Sunderland Book Project 2012

Sunderland Book Project 

Next Exhibition Location:
Baltic Artists Book Fair
Gateshead Baltic Gallery
Gateshead

June 2013

Next exhibition Location:
The Last Chapter
7 Rustlings Road
Sheffield S11 7AA

6 April for 4 weeks
http://www.thelastchapter.co.uk/

Next exhibition location:
The McGuiness Gallery
Bishop Auckland
County Durham

8 - 27th April 2013


Next Exhibition Location:
Quorum Business Park
Newcastle-upon-Tyne

11 - 22 February 2013

Next Exhibition Location: 
Washington Town Library
Independence Square
The Galleries
Washington NE38 7RZ

Saturday 9th February 2013, 10-12 noon
http://theresaeaston.wordpress.com/the-sunderland-book-project-participants/

Next Exhibition Location:
City Arts Centre & Library
Fawcett Street
Sunderland SR1 1RE

Saturday 16th February 2013, 1-3pm
http://theresaeaston.wordpress.com/the-sunderland-book-project-participants/

Next exhibition location:
Pyramid Atlantic Book Arts Fair and Conference
Silver Spring, MD, USA
16th, 17th & 19th November 2012 

Pyramid Atlantic Book Arts Fair

The Sunderland Book Project 2012

The Sunderland Book Project 2012

The aim of the project is to collect a wide range of unique interpretations of the city of Sunderland from around the world.  The books will be exhibited in national and international venues.

http://theresaeaston.wordpress.com/the-sunderland-book-project/ 


Absence 2012

A book of extracted poems from articles in the Sunderland Echo online. The poems reflect a feeling of distance and disconnection. A sense of absence.

Having never visited Sunderland and being ignorant of its history, my automatic thinking was one of absence. Extracting text from articles in the Sunderland Echo online, I created a series of poems or phrases that some up this feeling.

The only 'rule' I use when extracting text, is that I must use it in the order that it appears on the page. Once I have enough poems (25-30), I then discard those that don't fit (2-3) and rearrange the rest in a sequence that offers a narrative, or at least, a beginning, middle and conclusion.


The use of tracing paper gives a sense of distance between the thoughts on the page, and the blank cover suggests a lack of knowledge, understanding or connection.


Im delighted to say that my book was received well by the organisers and its alternative approach was interesting enough for the Sunderland Echo to interview me about my book! 

Clare Rogers' 'Absence' makes it to the North East
Sunderland Book Project 2012

'Absence' 2012

21 x 14.5 x 1cm

Tracing paper, ink, card, crepe paper, recycled paper and Acco fastener. 

Three copies.

Inside title page

Page example

she 
runs.

cannot be named

ordered
denied
lost
and
driven out      she wants

to be
different

Exhibition Review

A review on 'From here you can almost see the sea: A response to living in Plymouth'

http://inatownsosmall.wordpress.com/2012/08/17/being-followed-home-yorkshire-exhibtions/

A quick dash across Sheffield is well worth risking the sun/howling wind/soaking rain (delete as applicable) to get over to Bank Street Arts, where they also have a pair of fantastic displays of artist books presently. Clare Rogers’ From here you can almost see the sea: a response to living in plymouth is, quite simply, brilliant. Rogers uses a variety of printed to media to explore what her hometown of Plymouth means to her, what it looks like, why she loves it, why she hates it, and what it feels like to be there. This sounds like an interesting enough project for a visual artist, but here the artist uses words alone to engage with her subject matter, combining ‘photography’ with poetry and book works to create her image of Plymouth. I've been back to this exhibition twice already, and suspect I will be there again before it closes at the start of September.

It's always fantastic to receive positive reviews on your work! (I have had a few not so complimentary ones!)

From here you can almost see the sea: A response to living in Plymouth

http://artistsbookprize.co.uk/cr_exhibition

31st July - 1st September 2012
Bank Street Arts
Bank Street 
Sheffield



A few pictures of the exhibition. 

The decisions about where and how to hang the work were made without much agonising, which is always good! The room size and shape was perfect for this body of work and the flat fluorescent lighting allowed the viewer a good visual of the work without having to dodge glare and reflection of spotlights.

'Ten Views'

'All Other Routes', 'Diverted Traffic', 'Road Closed'

'Abbey Place to Zion Street' and 'Forty Nine Minutes'

'Redaction/Response'

From here you can almost see the sea: A response to living in Plymouth

All work is finally finished for the exhibition at Bank Street Arts Gallery in Sheffield!

The exhibition runs from 31st July to 1st September 2012 
and is open Tues-Sat 11am-5pm

The work consists of text based drawings and hand-made books focussing on response, repetition and redaction.

