February / March 2012
I started this blog just over a year ago promising myself that I would update it every week, this quickly became per month, now it looks like every two months. So much has happened where do I begin!
I mentioned on the last blog that we the Nottingham Photographers’ hub had just received funding from Children in need to run photography workshops for disadvantaged children in the community. Since the middle of February we have been running two courses per week. more info at nphub.org.uk We have also held an exhibition for the NTU second year photography students in march.
During the Rashid Rana exhibition at the New Art Exchange in Nottingham I was offered and accepted to be part of their experiMENTOR programme, which is a creative development initiative that allows artists to experiment at all stages of their career, and to increase their skills and experiences. In March I lead a walk & talk tour of the exhibition (a first time for me) and I lead a workshop based on creating mosaics from photographs. More opportunities to come in the future!
negotiations have gone well with NCC and Art on the Square (AOTS) will start again on Sunday 22nd April 2012 on the old market square, Nottingham. We had a warm up event during the Nottingham night light in February, which proved to be popular for the artists and public who visited the stalls
Started the ‘Shared Art gallery experiences’ project in partnership with the Harley Gallery and supported by the Arts Council, England in March,
The aim of the activity is to engage KS2 children from four schools in the Northern area of Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire, who may not have had the opportunity to visit art galleries and produce a Photofilm (still images with audio) and a mounted display of their journey as they explore the Harley Gallery, Welbeck; New Art Exchange, Hyson Green, Nottingham and Nottingham Contemporary in terms of their different artistic approach and culturally diverse locations.
The preview evening at the Harley Gallery on Tuesday 1st May (3.30pm to 6.30pm) is an opportunity to see exhibited their photographic mosaic’s and listen to their likes and dislikes as they visited each gallery. If you are in the area on the day come along and have a look.
December 2011/January 2012- End of the year and a new beginning
Its been a busy two months with 2011 closing, two trips to london, Exhibition and confirmation of a grant award. Where as January Started with another Exhibition and grant confirmation.
December:
Nottingham Photographers Hub update:
November – All Quiet on the Nottingham Front
Although not extreme the new experience of cycling from West Bridgford to the centre of Nottingham has been a new physical experience, with the usual stress of wondering if I will be crushed by a vehicle driven by someone talking on their mobile phone. The big question is do I feel better for it!
November like October has been focused on the two workshops we now have up and running at NPHub ( www.nphub.org.uk ). One for mental health users and the other for young people in care.
In december the mental health users will be exhibiting their photographic images at NPHub (looking good) and we take the young people to London, some for their first time, we hope to come back with some interesting images.
This month we were told that we were successful in obtaining a ‘Children in Need’ grant for next year 2012 so we plan to work with another 30 young people in care, using photography as a tool to unlocking their creativity.
I managed to get to the Christmas Arts & Food Market and Harley Gallery Open Studios, Welbeck and came back with my usual boot full of local produce and inspiration from visiting and talking to the resident artists. I was also able to see what Phil Neal had created from my old saxophone, what an imaginative sculpture.
Do I feel ‘better for it’ now that I with cycle to the studio, perhaps I need a few more months.
October – Shortened by a week!
October went passed so quickly I am sure it was shortened by a week!
Most of the time was spent planning the lesson plans for the Nottingham Photographers’ Hub workshops for Mental Health service users which started this Month
We aim to provide bespoke community based courses designed around the beneficiary needs:
- Produce images that can challenge stereotypes
- To learn practical photography skills and a new way of expressing thoughts and emotions
- Individual and group interactive learning, to improve their personal development skills and help develop their confidence to pursue other recreational, educational and/or employment opportunities
- Exhibit their work at the ‘NPHub gallery’ to a wider audience
- Upon course completion they are awarded a certificate to increase their access to further education courses
- Upon course completion receive one-year’s free subscription to NPH allowing them free use of the studio and gallery and support from other Hub members
Follow our progress on http://www.nphub.org.uk/
I attended the launch of the Indo-British art exhibition, Games People Play, at Deda, Derby in October , where two off my images were part of the exhibition. The Right Worshipful, The Mayor of the City of Derby, Councillor Les Allen, opened the exhibition, and Mr. Paul Brookes, Cultural Olympiad, London 2012, and Mr. Rory Slater, Derbyshire 2012 Legacy Coordinator were also present. The exhibition was well received by the invited audience and closed on the 29th October having had a good number of visitors and positive comments. However there are plans to show the exhibition at other UK venues and then take it to India!
