Itty Bitty Locker Exhibition...

Sophie and I (Bev) are going to carry out our own little locker exhibition at in our course studio at Leeds College of Art! There are a few unused lockers, but so far we have started to coat the insides of two of them with white paint.

As you can see, the lockers are tall, deep and quite dark. We may need to install some lights inside to illuminate it! At the moment we are planning to exhibit our own work inside - ranging from two-dimensional and three-dimensional artworks. We are also considering in exhibiting artwork outside Itty Bitty Art Committee, which has to follow a specific theme that we set (generally small art), but we are still discussing about it!

Our aim is to get this locker project up and running after the Easter holidays, so we hope everyone has an enjoyable Easter!

The Henry Moore Institute Offers Us a Lift!

Today we braved through the snow and slushy ice to visit The Henry Moore Institute to enquire whether they had a tiny space where we could exhibit the artwork created by our Itty Bitty Art Committee.

http://www.henry-moore-fdn.co.uk/hmi/

A friendly fellow called Bruce, who works as a security guard at the gallery showed us two lifts to hold our exhibition. One was a lift for the disabled and the other was a teeny tiny lift, which apparently was meant to hold six people...

The guy behind the reception desk said he could get us permission to exhibit in this lift if we send him an email and he would forward it on to the manager. It would be great to get this space... so we better start cracking!

Here's Some Inspirational Videos

HOPE FARMERS - LIVE ART COLLABORATION - MAGIC from The Glue Network on Vimeo.

"Glue Network, Jedidiah, and Flexfit collaborated with Artist's: Kelli Murray, Tommii Lim, J Shea, Serge Gay, Blaine Fontana, and Joshua Clay to create a live art mural at MAGIC. The mural was called HOPE FARMERS and sold to the CEO of Kangol. A large percentage of the money raised will go to the Las Vegas Chapter of StandUp For Kids"

Wind from UPPERCASE gallery on Vimeo.

"A polaroid photo developing on a windy summer's day."

Library House from Multistory on Vimeo.

"Multistory asked 200 children what they wanted to see and do in their new library. They wrote and drew their answers on tiny cardboard houses."

I enjoyed the first video of the live art collaboration. It is interesting how the artists can work comfortably together to create a grand final mural, what also caught my attention was how one artist painted an image and another artists expanded from it, but keeping the same theme in mind.

I hope to combine myself in these types of projects - it would be an educational, creative and fun experience!

The Incredible Gum Painting Man!

thisislocallondon.co.uk

After another evening session of browsing the internet I came across a street artist who I remember seeing several years ago in the high street of Barnet, Greater London. It's the chewing gum painter man! Well, his name is actually Ben Wilson and he was a Barnet resident but his teeny chewing gum works are all over London. So far I've only seen the ones in Barnet. At first I thought they were colourful stickers... well at least it brightens up the grey concrete of London!

Ink & Mess: marielouiseplum.blogspot.com

"I'm just going to keep going and see how far I get," said Mr Wilson, who started his quest at the Hadley end of High Street, Barnet. "I use acrylic paint and varnish, then I've got a little burner to dry it. I've done different pictures cups of tea, elephants, flowers I do requests as well. Often I just draw whatever takes me on that day." Ben Wilson, Painting a Gum Trail, 2004, thisislocallondon.co.uk

Flickr Images: flickr.com

His chewing gum paintings grab your attention, and because they are so small and on the ground you have to bend over to look at them, making the people following behind you stumble into you - I have to admit that has happened to me a couple of times! The gum paintings feature images of people, places (where the gum is painted), animals, local facilities and landmarks. You could even request a piece of gum to be painted for you and he will print your name, that's only if you were lucky to meet him! He is recognised as a local legend in Barnet, everyone that I met in Barnet know of him...

"‘I know a lot of the shopkeepers, road sweepers and local police. As I walk down the street, every few steps I think of a picture I have to do for someone. I have all this in my head, which make me feel closer to the place and the people.’ He hopes his work will encourage in others an awareness of their surroundings and give children a sense of connection with their local environment – something he believes fewer people have these days." Art On Chewing Gum, 2006, rawvision.com

He was known to the local police who accepted his unique street artwork. They even requested him to paint gum that featured their emblems!

Another Flickr Image: On the streets of Muswell Hill.

T.S.G. stands for Tactile Support Group. ie. The Police also make requests. Cool!

"I'm not defacing the pavement, it is more sensitive than that. I don't want to get in people's faces I'm not a graffiti artist. You get so many reactions from people, their reactions are so different, but rarely are they negative."Ben Wilson, Painting a Gum Trail, 2004, thisislocallondon.co.uk

However there has been information that Ben Wilson was apparently arrested for his street gum paintings. This is information from Flickr from people who seem to know Mr. Wilson that was posted 32 months ago. They claimed that his paints and kit were confiscated from him and he was released from custody. One comment said...

"..he has done pics for some police before now that have happened upon him in other parts of town so it's not like the Establishment is all jobsworth, it's just sad that some patrolling officers can't see that Ben is Added Value to a community and not a vandal or a threat."

If this news is true it is very unfortunate. He has been doing these gum paintings since 1998 and he made it clear to the authorities of what he was doing, and he also got the community of London involved, which I think is a great achievement! His works are colourful and a joy to see, he is certainly a great value to the community. I hope he's out there with his acrylic paints and blow torch creating more awesome gum paintings!

"We'll see," he said. "I'm just going to keep drawing and see where the momentum takes me." Ben Wilson, 2004.

Some ideas from Bev...

Some spaces which could be considered for the itty bitty art gallery:

• lift
• locker
  (both Sophie's ideas!)
• cabinet
• shed
• book shelf
• a cove - in a wall, in a desk...
  

apartmenttherapy.com

csnsupply.com

Back at my home down South my house is full of plants that my mum places on the window sills, and cactuses which she also places there for a deterrent (it seems to work, but results in me getting prickled by the damn cactuses whenever I open the window). A deep set window can be made into an exhibition space. The window sill could display three dimensional works and paintings could be hung... plus it is a small space! People usually hang artwork on a wall, but how about a window? What effect does it make?

About the desks with the coves... I had these desks in the library at my secondary school for private study. A small space like this could easily accommodate a few little artworks. It looks very personal and there is enough space for two people to look into the cove, and there is only one angle you can view the exhibition. The surrounding walls block out all other distractions which focuses the attention to what goes on in that cove! I have to admit I quite like the desk for it's privacy, but they are quite a rare find!

There could be plenty more spaces out there, so if you have any wonderful ideas, feel free to let us know!