Bower Bird – an exhibition of new ceramics, textiles and collages by Claudia Rankin
A weekend pop up show
Thursday – Sunday 9th-12th June 2011
10am till 5pm
Hoults Yard, Walker Road, Newcastle NE6 2HL
Pop up show
The challenge is to transform a pristine office space at Hoults Yard into a visual feast. To give some ‘home like’ context for the artworks, they will be shown on & around furniture from Chic Antique, Newcastle.
The show will include an entire wall of hand decorated plates cast from moulds made from a collection of ceramics found on travels around the world. Also on show will be screen printed textiles some of which are incorporated into collages using reclaimed frames.
Background
The exhibition title ‘Bower Bird’ refers to a radio programme that inspired Claudia whilst working in her studio. It went into detail about birds that decorate their nests with materials they carefully select from their environment with the most highly embellished Bower attracting a higher potential of mates.
Claudia goes onto explain:
“I feel some affinity with these birds as my studio is crammed full of materials & objects that I cannot resist accumulating. From feather trimming & old printing blocks found in flea markets abroad to vintage fabric & bashed up gilt picture frames from local auctions, I’m an avid collector of anything that catches my eye. I use these materials to make my collages, a blend of old brought to life with new forms and ideas…”
Hoults Yard and the Ouseburn
Claudia has been coming to Hoults Yard for years. There is a great creative energy about the place, both contemporary & historical - “I love the fact that the part of the building I’ll be exhibiting in once housed Malings Pottery that until the 1960s was a fully functional ceramics factory.” Charlie Hoult, Managing Director of Hoults Yard is in full support of the show and says: ‘It’s exciting to see how versatile our spaces are at the yard – and how
creative individual artists are to adapt their work to the place’
Biography
Claudia originally came to the North East from London to do her MA in Sculpture at Newcastle University. Her work has been shown widely at New York, Amsterdam and London Art Fairs and she is currently represented by Wilson Stephens Fine Art in London. This will be her first significant solo exhibition in the North East since a sell-out show in 2006. Her work has been commissioned by public and private organisations including English Heritage and most recently by Unilever for items of jewellery. Although her home & studio are in Corbridge she’s been the work for ‘Bower Bird’ in the Ouseburn area of Newcastle. The screen prints have been made at Northern Print & the ceramics at Ouseburn Pottery, two fantastic resources for local artists.
Contact
Claudia Rankin – Tel: 07814 568269 Email: claudiarankin@btinternet.com
Hoults Yard Contact – charlotte@houltsyard.co.uk
www.claudiarankin.co.uk
www.houltsyard.wordpress.com
