An interview with Robin Woodford

Robin Woodford will be exhibiting during the Swindon Open Studios 2009 as part of the Swindon Artist Forum group.

Caen Hill Flight

Q – Could you introduce yourself briefly to the readers?

My name is Robin Woodford, I spent my early years in a farm cottage on the edge of Savernake Forest near Marlborough, which gave me my love of the countryside which is reflected in the rural images of my paintings When I married I moved to Swindon and I have lived here ever since.

Q-How did you become interested in art?

I have always had an interest in art and enjoyed drawing and painting all my life.

Canal House Pewsey

Q - What inspires you most as an artist?

What inspires me most as an artist is the satisfaction I get from reproducing my own interpretation of a subject and I, like most artists also enjoy the appreciation of my work by my friends and customers.

Q - What is your favourite medium or media? Why?

I enjoy water colour for its atmosphere and acrylic for its vibrant colours. Acrylics are very versatile and can be used in a similar style to either water colour or oil paints.

Devizes Whasrf

Q - Could you tell us some more about your work?

Although I like to paint traditional landscapes I also enjoy the freedom of abstract artwork and often combine them into semi-abstract paintings.
I sometimes find that my work follows a theme and I paint several different scenes of the same subject . I have for example painted a series of paintings at different locations of the Kennett and Avon canal. I seem to have a liking of painting waterscapes and water features in lots of my paintings.

Kennett and Avon Canal at Kintbury

Q - How would you define your style?

My style is fairly traditional watercolour and even my acrylic paintings are painted in a similar style and could be mistaken for watercolours.

Q - What are your influences; artists from the past or present who inspire you?

I am very much influenced by my two favourite artist’s Constable and Turner.

Liddington Hill

Q - How do you choose the subjects of your works?

I have a large selection of subject matter that I have collected over the years.
If I have a commission to paint I may be able to find inspiration from this. Mostly however a commission is of a particular place so I visit the site, do drawings and take photographs to be used for reference and then I complete the painting in my studio.

Q- How do you prepare yourself for an exhibition or a show like the Open Studios?

I collect together all the paintings that I can muster from my studio and choose those that will show my work to the best advantage. These will contain mostly local landscapes which are always popular.

Kennett and Avon Canal Pewsey

Q- Did you take part in the Swindon Open Studios in the past?

Yes, I have but this is the first time as part of a group. (i.e. the Swindon Artists Forum.)

Q - Are there territories (media, subjects, etc.) you want to explore in the coming years?

I am always looking for new materials and methods so if anything new comes along I am willing to give it a try.

Q - As an artist, what would be your dream?

I would like to be successful with an instantly recognised name.

Q - Could you share one thing that you have learnt in your own art practice that would be useful to other artists?

If you are doing a painting that is going wrong carry on until you have completed the painting. Very often it will work out better than you thought it would. If not you will still gain valuable information and may avoid the same problem in the future.

An interview with Ray Castell

Q – Could you introduce yourself briefly to the readers?

My name is Ray Castell. I was born on the North East coast of England but have lived in many places, including Germany and the Orkney Isles. I've been an engineer, shellfish farmer, trainer and small business adviser, but always to some extent an artist.

Preening Swan

Q - How did you become interested in art?

My interest in art has been there for as long as I can remember. It grew when I started working with clay but really took off when I began working with stone.

Q - What inspires you most as an artist?

Most of my inspiration comes from both natural and theoretical forms, and concepts of existence and togetherness.

Eternity

Q - What is your favourite medium or media? Why?

The moment I started working with stone I realised I had found my medium. It helped that I've always worked with tools, but somehow I quickly understood how to work with stone and the pace of working with it suits me too.

Together

Q - Could you tell us some more about your work?

Most of my sculptures involve shapes that to me, and hopefully others, are flowing and calming.

Q - How would you define your style?

I attempt to strip away detail and try to encapsulate the idea I am working on in a simple form that still evokes the emotion or reaction I have in mind.

Calming her mind

Q - What are your influences; artists from the past or present who inspire you?

My influences are mainly from my experiences in life, from growing up and living and working with a love of the sea and the countryside, and from my times spent working with engineering and science. I don't think I have been influenced by any particular artist, but I love to visit exhibitions and will almost always find something to set me thinking.



Q - How do you choose the subjects of your works?

Sometimes I just have a block of stone which I look at and think about until I see a form in it. More often I have an idea that I want to work on and I search out a piece of stone of the right size, type and texture. Ideas are not usually in short supply, but it can be difficult finding the right piece of stone.

Locked Horns

Q- How do you prepare yourself for an exhibition or a show like the Open Studios?

