Paint Symposium

Past Exhibition

 

Waterfront Gallery at UCS in Ipswich

 

The Gallery is located within the main UCS Waterfront Building adjacent to Theta Cafe.

 

Immediacy of Paint

21 September - 21 October 2015

 

Immediacy of Paint is the supportive exhibition for the symposium.

 

There are many internationally recognised artists living in the East of England and those with links to the region whose main practice is painting. It has been the intention of the symposium and this accompanying exhibition to build upon this resource and establish a platform for bringing together networks in order to further the dialogue surrounding painting in the current moment.

 

This exhibition aims to highlight the unique qualities of paint and consider the ever expanding boundaries of contemporary painting practice. It does this through the grouping of disparate images of regional artists included in the East Contemporary Arts Collection. Specifically Robert Priseman and Matthew Krishanu who are speaking at the symposium with Dan Hays and Ehryn Torrell who will also be exhibiting.

 

The paintings featured in Immediacy of Paint range from the precise and exquisite realms of realism to the gestural and enigmatic divisions of abstraction. We see one subject given to us in all its detail and another redelivered to us in broken down forms of reality.

 

From the heavy impasto of Stephen Newton’s, Window (2000), to the build-up of opaque layers in Brian James’, Queen Anne’s Revenge (2011); the paintings in this exhibition also work to highlight the contrasts of painterly approach and draw on the tensions of the painted surface.

 

In an image saturated world where the position of painting is constantly questioned, it is holding its own. Dan Hays’, Giverny (2012) gives example to how painters are evolving to work within this digital age, pulling resources from the internet and other technological advancements whilst questioning the role of process and conceptual thought in contemporary painting practice.

 

Consequently, the seventeen exhibited paintings work to reflect a glimpse of the broad and diverse possibilities of painting today.

 

Immediacy of Paint has been curated by Laurel Berry and Laura Leahy, organisers of The Immediacy of Paint: The Role of Painting in the Digital Age. Both Berry and Leahy will graduate in October and began work on both the symposium and exhibition whilst studying for their Masters Degrees in Arts Practice at University Campus Suffolk.

 

It is intended that The Immediacy of Paint: The Role of Painting in the Digital Age will be the first of what will become an annual event.

 

To be added to our mailing list send your email address to

paint.symposium15@gmail.com

 

East Contemporary Art Collection

 

The collection is the initiative of Robert Priseman and Simon Carter who set out to create a new contemporary art collection, distinct from the historic collections yet complementary to them. Through their commitment and vision, and the generosity of the artists from the East of England who have donated works, they have created a collection that showcases the vast range of artistic talent and excellence within the region.

 

www.ucs.ac.uk/PublicArt/East-Contemporary-Art.aspx

 

Acknowledgements

 

Laurel Berry and Laura Leahy would like pay special thanks to Dr Lisa Wade, Head of Arts & Humanities at UCS and Shaun Camp, Course Leader of MA Arts Practice, for their support and encouragement throughout the production of this project.

 

The event is presented in association with The University of Suffolk