List of work.
'Abbey Place to Zion Street'
'Ten Views'
'All Other Routes'
'Road Closed'
'Diverted Traffic'
'49 Minutes'
'Redaction/Response'

From here you can almost see the sea: A response to living in Plymouth

'Redaction/Response' 2012

'Redaction/Response' are two books of thirty poems which have been redacted from articles in Plymouth Herald newspapers. 

'Redaction shows the original newspaper articles with their redacted text, while 'Response' shows a typed version and the remaining unreacted text which makes up the poems.

With hindsight, I realised that the point of redaction is about the words that have been blanked out, not the ones left to be read. So the title of the work should probably be 'Extraction/Response'. 

However, the theme of a response to living in Plymouth and the process of extracting text, works very well and the large format of the book give them presence. All is not lost!

Cover:'Redaction' 2012

'Redaction' 2012

29 x 35.5cm

Cartridge paper, newsprint paper, ink, bulldog clips.

'Response' 2012

29 x 35.5cm

Cartridge paper, newsprint paper, ink, bulldog clips. 

Poem 23:

Overlooking the 

harbour, I asked

What 

is

special

he said

You

never dream of

the sea

When we first came here

we were in the eye of

the storm

and

we

created conflicts

But he

already

is

looking for a

New

city

From here you can almost see the sea: A response to living in Plymouth

'Forty Nine Minutes' 2012

A list of objects seen on a walk from home to the sea. Printed on tracing paper, the translucent pages suggest a gradual revealing of a view of the sea.

Another part of the response to living in Plymouth. This is a suggestion the the sea (a metaphor for happiness), can almost be seen, which it to say, that actually, it can't be seen, (and that happiness can't be experienced here).

I used a dictaphone to record a continuous stream of verbal commentary on the objects I could see on my walk - a journey of 49 minutes from my house to the waterfront.

'Forty Nine Minutes' 2012

A5

Tracing paper and ink

Inside:'Forty Nine Minutes' 2012

A5

Tracing paper and ink

 Inside:'Forty Nine Minutes' 2012

A5

Tracing paper and ink

Exhibition Details

'From here you can almost see the sea: A response to living in Plymouth'

Bank Street Arts, Sheffield
31st July - 1st September 2012

A range of text based work including 2D pieces and hand-made books, using processes involving repetition, description and redaction.

From Here You Can Almost See The Sea: A Response to Living in Plymouth

'Ten Views' 2012

The text is one of ten written descriptions, part prose, part list, of the views from the windows and doors of my house.

The mount was made by mixing a flour and water paste with watercolour paint and painting this onto the surface of blotting paper. The point of a paint brush was then dragged across the surface to create the lines.

I had initially taken several photos of the views from the doors and windows in my house, with the intention of turning them into paintings. However, the first two paintings turned out to be quite sweet depictions of a pleasant housing estate. This was a total contrast to the slight 'edge' that the photos presented. This caused an interesting dilemma, but one that I overcame by referring back to my love of text, thus writing a description of what I could see. 

'Ten Views' 2012

A4

Blotting paper, paste, watercolour paint, ink, copier paper.

'Abbey Place to Zion Street' 2012

The completed handmade book. 

The cover has a line drawing of a street map of Plymouth, using carbon paper and recyled cartridge paper and ink. It is bound with buckram cloth and an Acco fastener.

'Abbey Road to Zion Street' 2012

297 x 120 x 13mm

Paper, carbon paper, ink

Letter to Home February 2012

The Art House Co-op 5th April 2012 
Brooklyn Archives, 355 Bedford Avenue NY 11211
http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/letterstohome

I was introduced by a friend to writing exercises, where the artist takes a set period of time (e.g., 5 mins) to write down all the thoughts that come into their mind. It is to be achieved without too much conscious thought; not trying to create an accurate story or list of connected words, but something more abstract. Having felt a little self conscious, particularly about reading aloud my writing (and discovering Freudian connotations), I found the exercise to be very rewarding and felt that it was an area of creative writing that I could explore further.

I set about the same task with the theme of my home (the one I grew up in) and conjured up a wonderful list of old objects, scents and feelings from my childhood. 