I take part in quite a lot of exhibitions during a year, so the main thing is to make sure that I have enough pieces to exhibit at each. Keeping a good calendar system is essential!

Q- Did you take part in the Swindon Open Studios in the past?

This is my first open studio

Q - Are there territories (media, subjects, etc.) you want to explore in the coming years?

I want to continue exploring different stones and carving techniques. I also want to work on larger pieces.

Searching for light

Q - As an artist, what would be your dream?

Of course, I'd love my work to be more widely recognised. I'd also love to find an affordable workspace near my home where I can work on larger pieces without upsetting the neighbours.

Q - Could you share one thing that you have learnt in your own art practice that would be useful to other artists?

Don't be in too much of a hurry. Don't get too close to the final form until you know it is what you want. Stand back and look at it regularly, and don't hit your fingers.

An interview with Yolanda Cray

Q – Could you introduce yourself briefly to the readers?

My name is Yolanda Cray, my parents are Dutch and moved to Ireland for their honeymoon and stayed. I was born in Dublin and moved to the U.K. 25 years ago, and to Wiltshire 4 years ago.

Q - How did you become interested in art?

My interest in art has come from a love of colour and texture since doing an Interior design course and working in the interiors industry, as a result I started doing an evening class with Susanna Bailey a very talented tutor and it has grown from then

BEFORE THE WEDDING

Q - What inspires you most as an artist?

What inspires me most as an artist is encouragement from fellow artists, enthusiasm is infectious. Also the beauty of landscapes as a memory of a moment in time.

Q - What is your favourite medium or media? Why?

My current favourite medium is acrylic as it gives a lot of flexibility of use and dries quickly.

Q - Could you tell us some more about your work?

My style is traditional landscapes with emphasis on creating texture to give the piece a mood and feeling.

Q - How would you define your style?

My current work is influenced by places I have visited recently and have photographed or sketched wherever possible especially the relationship between sea and rock

CREAMY CORNWALL

Q - What are your influences; artists from the past or present who inspire you?

My influences from past and present are Rothko for colour, Turner for mood and Barbara Hepworth for shapes.

Q - How do you choose the subjects of your works?

I choose my work from photos taken, sketches made and memories stored, size and shape of the canvas and how one feels on a particular day when faced with a blank canvas

MELLOW MEADOW

Q- How do you prepare yourself for an exhibition or a show like the Open Studios?

I am preparing for open studio by putting together a series of paintings called aspects of nature, so there is cohesion with the exhibition. I am also setting aside as much free time as possible to get prepared


Q- Did you take part in the Swindon Open Studios in the past?

This is my first open studio

Q - Are there territories (media, subjects, etc.) you want to explore in the coming years?

I would like to explore other media such as watercolour, pen and ink and also to mix some of the above media. I would also like to attempt some very large canvasses in the future. My imagination is my limitation.

Q - As an artist, what would be your dream?

A large successful solo exhibition, where every painting got sold. I would also like my own studio away from my house to escape too.

Q - Could you share one thing that you have learnt in your own art practice that would be useful to other artists?

P -PATIENCE -be patient
A –AWARENESS -take in your surroundings whenever you can and sketch and photograph
L - LOVE -love what you do it must never feel like a chore
L - LIGHT -notice what affect light has at different times of the day
E - ENERGY -put energy into your each piece
T- TIME -try and set aside time every day even if it is only an hour each day

Getting the best of an Open Studios

This article was first published in "Frequency Magazine" – July 2009.


The Swindon Open Studios 2009 will be held over the weekend of September 12th and 13th (see http://www.swindonopenstudios.org.uk/) and I am going to take part this year. Here are some ideas to get ready for the event and to make the most of it.

Open Studios are all about bringing the public and artists together. You have a unique opportunity to get immediate feedback on your work, to see what people like and don’t like. You can learn a lot just by watching how people react and by listening to their comments. People are curious about the way artists work, what technique, material and the process they use, and the story behind a particular work. One way to make their visit memorable is to give some demonstrations throughout the day.

Bea Menier's studio

Make your own promotion. Send an announcement to your mailing list early enough for people out of town. Send as many invitations as possible. Use your website, your blog or your newsletter to spread the word in advance. You should not rely only on the promotion done by the organisers.

On the day, before your first visitors arrive, take some photographs of your final set-up for use in your future promotion. Have at hand a few copies of your resume, artist statement, some business cards as well as copies of your newsletter if you publish one. Advertise your coming events (shows, workshops). You should also have a copy of your portfolio with the media coverage you received and photographs of your works.

