Open Studios this weekend

June 20, 2025

At SCT Creative House, Old Pay Office, Portsmouth Historic Dockyard,

Times - 10 - 4 and I’ll be there both days working on drawings for a new project

this Saturday and Sunday

The Five present State of Flux

June 4, 2025

We are delighted to invite you to the Exhibition now showing at the Horsebridge Arts Centre in Whitstable. On till 16th June. Gallery open daily except tuesdays.

about the Five - link to Instagram

Press Release

I will be in Whitstable, Kent on Friday 13th to Monday 16th June and will be at the gallery from roughly 11 - 4 each day.

The gallery is open daily (except tuesdays) 9 - 5 times on sunday are 10 - 4.

Of other spaces i, Photo litho, paint and stitch

New Mixed media work combining photo litho with collage.

April 29, 2025

Inspired by the challenge of producing a new body of work for an exhibition this June, I have been down the artistic rabbit hole of exploration and play with imagery and materials.

This time of exploration has resulted in the production of 3 groups of work, mainly using print, collage and stitch, but also that pay homage to that first research stage of photographing and drawing.

This work (3 groups) is titled Of other Spaces, Negotiable spaces and Edgelands. and although they are inspired by photos and drawings that I collected, from actual places, I haven’t been particularly concerned to stay faithful to the original viewpoints and composition.

They have evolved gradually, been printed, painted, assembled and stitched then perhaps re stitched and reassembled. It’s inevitable that a kind of relationship develops with the work as I try to explore how to resolve the piece.

It has been a positive time of making new plates, trying out colour and technique and seeing how far I could take the processes. My favourite question when I am making is ‘what if’

One of my favourite processes currently is Photo Litho. This uses a laser paper copy that then gets soaked in water before being inked up and printed from. Provided the paper image does not get damaged you can potentially use this paper copy over and over to create bold lasting printed images.

For the group of work Titled Of Other Spaces I specifically wanted to try out ways to edit and manipulate the photographic image before the laser copy was created. For this reason, I painted onto the photos and created collages from them before I took them to the library to get the copies.

Its been an interesting journey developing this work and I confess to being a little ‘at sea’ now that I have come to a sort of conclusion and resolved stage with them.

A selected group of 8 framed prints is currently on show at the Box Gallery in Southsea.

These have been beautifully framed by Geoff Catlow who operates a small framing service out of Tango Tea, in Southsea.

The Box Gallery Anniversary show started Friday 18th April -

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday 11 - 4 / and the show will last approx 6 weeks

A larger selection of this body of work will be part of the State of Flux Exhibition at The Horsebridge Arts Centre in Whitstable this June. This is a group exhibition, also featuring the work of Sinclair Ashman, Sarah Mander, Kay Senior and Consuelo Simpson.who have all produced new work specifically for this exhibition

Realigned - Online Exhibition

April 7, 2025

Last November we re released my Visual Narratives Online Course and since then students have been beavering away on their ideas and mixed media responses. Just before xmas we gave them the challenge to produce work that presented more resolved outcomes to the ideas of Realigned.

I am delighted to reveal those student responses, which has been beautifully presented in an online exhibition and printed book.

All that sterling work of curation and collection of images and words has been achieved by the the team at Fibre Arts take Two. Each page features a different artist and something about what they were inspired by. - It really is a joy to view. ! .

A huge thank you to the 31 artists that submitted their mixed media work and to the team at Fibre Arts Take Two for curating it all together for us all to enjoy 😊

Here are some links to purchase your copy or view the exhibition online.

State of Flux - work in progress

February 12, 2025

The work in progress I have pinned and placed in my studio at the moment has me dipping my toes back into some earlier much loved methods of collage using machine stitch.

This work is for an exhibition to be held this June titled State of Flux. For it, my work examines ways that method and process can explore, and pay homage to, derelict spaces, and ideas around modification and the incomplete

These assemblages first started out as small scale prints, mostly created from a group of photo gravure plates. However, at the start it was also interesting to incorporate some lower tech processes such as collagraph and monoprint.

Exploring a fairly varied range of techniques at the start of the project seemed very relevant as a way of working out ways to translate what I had in my mind and how to interpret the imagery I had collected and pasted into my sketchbook.

I always find the investigative stage at the start of a project much more interesting and revealing than the stage where it’s time to move towards resolving the work. There is a kind of freedom and playfulness to this period of a project. Although a deadline IS a very good way to limit the investigate and exploratory stage, for me the first stage needs to be of a reasonable length to allow me time to fully explore.

On the route to resolving these assemblages I found it easier to work if I didn’t feel too precious and fixed about the end result. It didn’t matter if they were destroyed or ruined. The secret to this mindset is producing a large number of pieces that you can experiment with.

