THE AMAZING AFFORDABLE ASPEX ART FAIR

Nikki McBride

Some of the best artists from Portsmouth & Southsea and across the South East region will be taking part in the first aspex Art Fair next weekend, 3 - 4 September.  An amazing event that's been organised right from selecting the artists through to hanging the work by a dedicated team of aspex volunteers. So if you're looking to buy yourself a piece of art - at an affordable price and direct from the artist - then this is the place to do it. There will be a range of styles and mediums with prices from £5 to £500 so there's really something to suit everyone.

It's also a chance to see inside the new aspex building - The Lighthouse - where work by each of the artists will be displayed 'salon style' on the main wall.  As this building is easily accessible - just across the bridge from the Spinnaker Tower - we're hoping it will attract Gunwharf visitors and shoppers as well as the usual visitors to the gallery.  There will also be work in the main aspex building where the artists will be available to chat about their work and practice.

Adrian Mundy

The artists taking part in the fair include:  Adrian Mundy, Alex Ings, Anne Shaw, Ashley John, Caroline Hall, Emma Seymour, James Weaver, Jenny Lee, Jessica Foyle, Jodie Silsby, Kingsley Nebechi, Laura Wolfram, Melanie Rose, Nikki McBride, Roo Abrook, Simon Whitcomb, Tristan Savage and Victoria Iles. Some of them are recent graduates and early career artists, so we hope the art fair will not only get their work seen by a wide audience but also make them a bit of cash!  For this event, all the money from the sales goes direct to the artist with no commission being taken by aspex.

The volunteer team -  Maxine Dennis, Christiane Hofmann, Elizabeth Nicholls, Lisa White and Jo Willoughby - have organised the art fair as part of their volunteer training and they've put an enormous amount of time and effort into it.  So to recognise all their work we need as big an audience as possible, so please bring along your family and tell all your friends!

Alex Ings

More information on the art fair and the participating artists can be found at:
aspexartfair.wordpress.com

aspex Art Fair
3 & 4 September, aspex Lighthouse and aspex
Vulcan Building
Gunwharf Quays
Portsmouth
PO1 3BF
T 023 9277 8080
E info@aspex.org.uk
www.aspex.org.uk

KYE WILSON - ARTIST'S TALK - 17 AUGUST, ASPEX

ARC is pleased to be hosting a talk by Portsmouth based artist, and regular ARC contributor,  Kye Wilson to coincide with his solo exhibition Entrapment of the o/Other at the Round Tower, Old Portsmouth.  
Kye will be discussing his Unsettled-Beautiful video which was commissioned by the Madrid Festival of Contemporary Audio-Visual Arts after he won their Best Video Artwork award in 2009.  
The video was filmed on location in Madrid and exhibited as a site-specific video installation at the 2010 festival.
Having premiered the work in Spain, Kye is now taking it to a number of other venues in the UK, reworking it for each space.  The Round Tower, a fortification built in the fifteenth century in Old Portsmouth, is the first of these locations. The work includes a self choreographed live performance by artist Helena Eflerová which Kye has filmed in High Definition Video format and will be showing in the exact spot where the ‘performance to camera’ took place.
Kye's work was inspired by a recurring dream and the connection of that dream with the treatment of suffrage prisoners. Thematically it questions the notions of absence, presence, embodiment, gender, self and the Other by merging the real and imagined. Through strategic - and highly accurate - positioning of the projected image of the female performer Kye is able to create the illusion of a live performance in the architectural space - a video trompe l'oeil.  The image of the figure is therefore seemingly present and yet absent.


Artist's Talk - Kye Wilson: Wednesday 17 August, 6.30 to 8.30 pm, aspex, Portsmouth.
Free but places limited.  Email arc@aspex.org.uk to reserve your place.

Exhibition: 12-19 August 2011 by appointment

Private View: Friday 12 August, 7-10pm, everyone welcome

Venue: The Round Tower, Broad Street, Old Portsmouth, PO1 2JE

‘Entrapment of the o/Other’ is a site-specific, video and sound installation that aims to give the viewer an emotive experience through a form of sensory engagement in an interesting and challenging historical space.  

‘Entrapment of the o/Other’ is funded by the National Lottery through Arts Council England and sponsored by the Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries CCi SPACE Offsite Programme and Portsmouth City Council.

TWISTED - A FRESH ENCOUNTER WITH CONTEMPORARY CRAFT, PHOENIX, BRIGHTON

Kay Aplin, a regular contributor to arc events is currently taking part in Twisted, an exhibition featuring the work of seven artists who use the materials and techniques of textiles and ceramics.  However, as the title indicates, these artists 'twist' and manipulate their materials to produce a range of unexpected forms including wall pieces and installations that you can walk through and explore.  Kay, a successful public artist, has created a new wall relief (pictured) which she is showing alongside work by Rosalind Davis, Rosie James, Marion Mitchell, Karin Schosser, Isobel Smith and Alice Walton. The exhibition runs until Sunday 21 August and associated events include a Twist & Make Market on Saturday 13 August with over 20 market stalls selling fine craft and offering drop in taster workshops.
Also, not to be missed - there is a panel discussion on whether the growth of Information Technology in the arts has led to a decline in traditional workshop facilities and training.  A diverse panel - Peter Seddon, Deputy Head of School of Arts and Media, University of Brighton; Rosalind Davis, Manager Core Gallery, Deptford; Cliver Goodyer, Illustrator and FE Lecturer; Neil Lemaire, sculptor; Annie Ascroft, art student; and Paul Bunkham, FabLab Project Leader - will discuss the long term effects of this policy and offer practical strategies for artists.  The discussion - INSIGHT: The Haptic Arts - What Future? - is free and will take place at 7pm on Thursday 18 August.  Advance booking is required through info@phoenixbrighton.org.
Phoenix also have a programme of specialist art courses which they are launching in August so take a look at their website for all the details.
www.phoenixbrighton.org