Encourage visitors to leave comments and their contact details in your visitors’ book. Remember that, in accordance with privacy law, you need to ask for their permission in order to contact them later on, so make sure there is a clear notice to that effect. Another way to do this is to create in the visitors’ book a column headed “Address or email Address to keep me informed of further works / exhibitions”

Safety considerations: The first rule is to have at least one person with you at all time, so ask your friends or family to help you on the day. This way, you will be more relaxed when talking to your visitors and you will be able to take breaks from time to time. Areas off-limits should be clearly marked and valuables put away. Carry out a safety assessment in your studio: tape down any loose electrical lead; mark low doorways, steps and uneven pavement; lock away dangerous chemicals; etc.

Make it easy for your visitors: Your studio should be easy to find and visitors guided by the event signs. Is there sufficient parking space for your visitors? (it is a good idea to let your neighbours know… and to invite them at the same time). Wear a name tag with the word “Artist” underneath, so that visitors can find you. It is another way to encourage a dialogue.

If you wish to sell, label all your works with their title, medium and price. Visitors may be shy and won’t ask for the price of your work. Have some blank sales receipts ready, plenty of small change and a supply of “red dot” stickers for works that you have sold. If possible, have someone to handle the sales for you and carry money and checks around (avoid leaving cash in a box ready to be stolen). Make sure you get complete details from your buyers on the invoice in case of a problem and to keep your inventory of works up-to-date. It is best to mark the work that has been sold with a red dot and arrange for its delivery after the end of the Open Studios event, because this will keep your display intact and will show other visitors that your have sold some works.

Refreshment and simple snacks are optional, but a good way to keep visitors longer in your studio.

After the event, follow-up with your visitors, send some “Thank you” notes and update your mailing list with the new contacts you have collected. Take note of what went well and what did not and make some checklists for next time.

Open Studios are also a networking opportunity and it is good to visit other studios if you can. But above all: Have fun!

Open studios Artist studio Art marketing Art exhibition

An interview with Jean Ramsdale

Q – Could you introduce yourself briefly to the readers?

Hi, my name is Jean Ramsdale. I live in Highworth just outside Swindon, with my husband Bill, grandson Chris, Max the dog and Scooby the rabbit.

Q - How did you become interested in art?

I have a disablement, so I became involved with a group called Living Options who gave me the opportunity to take a course in painting in Acrylics. I joined a course run by a most inspiring international artist called Susanna Bailey; she has been such a good friend and an enormous help to me through all my trials and tribulations.

Alone - Acrylic painting by Jean Ramsdale

Q - What inspires you most as an artist?

What has inspired me the most about being an artist is being able to help others to learn how to paint. This I do by jointly running a group which teaches disabled people how to paint, with the help of very good friends and colleagues. The look on their faces when they finish a painting is inspiration enough.

Q - What is your favourite medium or media? Why?

I choose to paint mostly in acrylics as it is a very forgiving media, the colours are amazing and they also dry quickly.

Autumn Beauty - Acrylic painting by Jean Ramsdale

Q - Could you tell us some more about your work?

I love bright colours: reds, yellows oranges, the colours of sunsets which I paint frequently... Recently, I have been painting autumn colours in the shape of trees in arboretums; they are so versatile and have so many beautiful colours. Of course there has been the odd landscape and also I have developed a love of seascapes, especially the shapes and movements of the waves.

Q - How would you define your style?

I think that I have a very unique style to my work, as most artists do. I am both precise and definite; it has to be right before the signature goes on.

Tranquil Lake - Acrylic painting by Jean Ramsdale

Q - What are your influences; artists from the past or present who inspire you?

I have found that Monet, when going through a particularly bad patch artist’s block, was the artist that put me back on the road; again his way of painting with dashes and small marks has helped me several times.

Q - How do you choose the subjects of your works?

Either from a photograph or it just comes to me. I have painted a few works from sketches but mostly, if I find a picture I like, I go ahead with it.


Q- How do you prepare yourself for an exhibition or a show like the Open Studios?

By using a theme and hopefully sticking to it and then panic at the end.

Q- Did you take part into the Swindon Open Studios in the past?

This is my first open studios I am really looking forward to it.


Q - Are there territories (media, subjects, etc.) you want to explore in the coming years?

I really want to conquer watercolour. It really is a most difficult media and very unforgiving, I have also started using inks and mixed media: watercolour with pastels, inks with acrylics. It is interesting to see what effect you can gain from it.


Q - As an artist, what would be your dream?

I am sure it’s “everyone’s”: just to be recognised, to paint that picture that stands you apart from everyone else and to have that idea that is just yours that really works and makes a difference.

Q - Could you share one thing that you have learnt in your own art practice that would be useful to other artists?

Just to keep working at it. We all know how hard it can be, but you don’t get anywhere if you give up on it.