The modification that these pieces underwent was quite extensive. Some started off with a long landscape orientation and by the time they had reached a stage where I felt more content with them they were tall, thin portrait format. that had been reduced or increased in size.

Techniques usually involved stitching, then pulling apart and re- stitching. I liked the way this kind of modification, where the disrepair and repair are visible, referenced the buildings and spaces I had looked at. Structural additions and subtractions over time. Intriguing historic building spaces, such as the Old Pay Office (where my studio is based), with visible signs of previous occupants and the building’s previous functions. Some spaces such as Storehouse 9 and the Slaughterhouse at Gosport, derelict and disintegrating, showing the wear and tear of time and the beautiful patina of age.

THE FIVE: State of Flux

press release

Horsebridge Arts Centre, Whitstable. 4-16 June 2025. Open 9 – 5,
except Sunday 10-4. Closed on Tuesdays. Meet the artists: Sunday 8 June, 11-3.

This exhibition brings together a group of multi-disciplinary artists who share an interest in experimental approaches to image-making and form and a passion for enquiry through the thoughtful and innovative uses of materials. Responding collectively to the concept of State of Flux, The Five use print, paper, fibres and found objects to ask and answer questions through art, such as ‘what if?’ and ’when is a work finished?’ There are references throughout the exhibition to a sense of place, memory, time and landscape.
This is the second selling exhibition by The Five. The first took place in May 2022 at
Jack House Gallery, Old Portsmouth.
Sinclair Ashman is a printmaker who says of his approach that ‘uncertainty is always embraced and perfection (whatever that means) is never sought’. His metallic reliefs re-purpose paper fragments typically intended for use in prints, whilst his folded paper sculptures or ‘Flexures’ are created by pre-creasing paper in different directions. The final form is only one of thousands of possible outcomes.
Sarah Mander is a printmaker whose interest lies primarily with the built environment and made objects. Specifically, decay and erosion caused by the passage of time and environmental conditions. Also, how objects such as tools and items of clothing become worn due to use. Works in this exhibition will focus around the ways that these buildings, objects and fabrics have been repaired or patched up. Sometimes the repair is functional and to make do. At other times it is made obvious and celebrated.
Kay Senior is a printmaker and sculptor experimenting with collagraph, papermaking, found materials and casting to discover gestural and expressive forms. Her paper mouldings combine with print to make intriguing free-standing sculptures. She explores how art making can express emotions, reflect states of mind and be a bridge between internal and external worlds.
Consuelo Simpson is a multidisciplinary artist and maker. She describes herself as a ‘forager and finder of orphaned objects honouring histories and reweaving stories of place and time’. Incremental transformations probe the narrative of the network that binds us through place and time. Connections with past and future via objects, materials and skills, feels potent, and where she finds inspiration and moments of contentment.
Sally Tyrie is a Fine Artist working mainly with printmaking, photography, mixed media and bookmaking. Her main interests lie in interactions of material and process through iteration and juxtaposition. The mixed media prints for State of Flux are informed by images from historical and derelict buildings in and around Portsmouth’s Naval Dockyard. Her investigation asks: ‘what is it about ruins that we can find so appealing?’
More about THE FIVE

Visual Narratives Online Course

October 28, 2024

I am chuffed to announce that my online course Visual Narratives opens for enrolment very very soon !!

The course has been running for a few years now and I am very proud of what my previous students have achieved from this course.

This course is in-depth and covers a diverse range of media including; photography, drawing, printmaking, stitch and collage.

Fundamentally it helps you develop and explore ideas through to a more resolved body of work.- the kind of work you make will be up to you.

You can follow it at your own pace as you have lifetime access.

In addition, for the first 8 weeks I will be available online for interaction and support via a facebook closed community group. During this time there is also 2 live online interviews. where you get to ask questions of any aspect of the course.

It’s all great fun and feedback from the previous students has been incredibly positive

This course has been produced and released via the Fibre Arts Take Two Team and I am so pleased with what we have achieved together.

If you would like to be notified when enrolment is open you can register your interest on the Fibre Arts Take Two website.

In my next blog post I plan to publish photos and visitor comments from our first official Open Studios at the Old Pay Office- it was an incredible 3 days.

Also, especially rewarding for me to meet a few of my previous ‘Visual Narratives’ students.