August – Goodbye to New Art Exchange, Visual Arts Gallery, Nottingham
This month I took the final step to earning my living purely by photography and said goodbye to the New Art Exchange, visual arts gallery, Nottingham after almost 3 years as their Community Engagement Officer (CEO as I used to joke, but without the money!). A bold step, but I’m feeling confident.
We completed the resdesign of Nottingham Photographers’ Hub this month and will be redefining our offer.
Two images of my work have been accepted by Artcore an Arts Organisation based in Derby for their exhibition themed around the Olympic games with the title ‘The Games People Play’ more details to follow!
Finally the Art on the Square, old market square, Nottingham is on Sunday 18th September 2011 10am to 4pm, hope to see you there.
July – new exhibition
As my exhibition at the Harley Gallery comes to a close this weekend a new one starts
As part of the Artcore exhibition Games People Play, three new images have been selected to take part, based on my interpretation of the title. Each image asks ‘for better or for worse’? The combined work of Indian contemporary artists and UK artists. will be exhibited in various venues around the East Midlands from July 2011 to July 2012.
As preparation of my Photofilm course at Duckrabbit http://duckrabbit.info/ I spent a day with Phil Neal http://www.sculptor.co.in taking photographs and interviewing him as he turned a bowl ( Phil I hope that’s the right expression! ) in exchange for a bent saxophone I had been trying to play for a number of years. I will post it when I have finished editing, but don’t hold your breath.
The art 0n the square, old market square, Nottingham was another success in July, the next one is Sunday 21st August, hope to see you there or if you are an artist why not book a stall details: http://www.rawcollective.org.uk
Finally for those of you who play a guitar, you will know what I am going through, the tips of my left hand fingers are killing me!
June – Motor bike is sold, Mid life crisis is over?
A new month a new dawn, the motor bike has been sold (a relief to all the family) and I am now a proud owner of a Apple IMac and a new guitar (goodbye motorbike). Printing problems with IMac linking to Epson R2400 printer, I think I need to talk to the experts or waste even more paper. Using garage band to learn to play the guitar, well apart from having to twist my body and hands to get the correct position for my fingers on the strings, my finger tips hurt! How long will this last?
and two of my images were selected to show at Nottingham Universities annual exhibition.
A couple of product shoots this month followed, (give it a month and take a look at their sites)
http://www.victoriacartlidge.co.uk/Victoria’s_Lace
http://www.wix.com/hollystutu/harrietbeeby1#!page-2
Art on the square, old market square, Nottingham was another succesful event with everyone selling something during the day and engaging with future customers. The next event is Sunday July 17th, if you are an artist come along it may be something you may want to get involved with or just come along there may be that image you have always wanted to own.
My photofilm exhibition ‘India’s Golden Triangle’ started 18th June to 7th August 2011 at the Harley gallery, Welbeck, Worksop, Nottingham S80 3LW, go and see it if you can, if not go to the link:http://vimeo.com/19271563
May – Trip to Florence
I went to Florence this month on the pretense that I was going there at great sacrifice with my wife and her parents, secretly I had planned my excuses well in advance to ensure that I had some time by myself with my D700! For those of you who have not travelled to Florence from the UK (Nottingham) by train, it’s about 24 hours, relaxed and straight forward. Keep an eye on my website for my usual interpretation of the images. http://www.mervynmitchell.com/
Art on the square (old market square , Nottingham) is back on Sunday 19th June from 10am to 4pm. It was cancelled in May due to gusting winds. 20 local artists will be there and you have the opportunity to buy or just talk with them about their art.
My photofilm exhibition ‘India’s Golden Triangle’ opens on 18th June to 7th August 2011 at the Harley gallery, Welbeck, Worksop, Nottingham S80 3LW, go and see it if you can, if not go to the link below
five minutes of fame!
Five minutes of fame! as part of the promotion of the ‘Art on the Square’ Sunday 17th April, Graham Bell and myself were interviewed about the event on BBC Nottingham, link attached below, check it out start time of interview 3:23:44
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/p00fs2gx
The event was well received by the public and artists and the next one on Sunday 22nd May should be just a popular. The Lord Mayor opened the event and nearly all the artists reported that they had a lot of interest shown in their work and some were lucky enough to sell.
I was part of the ‘ Raw Collective’ first exhibition of the year at the NSA exhibition space near Nottingham Castle, it was only on for three days, but enough interest was shown in our new work that we have decided to book the space again in September this year. I will let you know the dates closer to the time.
Finally two of my recent pieces of work have been selected for the Nottingham University summer exhibition, held in the Djanogly Art Gallery and opens 14th May to 30th May 2011, it’s usually a great visit.
Catch up with you all at the end of May.