'Letter to Home' 2012

5"x 7"

Ink on paper 

For clarity, here is the actual text:

Home,


A neat level driveway; two triangles of grass; Japanese Maple tree;
diagonal path; roses; car port; old kitchen units; stiff sliding doors;apples; onion sets; newspapers tied with string; wellie boots;
cobwebs; spiders, shiny, green bike; soft swoosh and click; thick,
smooth, silver key; run my finger in the groove; two small paintings; harsh cold; icy metal; double click to close; blackbirds; papery skin;kneading dough; peeling and slicing; old, wobbly, round, wooden chopping board; sweet fruits; alcohol; citrus; hops; yeast; hand cream; Chanel No5; orange plastic jug; handmade pots; rays of sunlight; dust particles; vinyl records; Dickens; Yeats; war; tall cactus; dents in the doorframes; swoosh and bump; Pear's soap; beige mac; walking stick; London Zoo; shaky hands; Subbuteo; coins; tokens; cards; tins; marbles; badges; wood; Swallows and Amazons; photos; cars; planes; absence; powder blue; cold; wooden slats; gaps and groans; creaks; falling; long wide views; coast; hills; estuary; stiff door; paintings and drawings; posters; white furniture; loud click; gold handles; white walls; school blouses; oil fired radiator; plastic lampshade; oval mirror; fitted wardrobe; old typewriter; architects floor plans; holiday slides; war medals; scent of wood; moth balls; age; people; white counterpane; old chest; soft; worn; patterns; flowers; stripes; silk; fur; memory; musty; whale's tooth; coins; pottery dish; handkerchief; maps; guidebooks; wind; cool breeze; deckchairs; demi johns; records; books; dolls house; toy cars; toy garage; family photos; hay
box; cool box; picnic basket; tent; poles; pegs; airbeds; French clock; framed prints.
Quiet. Tock. Scent of newspaper.
Gentle click. Silent key.
End.


Never forgotten.

From Here You Can Almost See The Sea: A Response to Living in Plymouth

'Abbey Place to Zion Street' 2012

The completed inside of my latest handmade book.

This is a list of all the street names in Plymouth and part of a project about my response to living in Plymouth.
Now to make the cover.....

The Sketchbook Project 2012

Brooklyn Art Library April 2012
http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject
Brooklyn Art Library Shelf No. 156L.2-7

'This is a Sketchbook about a Book: Book of the Seaside'
January 2012
Carbon paper, acrylic paint on paper.

The Front Room Gallery December 2011

Investigation into repetitive writing techniques using carbon paper.

I have become interested in using used carbon paper to create 'blind' text based drawings. By laying the carbon paper over the cartridge paper, I am unable to clearly see where i am making marks, thus creating a varied amount of pressure of carbon. When viewed at a distance, the depth of marks creates an undulating landscape, but it is not until the viewer looks more closely that the text is revealed.

I have repeated  'It's only words' in my normal cursive handwriting, highlighting my interest in repetition.

 

'It's Only Words' 2011

84 x 59.5cm (Sold)

Cartridge paper & carbon paper

Bank Street Arts, Sheffield

The 3rd Sheffield International Artists Book Prize and Exhibition November 2011

'Inventory' Winner of Student Prize

I was delighted when, having submitted 'Inventory' into the Sheffield Book Prize and Exhibition, I heard that it had one the student prize! This was a small cash prize, but with an offer of solo exhibition space for the following year. Very exciting!

http://artistsbookprize.co.uk/

Plymouth University Fine Art Degree Show June 2011

'Personal/Impersonal'

An investigation into the relationship that we have with the objects we own.

'A List of Everything in my Home' 2011

The task of compiling the list took approximately three weeks. It was a great exercise in clearing out the house (which we did along the way) and finding things we thought we had lost. It was a family effort!

The list making task moved swiftly until I came to the untidy desk, with so many odd bits of stationery and a filing cabinet full of old paper work - then it became tedious.

It wasn't until I started to write the list on the studio wall that I began to reflect more on my relationship with the listed objects and I felt quite self conscious. The thought of exposing all my  (and my family's) personal belongings made me fearful of ridicule, teasing and embarrassment.  Interestingly, other students must have felt the same, because no-one came to read the list as I was writing it, but they would wait until I had left the studio!

There were many ways in which people viewed the person/objects in their lives (and mine). Some would not want to reveal the contents of their bathroom cabinet; others their credit card statements. Interestingly, the objects I found most personal,(the personal effects of my parents) were contained in two shoe boxes and kept hidden in the loft.

Gradually I settled into the task and enjoyed writing on the wall! The list was visually impressive; creating a spatial quality that drew the viewer in. 

'A List of Everything in my Home' 2011

2.5 x 1.7m

Ink on plasterboard 

'Inventory' 2011

A hand-made book containing a typeset list of everything in my home.

The idea for the book was initially to create a substantial, imposing block, that would sit on a plinth a bit like a book of  gospels. However, I wanted to present the book in the style of a dictionary, not alphabetically (although with hindsight this would have worked better), but as a list of objects as I find them in my house. Some of the objects would have a code initial next to them to define their origin.

This style of presentation, although very satisfactory, did not give me the huge book! But I was working to a deadline and the work needed to be completed.

I used blotting paper to paint the cover and buckram to bind.

'Inventory' 2011

 15.5 x 28 x 1.5cm

Ink, acrylic paint, paper, buckram and ribbon.