If you were one of the visitors who made the journey to see our studios at The Old Pay Office - a heartfelt Thanks. : )

Here is a flavour of some of the wonderful mixed media work produced by previous students on Visual Narratives

you can also see the previous work via this Online exhibition of the theme ‘In Retrospect’ and ‘Reveal Conceal’ exhibition : )

Current Exhibitions, Open Studios and Work in progress

October 10, 2024

We are barely into Autumn and already there is a raft of events happening in the local area and beyond. (Where did giddy summer go !? )

I count myself lucky to be part of a thriving and diverse Arts Scene here on the South Coast of England and you can also experience a little part of that yourself at the end of this October when we have the Portsmouth Open Studios Event.

POSE , for short, has this year been organised by City Arts Portsmouth - who have approached this years event with the spirit of ambition at their core.

As part of that, many artists studios and Arts venues are opening their doors to visitors over the weekend of Friday 25th / Saturday 26th / Sunday 27th October 2024.

Most have visual arts exhibitions happening at the venue. Some also have performance, workshops, demonstrations and film screenings. At all venues will be a chance to meet artists and makers..

For a full list of studios opening, the map location and opening times - you can either pick up a cute pocket-sized booklet from arts venues or shops in Southsea and Portsmouth or you can download the information from the City Arts Portsmouth website.

At The Old Pay Office (Dockyard Studios) we will be opening our studio doors over the three days. 25th 26th 27th October.

We are based at The Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

Main doors at Victory Gate open at 10 and close at 5 and it is Free Entry is you're just going to see the Arts Studios..

I will be in my studio each day between 11 - 4.

There are 3 great cafes on site, public toilets, plus a free museum next to the Boatyard 7 cafe. Lots of public parking nearby.

Our studios are located - just past the Porters Lodge and opposite the No 6 Cinema.

We are - a small group of resident artists and charities who are guests of the Portsmouth Historic Quarter .

Come along to our Open Studios to meet artists / makers / designers / architects and more.

Pay office Studio Residents - - -

Sustainable Conservation Trust, whose initiative to preserve and develop heritage sites into thriving spaces for artists and practitioners has made it possible for many artists, students, and practitioners to benefit from access to projects, funding and collaboration. Click on their link to see more businesses and projects they have been involved with.

Clarke Reynolds, Katy Bennett - Home of the Good Chair, Spencer (screenprint) of Zoo Poo and Cat Askew, - guest artist for this event. . Also, the fabulous Charity Crying Out Loud.

we are also planning some events and I’ll be making some printing plates. maybe also if the weather is nice?? in the back yard turning some of katy’s old chairs into an installation - be very afraid !! : )

Also at the Historic Quarter for POSE - 4 artists at the Porters Lodge ( I can see the sea) and 6 artists at Storehouse 9.. wow !!

Images above - Ceramics by Hollie of Nice Pear Ceramics, a former resident artist. Also the Screenprint space - home of Zoo Poo.

What is POSE - . ‘POSE is more than an Open Studio event; it's a community of passionate artists coming together to celebrate art in all its forms. Our aim is to showcase the talent we have in the city and surrounding areas, and elevate the status of our artistic community.’

Just some of the other venues around Portsmotuh opening for POSE -

Case Mates Music Studios is a local practice and rehearsal space, which is also hosting live music, displays by Making Space artists and workshops - over the weekend.

Jack House Gallery. - Will be hosting the Omega Printmakers Annual Show. 27 local printmakers, including myself, will be showing recent work in this exquisite gallery space in Old Portsmouth. Open each day over a 2 week period and coinciding with the POSE weekend, there will be an artist present each day, to help you explore the work.

Treadgolds Warehouse , Omega Printmakers, Corner Collective, Fat Clay Pottery, The Box Gallery, Hotwalls studios, Poolhouse Studios, and many many artists studios at homes, mostly around Southsea.

Take a peek at the article on the Strong Island article about the event for additional info and recommendations

From room to room, mixed media bookwork, detail

Pre Pose Exhibition at The Box Gallery, - over the past 9 days The Box Gallery on Castle Road has been hosting an exhibition titled PRE POSE. This is has been a prelude to the main POSE weekend for which Charlie and Gary put together a small invited selection of artist’s work to draw attention to the main event - a wonderfully curated exhibition and it was a treat to be introduced to some additional local talent through their work.

**Where water stands**, photogram and stitch.
part of Pre Pose at the Box Gallery
This work was created at the start of a project titled Illuminations where I was interested in exploring what to do with lots of acetate pieces I had drawn on, and cut up, after a residency at Wicken Fen in Cambridgeshire.

Hope to see you sometime during the Open Studios weekend !!

Open day at The Old Slaughterhouse and events this Autumn

August 27, 2024

It’s the first proper sit down at my worktop today - after a whirlwind summer, featuring a house move and two music festivals. ..phew !! (the first exhausting, but wonderful and the 2nd two fabulous)

At the top of my to do list is to get back to some bookmaking that ive been working on as part of an upcoming Open Day at a heritage site in Gosport, which takes place this September.

