal Living, is just as mysterious as the man himself. The image represents anything but minimal living, here is a luxurious wood panelled room with canopied bed and an exotic vista through the window. I assume it is a dig at our modern consciences, where we salivate over glossy magazines, feather our own nests and covet they neighbour's Scandinavian ceramics. We give our post chintz movement the clean and classy title of Minimal but what truly represents that word is to have nothing. A sparseness that could be the result of unfortunate circumstance rather than design and choice.

AL.

Dean Reddick - Urban Net B

Social Advent no.9 - at low tide

Closing in on double figures and we have another returning member of the Collect Connect team. Dean Reddick shares with us his part 2 of urban living with a poignant statement about society today.

Our investigations into finding interesting and relevant places to site our artists Social Advents became increasingly engaging. We also found that these explorations presented us with more and more diversity as our placements began to echo some of the underlying purposes for this project, which is to utilise the spaces around us, just as the dwellers of the original cardboard city had to.

Alban Low - taking a snapshot below
the OXO Gallery

Although Dean and I exhibited together in the first Fridge magnets show at Barnet College it wasn't until a very cold Fridge Magnet trip to Nottingham as part of the Lite Bite event in 2011: http://www.lightbite.blogspot.co.uk that we got to spend some quality time together. It was during this time that I learned more about Dean's considered approach to his art practice and how these qualities are so well applied to his work as a respected art therapist - cast your eyes back to Social Advent no.3 for more information about Deans experience in this field.

Dean Reddick - House Advent 2

The idea of this flat packed society creates a double edged paradox for me, leaving me thinking of a practical realism that we are living in a world of ever decreasing natural space, which leaves us looking more intensely at the more confined spaces in between. The flip side, excuse the pun, is that this could be viewed as a representation of our ability to think creatively when living within a utilitarian society. 

opening the doors on Advent no.9

We've already opened our doors to a great range of artworks already and the diversity with which each artist has interpreted the brief is really exciting. Not yet a third of the way through our releases so lots to look forward to in the Cardboard City stocking!

Back tomorrow with no.10 and artist Alban Low releasing!

SJS

Jill Smith - Together in Peace.

Door #8 on London's Soutbank

Taking the title of today's artwork as an inspiration I had a little lie-in, so sorry for the slow start this morning. Well it is Sunday, the perfect time to open door number #8, which is Jill Smith's 'Together in Peace'. Just a short walk from Bryan Benge's #7 and closer still to St Paul's we find the next Cardboard City door at an angle, with her globe ready to roll out onto London's Southbank.

Jill Smith has been a steady contributor to our shows ever since exhibiting with us on the gates of St Leonards and Hasting's Pier in 2011 for the Rarities Magnet Exhibition. She is like many of our artists, who can find themselves isolated from local creative initiatives (if they exist) but they still want to reach out onto the National and International stage. She wrote this note to me 2 years ago and we have been corresponding ever since,



Opening the World

 "I am living in Lincolnshire, am I too far away to exhibit in Hastings? I hope not as in my town I am not joined to anything art. I hate to say it but even though there is a gallery five minutes away I don't visit as they turn their noses up at Abstract Art. I also need a wheelchair for getting out and they don't make it easy for me to visit. So I am just showing my art on the internet".

Jill Smith - Together in Peace

Although Jill still exhibits much of her work on the Net, she isn't confined or defined by this anymore. Since that first exhibition she continues to produce fresh and colourful work that has been exhibited world wide. Her submission to the Cardboard City is iconic in form, a pink globe in which the world is upside down. Sometimes it seems we need to turn our current thinking on its head. Our attention is centred on South Africa in the painting and at the moment that is true in current affairs too.

It reminds me of a pearl, a treasure that naturally occurs in Nature and yet we covet it even though it is free to pick up and find. Peace too is a precious commodity and we shouldn't let that slip through our fingers either.

AL.

Bryan Benge - Resource Revolution

With another historic London landmark playing backdrop to today's release we are bringing back one of Collect Connect's very own. Social advent no.7 sees us making our way ever closer to the Oxo Gallery and Blackfriars Bridge.

Social Advent no.7 - with St. Pauls Cathedral showing its support

First Show - a twinkle in the
eyes of Collect Connect 

Bryan has been with the Collect Connect group since the very first show: Open Fridge at Gallery 89, Barnet College in 2010 as part of a response to a mental health brief set by curator Alban Low. This was the first showing of the Fridge Magnets movement and also the first time all 4 members, Alban Low, Dean Reddick, Bryan Benge and myself, Stuart Simler exhibited together. From Barnet, we went on to spread the word about inclusive art projects, showing at festivals and shows across the country, representing new themes and initiatives and forging strong collaborations with each other. 