Taking place for one day only on Friday 13th September, this open day will be a chance to see this fascinating space at Clarence Marina, in Gosport. Currently disused, the interior will be transformed by artists works, installations, projections, performance and workshops. A group of artists with links to the Sustainable Conservation Trust have come together to highlight the importance of recognising heritage buildings and throwing a spotlight on their value for our future.

The Old Slaughterhouse, Clarence Yard, Gosport,

A few weeks ago I went to this space with some of the SCT team, and spent an hour or so wandering around and discovering the magic of the building through the lens of my camera.

Sited right next to Clarence Marina, the first thing you notice is the large arched windows that surround you. Looking up, there are more windows that stretch across the roof area of the space.

The building was previously used by a fitness group and there are still mirrors dotted around, leaning against some of the walls, creating yet more illusions.

Walking around with my SLR I became captivated by the refractions and reflections. The distortions and the transparencies.

For this Open day organised by the Sustainable Conservation Trust I am creating some concertina books and mixed media drawings using the photographic imagery collected from my visit.

Also coming up this Autumn,

I’m excited to announce that i’ll be running a One day mixed media workshop at the Old Pay office, on Saturday October 5th. ….More details and booking page coming in next few days..

25th - 27th October - Open Studios at the Old Pay Office as part of Portsmouth Open Studios - POSE . a chance to visit my studio space at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. There will be free entry.

25th october - 2nd November. Omega printmakers Annual Exhibiton at Jack House Gallery.

Opening Exhibition at Fat Clay Pottery and Gallery

July 8, 2024

A beautiful new space in Castle Road, Southsea has its Opening Exhibition starting this Friday 12th July., with a launch event 6 - 9pm

Fat Clay Pottery is a new thriving ceramic hub and gallery space sited in Castle Road in Southsea. Work on show features ceramics and mixed media by local artists.

I am delighted to be invited to showcase a collection of my mixed media work there. All work is for sale.

Gallery open times ; monday - sunday 11 - 4pm

This Opening Exhibiion ends 27th July.

mixed media work using found books displayed in studio

Come along to the Opening Exhibition launch this Friday evening 6 - 9pm.

Silent Cover, mixed media print on paper using Photopolymer etching and machine stitch.

News update - The Old Pay Office

June 4, 2024

I am not very good at this news / blogging milarkey, as I am woefully behind with updating this site with the images from my last exhibition. My excuse is that i’ve been moving bit by bit into a new studio space. We are also hoping to move house soon …but that’s another story for another time !!

It’s rather uncanny to say ‘new’ studio - as this quirky space, that is tucked away in a corner of the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, is anything but new.

The Old Pay Office dates back to 1754 and was once the work place of Charles Dickens father John Dickens. The vaulted ceiling in the main large office space is magnificent as is the glass sided entrance that runs along the front of the building. A perfect space to take a break with a cuppa.

The consequence of working on the last exhibition Spatial Fragments has meant that i’ve been itching to get my hands dirty with printing ink again. So, moving my things into the studio has been a high priority. Happily, its a fairly functional space now and in fact i’m finding that the space is helping move my ideas onto something new. I think that as an artist the environment around me has always had an influence of some sort. Previously, the garden studio had an influence on the scale of my work. The light is really good there and its a very homely space.

The studio space in the Pay office is a larger grittier more urban space and my instant urge was to work on some larger scale drawings which observe and absorb my surroundings. This process, together with taking my camera around parts of the building, really helped me to look and discover.

Following on from these initial drawings i’ve been reintepreting using quick media such as monoprint, gelli plate drawing and ink drawings. Yesterday I also worked on small collages in the sketchbook. I am enjoying the way the collages collate and explore even further, giving me the opportunity to select marks, patterns and shapes that appeal to me. It’s also a fun way to take risks. These drawings are going to stay in the sketchbook so I can be as experimental with them as I want.

Some Exciting news to end on;

We will be taking part in the POSE Open Studios in October 2024 (at the Pay Office) . More details of this, and who will be opening their studios, to be announced soon.

Starting this week I am taking part in the printmakers Exhibition Small Wonders at the Jack House Gallery. Do join me on Thursday evening at the gallery for the opening event at 6-9. The show will continue to the 15th June and features printmaking from 56 Hampshire based artists.

Fat Clay Pottery Gallery/ shop in Castle Road Southsea has its official launch on Friday 12th July, with an accompanying exhibition of work by local artists. I’m delighted to have some mixed media framed work that will be part of this exhibition. I honestly love all the work that has been selected for this show.

Portsmouth Historic Quarter - Historic naval Dockyard.

Your Invitation to Spatial Fragments Opening event

March 26, 2024

I am delighted to share our poster for our upcoming exhibition. Our preview evening and opening event is on Friday 5th April at 6 to 8pm. To give us an idea of numbers we are asking all those that intend coming along to the PV evening to register on the Eventbrite site. scan the QR code to take you to the eventbrite site or click on the link.

Location - Boathouse 5, Portsmouth Naval Historic Dockyard, PO1 3LJ

Entry is free, just come along to the Dockyard via the Victory Gate entrance. During the week of the exhibition. One of us will be there each day to greet visitors.

Day time opening times - 11- 4.

Spatial Fragments is a location-specific project that seeks to record and respond to research into the existing architectural features, artefacts and archives linked to Storehouse 9, an historic building in the heart of Portsmouth Naval Dockyard.

Working with combinations of printmaking, drawing, sculpture, book art and installation Fine Artists Pippa Charlesworth and Sally Tyrie and Architect Deniz Beck have been making work that reimagines and reinterprets the discoveries they have made from their repeat visits. The resulting work and installations seek to convey a personal interpretation of a sense of place. A collaborative celebration of the building, its history and the ways in which art can capture and preserve the essence of a place.

An authentic, personal and beautiful reimagining that observes and celebrates their fascination with the space. A homage and visual reminder of the beauty of imperfection and decay.

About my work for the Exhibition;
For Spatial Fragments I was inspired by the experience of spending time in the fascinating abandoned spaces of Storehouse 9 at the Portsmouth Naval Historic Dockyard. Opened in 1782 this building has an industrious past, once housing essential provisions and supplies for the naval vessels that docked along the wharf. Evidence of its role, sometimes subtle, can be seen on every pillar, windowsill and littered across its floor. The historical and actual exist alongside each other.
My research, both visual and historical, has taken me on a journey with mixed media printmaking, translating my findings into book making, fabric printing and photography. They reveal discoveries from the archives and overlap this with the question of why we are drawn to derelict decaying spaces. What is it about ruins that attracts our attention?
The resulting work seeks to make visible the time spent in these quiet captivating spaces. To tell a story that interweaves material and process with ideas of absence and presence, darkness and light.

Spatial Fragments

March 19, 2024

This April I am delighted to be putting on an exhibition that brings all the work together from my residency at Storehouse 9.

Exhib dates - April 6- 14th . opening times 11 - 4 each day. In Boathouse 5.

Special preview evening Friday 5th April 6 - 8pm

We will be posting an Eventbrite link very soon to register if you are coming to the Preview night.

This March

March 5, 2024

A quick post to tell you about some upcoming exhibitions and series of events, happening soon !

Women In Art is a multi event celebration of local women artists organised by the Grateful Arts Club. I am proud to be part of this as I have some work in the Aspex learning space. The exhibition at the Aspex Gallery opens this Thursday at a Celebration evening and is followed by a series of events at the weekend. Also in conjunction there will be an exhibition at Hot Walls Round Tower as well as a show at Artspace.

check out the websites for each event for precise opening times.

In Retrospect

January 22, 2024

I am delighted to present mixed media work by Students of the Visual Narratives - - Print, Paint, Stitch course. Since July they have been working their way through the 10 modules that guide and support them on their printing and markmaking journey with me.

To conclude their course they were invited to explore and develop work to the theme: In Retrospect

This remarkable exhibition, beautifully Curated by the Fibre Arts Take Two team, showcases students' responses to the theme criteria:

Sadly it wasn’t possible to include many of the images in this post, but you can view the entire collection, and read about the work, in this online Flip Book.

𝐈𝐧 𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 challenged students to explore time, memory, and introspection through diverse sources. The theme encourages delving into the rich tapestry of meanings and contexts associated with chosen subjects. Students are prompted to think of it as a question, fostering a deeper understanding of their artistic pursuits. The focus is on investigating qualities, processes, and nuances to create a narrative and considering whether research or creative process should guide artwork creation.

Visual Narratives, my Online course with Fibre Arts Take Two, will be re released for a specific time in November 2024. You can register your interest and hear about dates for it’s release here.

My Online Course goes on sale Friday 28th July.

July 24, 2023

I am delighted to announce that Visual Narratives, the online course I created with Fibre Arts Take Two goes on sale this Friday - the 28th July. To express your interest and be notified when this course is on sale please click on the link which will take you to the Fibre Arts Take Two relevant page.

Watermarks, detail, 2023 . part of a group of work created from my time in Wales last year.

About this course (from the FATT website)

“Fine Artist Sally Tyrie is ready to share her signature methods used to create her stunning works of art with you through her new online course with Fibre Arts Take Two.