Bryan Benge - Skip Family

Bryan, is also an active member of The London Group: http://www.thelondongroup.com, which was set up in 1913 by thirty two artists including Robert Bevan, Henri Gaudier Brzeska, Jacob Epstein, Duncan Grant, Wyndham Lewis, Lucien Pissarro and Walter Sickert. Today The London Group is a thriving democratic co-operative of artists practicing in all disciplines, from painting and sculpture to moving image and performance, with a full annual events programme in London and beyond. Adding further to his accolades, Bryan was invited to curate the groups Centennial Show at Pitzhanger House, Ealing at the beginning of the year. 

All of this has been achieved whilst maintaining his role as Course Leader at Epsom College of Art &

Sitting pretty along the Southbank -
'Skip Family'

Design, where his responsibilities include mentoring over 300 full time students across a range of BA and MA courses. His own work depicts a depth of self investigation, which as we discovered on the first day of Christmas is hinged on the understanding of memory based on specific personal events and are then transported into the possible reality of everyday, seeking potential connections with others experiences. 

Fresh off the press from Bryan himself: 
"Most people in work have  a human resource department it used to be personnel, now a resource we are  like an old table or chair to be disposed of at will by the owners when no more of use."

"Skip- Miss Out, Omit,Leave out, Cut"

‘Get thee glass eyes;

‘And, like a scurvy politician, seem

‘To see the things thou dost not.’

 Shakespeare ,King Lear:

Keep 'em peeled for tomorrow's offerings from my compatriot, Alban Low.

SJS

Jovana Mitic - Drawing crowds in London

On a bright and crisp morning in London the latest artwork in the Cardboard City exhibition is causing quite a stir. We're not the only ones who are opening Social Advent door No.6. This one was placed along the south bank of the Thames opposite Temple Underground and beside the London TV Studios.

Jovana Mitic - Social Advent #6

Keen art hunters opening the door



Our artist today is Jovana Mitic, who is not only catching the public's attention here in London but back in her homeland of Serbia and on the international stage too. 2013 has been her year, she exhibited in several group exhibition in her country as well as International Art projects in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Hungary, Switzerland, Germany, Ireland.



Jovana Mitic
'New Belgrade Ghetto'

In the past 12 months her accolades include: 1st prize in graphic category, XI International Exhibition "Women painters“, Serbia: 2nd prize at “October Salon” - Cultural Centre in Leskovac, Serbia: Winner of “The Big Draw” - drawing competition, The Beatles Story, Liverpool, United Kingdom: 1st prize at Fifth International exhibition for miniatures, Trag gallery.




Recently she told me "What do I do as an artist? – I destroy form, deal in abstract art. Yet isolation from the outer world is not complete but there is always an association and connection with the outer world. This is less obvious in some paintings but in some connection with reality is obvious. Although I create a new world, it is, still, in a way, inspired by the existing one. Today we cannot renounce the world we leave in...”.

3 recent exhibits

Jovana is a recent discovery for me when she swept in to reach the shortlist for the Art Jazzed Up exhibition at the Shaw Gallery last month. I imagine that this wont be the last time that this tenacious artist will catch the attention of the public in the years to come.

AL.

Ann Kopka - Social Advent 5

Social Advent no.5 - above the
National Theatre

So here we are, at day number 5 and after yesterday's fantastic launch of Angela Malone's cardboard city contribution; Augustine no.9 it's now time to introduce a new artist to the project.

Ann Kopka shares with us her poignantly themed piece; 'Gimme Shelter' which has found refuge on the stairwell of the roof area above the National Theatre.

As you can tell, we have been winding our way along the Southbank in an Easterly direction this time - this could be setting a trend for the following releases……

More about our artist of the day:

Anne Kopka - Gimme Shelter

Ann Kopka’s current painting practice is inspired by encounters with the architecture of man made and natural urban landscapes. Based on curiosity, research and experimentation with her own digitally manipulated images,

Ann’s paintings are underpinned by a strong visual emphasis on structure, colour and light. Her paintings are built up in multiple layers of saturated colour, giving the finished results vibrant surfaces with distinctive three dimensional qualities. 
Ann is also engaged in researching the properties of discarded ephemera with little or no intrinsic value, drawing attention to the throwaway nature of consumer society and questioning our perception of its value systems. Discarded paper items, packaging, teabags and charity shop finds are subjected to investigative processes and may be transformed into tactile reliefs and wall hangings or used in installations.

Gimme Shelter by Ann Kopka

Ann has exhibited her artwork extensively in London, the UK and also the USA. She has been selected for solo exhibitions at The Barbican Centre Library in the City of London, Harrow’s white cube space The Gallery@HAC and Brent Civic Centre London. Her work has been exhibited in many group shows including exhibitions at the Menier Gallery London, Bankside Gallery London, Espacio Gallery London, RED Gallery London and Coningsby Gallery London. 

With such diverse and engaging artworks being released every day what will Social Advent no.6 offer us tomorrow. Tune in to find out as my co-curator and Collect Connect artist, Alban Low launches the big reveal somewhere along the Southbank. 

SJS