Your training will begin with researching and examining areas of interest, before revealing ways of reimagining mark-making and collage from Sally’s considered and painterly approach. Use various print techniques without a press, including gelli plate, photo litho and collograph printing whilst learning to abstract visual narratives from any source of inspiration to create an ambitious body of work.

Students will feel like they are invited into Sally’s world for an intimate workshop & deep dive into her processes and techniques whilst experiencing both urban and coastal landscapes that inform and inspire her work.

All course materials, including self-paced beautifully filmed streaming videos and comprehensive resource guides, are within an easy to use member portal and yours to access and revisit at any time.

Join a worldwide community of enrolled students who come together in a private online forum and share printmaking adventures directly with Sally Tyrie. Ask questions, bounce ideas, share knowledge and benefit from this course being your resource for life!

Watermarks, Print and stitch, 2023. For a group of work from the Mawdadch Residency.

This is the 2nd release of this course and the cart will be open fro approx 2 weeks.

There is a limited number of places available.

As part of this course, which includes approx 10 hours of short beautifully filmed and detailed videos and tutorials, you will be invited to join an optional online Facebook closed group. This is to share your insights, ongoing discoveries get support and advice. We (myself and the FATT team ) support your studies by checking in online. We aim to pop online each day but of course there may be some days when that’s not possible — eg;; im dancing at a certain upcoming huge music Festival !! ! :))

There are also from time to time some live question and answer sessions.

All in all a very generously supported course.

A not very flattering image of me behind the scenes of filming - but i kinda like it :)

Angela from Fibre Arts Take Two and myself out and about capturing some harbour views for filming.

At the start of the course you are encouraged to identify an area of interest that will inform your drawings, prints and mixed media work so we take you out to various locations and you get to see how I collect inspiration and what I then do with these drawings and photos when i’m back in the studio.

This is very much about finding your voice and taking you into exploration.

It was such a joy chatting online to the students, who signed up for the course last year, and seeing what they made. Here are a few of the feedback comments about the course, that came our way.

“The course content is excellently thought through and packed with information. Sally presented in a friendly and professional way through a series of concise and clear videos. All the content is made available at the point of registration, allowing one to work selectively and at a pace that suits. The Facebook group provided great support and encouragement for sharing explorations, as well as being a great place to ask questions. Sally’s course has given me so much confidence to build on my photographic skills through play and exploration. I now have a much clearer understanding of what it means to have a line of enquiry. Go for it! There will be no regrets! “ K. Williamson.
“Learning with Sally was a great experience and a thoroughly enjoyable one. I have learned some new skills, which work alongside others learnt on a previous FATT course and I look forward to using them in my work going forward. Using the skills learnt on Sally’s course will help in approaching a project in new and different ways. Photography had been something I used to use a lot when at college but it had fallen out of my skill set, so it is good to relearn to use it as a starting point and as part of the resolution of a project. I can see that in future, many things that I have learnt will be put to good use! Don’t hesitate! Do the course. FATT courses are simply great, making online learning a very enjoyable experience. “ L. Milan

For me the most important part of Sally’s teaching was how to develop a meaningful body of work. I enjoyed every aspect of the course including the input of the amazingly supportive and knowledgeable artists within the Facebook group. Story is an important element of my work, this course helped me to clarify how to develop that further. If you are looking for a course which can add depth and meaning to your work you’ve found it. N. Slack.

Vestiges

May 4, 2023

I have a new set of work that i’m delighted to be showing soon n a group show titled

Time Traces Transformation.

Vestiges, Print and mixed media on paper.

Slippages, Digital print on Kozo with mixed media.

My exhibition statement

My work for this exhibition draws from research into the notion of dwelling places and rituals. The mixed media prints i’ve created reinterpret a group of lumen prints that I made to document momentoes, fragments and chance finds, mainly collected from the daily walk. My resulting works reveal my interest in ways to combine photography and printmaking to investigate narratives about transformation. Multi-layered imagery that offer alternative dialogues and explore the tensions between materiality and immateriality.

Precious vestiges, mixed media bookwork.

Exhibition dates - 18th May to 25th June.

Meet the Artists Event - Sunday 21st May 2- 4pm

Location - Parndon Mill Gallery, Parndon Mill, Elizabeth Way, Harlow, CM20 2HP

Opening Times - Tues to Friday 10-5. / Sundays 2-4.

workshop news

March 29, 2023

My copy of the exhibition book ‘Reveal Conceal’ arrived recently and it’s been such a joy to look through. This book put together by Fibre Arts Take Two is a selection of work made by students who enrolled onto my online course. It’s an opportunity to throw a spotlight on the work they made and the ideas behind this work.

I’ve been looking through some of the work the students have been sharing on the Facebook group we’ve been chatting on and its been lovely to see the development of their work from first ideas and thoughts through to the outcomes and more resolved pieces.

Jacqueline Quinn-Howarth collagraph print

As part of the online course participants have been learning processes I use in my work and predominantly that’s techniques that combine drawing, photography and printmaking. In the online course I also teach processes in bookmaking, collage and collagraph printmaking.

Fundamentally, this is not a techniques driven course but my Signature Course that supports students to discover areas of interest through research and learn ways to take these ideas into a sustained and ambitious body of work.

video of book

If you are interested in either finding our more about the online course Visual Narratives - that i’ve collaborated on with FIbre Arts Take Two, or expressing an interest in this course when it gets re-released - I’ve heard this week that the course is being re-released in July.

To sign up to get early notification of this re-release click on - this link - which takes you to the Fibre Arts Two website.

The re release is scheduled for July 14th and will be available for a limited time as we can only release a set amount of places - students get our online support the first few weeks and the opportunity to submit to an online exhibition in addition to the 10 modules of indepth learning.

Time Traces Transformation

March 6, 2023

In May I’ll be taking part in a very special group show at Parndon Mill Gallery.

Special because it’s with 5 artists that I met whilst a Fellow at Digswell Arts in Hertfordshire . Titled, Time Traces and Transformation, we will have our work on show in this beautiful gallery alongside our Sketchbooks.

“ I had a flashback of something that never existed” Louise Bourgeois

Working primarily with analogue photography, mixed media and printmaking the explorations i’ve been undertaking for this project have been inspired by ways to map the tensions between materiality and immateriality.

At the start of the project I did quite a bit of reading and went to some shows that I thought might help my ideas. My early sketchbook investigation shows a rather non linear and conflicting search for ways to develop imagery and ideas that responded meaningfully to this project. However, on reading and re- discovering the work of FD Cartier I had a kind of light bulb moment that kick started and led to current investigations.

“Through the Art (of FD Cartier) we rediscover the temporal multi-layeredness of the photographic image (and the) magical effect of natural light interacting with light sensitive materials”
David Drake, writing about FD Cartier

In researching and exploring ideas for this project it felt important to me to begin with objects. I had thought that i would continue with landscape themes but I was also keen to do something a bit different here - To use this project as an opportunity to work in a different way and to go back to more analogue photo methods. By exploiting light and shadow and using objects in my studio I created a group of tiny Lumen prints.

“The only thing we can grab hold of with any surety is the nature of impermanence”
Antonia Shaw writing on Cornelia Parker in Silver and Glass

Objects used for these prints represent random fragments collected on walks, things given, and even small slices of imagery that sit around my studio walls. Once I had fixed them I examined the imagery on the computer screen and played around with alternate versions. I noticed (and was drawn to) the more ethereal versions of these edited, inverted and layered interpretations. Some looked more enigmatic and uncanny. Dissolving forms that are held and suspended.

“.. and all these notes and stones and so on are precious vestiges of something that took place and played out” Claire Louise Bennett, POND .

The studio exploration has currently moved to the print room and although its early days i’ve been very happy with the results. I have been enjoying working from a plate that I created using some of the (Lumen print ) imagery that I was more drawn to. This first involved making quite a few photo collages to try out some compositions and proportions.

Collage and sketchbook exploration, studio Feb 2023

“The artists concern is not to render an exact physical likeness of things but to make visible what lies beyond what we immediately see. the hidden meanings which underline the gulf between reality and appearance” David Drake writing about FD Cartier.

Photopolymer etching on Somerset Satin. In the Portsmouth Printmakers Studio, Omega Centre. Feb 2023.

The next stage of this work is a case of getting to know my plate. I always say to my students that once you’ve created your plate then begins a kind of relationship with it - a journey where you need to discover ways to get the most from the plate. No plate is the same as another even if you’ve used the same processes.

More about the Exhibition;

Dates - 18th May - 25th June 2023

Location - Parndon Mill Gallery, Harlow, Essex.

Other Artists participating- Caryl Beach, Mary Down, Jonathan Emmerson, Marian Hall, Declan Hoare,

Reading list referenced,

Silver and Glass - Cornelia Parker and Photography

Wait and see, F and D Cartier

Pond, Claire Louise Bennett.

Thinking for Printing

January 7, 2023

The upcoming Printmakers Council exhibition, titled Thinking for Printing, takes place at the start of February at the wonderful Bankside Gallery, along London’s Southbank. I am delighted that one of my recent mixed media prints, Titled Semi Permeable and created as a response to drawings of Mawddach estuary, has been selected for the show.

Location - Bankside Gallery, Thames Riverside, 48 Hopton Street, London SE1 9JH

Dates - 31st Jan - 5th Feb 2023

Times - 11 - 6

Semi Permeable is part of a group of monochromatic drawings that respond to an immersive time looking at, and drawing from, the Mawddach Estuary in Wales during a residency in May 2022.

Thinking for Printing features work by members of the Printmakers Council.

‘For this exhibition, the Printmakers Council sent each of their members an A5 sketchbook and invited them to record and respond to the concept ‘Thinking for Printing’. The result of this exciting project will be displayed alongside the finished artworks at Bankside Gallery’.

Some reflections on making.

The timing of the arrival of my pristine new A5 sketchbook, courtesy of PMC, just before the Welsh residency was perfect. I love working in sketchbooks though will admit that I found the A5 size quite challenging - definitely out of my my comfort zone. I tend to go for A4 landscape shaped sketchbooks and i think that the reason for this is that it encourages me to be more flexible with shape and composition. Looking back over the drawings in this cute A5 book i’m noticing them to be more compact and with more of a square format. I did try some stretched out, more panoramic drawings but they done feel as strong.

Working in a sketchbook for me is an opportunity to take risks, to explore, write, rub out, tear out; it doesn’t matter, and thats why journals and sketchbooks are great. I always love looking at other artists books so it’ll be a fantastic bonus to have these books on show with the finished work. They really are - and should be - an insight into the artists mind.

Reflecting on the process of making these prints, it hasn’t at all been a straight route. My initial sketchbook drawings reveal a fascination for the textures, and chance finds along the shoreline of the estuary and local town of Barmouth - The historic structures and fragments at the waters edge.

The area I was studying sits at the base of the Snowdonia National Park. The varied landscape of intertidal waters, peat bogs and distant mountains was quite simply outstanding. So much possibility and only 2 weeks to study it !! My solution to this was to focus on 2 aspects. One focus was the estuary itself and the other was the area of land behind our lodging at Mawddach Crescent. This was Arthog Peat Bog of which I write a bit about in an earlier Blog Post. In this previous post I also write about the benefits of working alongside fellow resident Artist Sue Jarman .

So, having decided on working on 2 sketchbooks - one for each focus (and group of work) - freed up my brain to compartmentalise each aspect of this study and how to make the best of the 2 weeks. This post examines the stages of creating prints that respond to the drawings, collages and research into the Estuary.

Prints in progress at Portsmouth Printmakers studio,

The sketchbook development and especially the collages, helped my mindset for what followed. A new way of ‘seeing’ the estuary. A way of revealing what was drawing me to this subject. After a couple of very immersive studio days at Portsmouth Printmaking Studio in early Autumn, working with some new A5 photopolymer plates, it was back to my garden studio with the prints and some more collage ideas.

It felt important to keep the prints very monochromatic because it was the patterns, movement of water and sheer beauty of all those varied shapes that drew my eye. I had also collected quite a few of the images at night time and was drawn especially to the light on the water. Often silvery and always mesmerising.

Collage, like printing, is a process. I find it helpful to begin with something that acts as a foundation and then build up layers from there. Sometimes I use layers to push back a part of the print or break up an over busy image. Often I use stitch to draw attention. Maybe to reveal line or strengthen tone. I also like to draw into the work but I try to make this very minimal. Adding stitch is better than drawing as it can of course be easily taken away if it goes too far.

Semi permeable i, work in progress - At Portsmouth Printnakers studio

Some of the prints from this study On show at;

Jack House Gallery - current show runs to 15th January

Bankside Gallery - Thinking for Printing - 31st January - 5th February.

Drawings from Storehouse 9

November 12, 2022

Over the last few weeks i’ve been working on and off location for a collaborative venture with Ankle Deep Studios. Although still in the early stages i’ve been very intrigued by the direction the project is taking me.

For a specific time period I have been granted privileged access to one of the empty storehouses at the Dockyard. Also with support from the Dockyard Trust, I have been photographing, drawing and researching in order to unpick this rather eerie and unique space. History is everywhere you step and look.

I have been recording my trips and development in a project sketchbook and have amassed a stack of drawings and photos that explore in particular the glimpses, textures and marks on the floors, pillars and walls especially. I love the fact that everywhere you look the soft light from the windows imbue a soft and ghostly light on the surfaces. Sometimes in long slanted projections and at other times a dusty haze.

Underpinned by regular informal meetings with Claire and Deniz of Ankle Deep Studios, it feels to me that this work and project is moving at an exciting pace. Collaborating with them is adding another layer of possibility. Another fresh perspective. We have some very exciting plans .. its a case of watch this space ..