The Bluecoat Display Centre Presents

Press Release

The Bluecoat Display Centre presents

Air Craft 9th March – 20th April 2013 Private view: Friday 8th March from 5.30pm – 7.30pm

Images Kate Kelly (left&right) & Robert Race (centre)

Air Craft is a mixed media exhibition of work, which explores the secret world of birds. Eleven artists have been selected to show work that focuses upon representations of winged creatures, (with sensory handling pieces by selected artists). From driftwood to ceramics, this is a must for ornithologists, nature watchers and art lovers alike.

Exhibitors: Sabrina Cant, Becky Crow, Nicola Henley, Guy Holder, Kate Kelly, Perry Lancaster, Ian McKay, Mikael Nilsson, Robert Race, Emma Rodgers & Jeff Soan.

Glass artist Sabrina Cant is inspired by nature, citing artists Turner and Rothko as central influences upon her practice. Sabrina creates elegant bird form in glass, exploring in particular the reflective properties of colour and light. Becky Crow designs jewellery intended to be both worn and displayed. She uses the great outdoors as a constant source of wonder and inspiration. Elements of a narrative are captured in silver and transformed into miniature scenes featuring birds. Nicola Henley’s textile pieces are made by a combination of dying, painting, and screen-printing. Nicola's work studies birds in flight. By observing and drawing their motions, Nicola aims to capture a sense of scale and movement. Ceramicist Guy Holder is based in Brighton. From this coastal base he observes a wide variety of birdlife behaviour. Studying bird expressions, attitudes and variations initially through drawing, he then translates his observations into clay. Guy finishes the creatures using slips, oxides and glazes, which evoke both soft, subtle qualities of plumage and the coastal rocks and chalk from his local landscape. Kate Kelly creates beautiful paper sculptures, in particular owls and other birds. She began experimenting with paper model making during her University degree. She now continues to work in paper, finding it a particularly malleable and unrestrictive medium, bending and folding it into various desired bird shapes. Perry Lancaster works from his home in the Dordogne region of France. He creates fine bird forms with minimal detail thus showing the natural beauty of the creature and the wood. Each piece is made individually and entirely by hand, from a piece of wood chosen specifically from a large selection of exotic and native hardwoods. Ian McKay specialises in making toys & automata. He is interested in bird flight, seeing air as an element with many exciting possibilities. He relies heavily on drawing and sketching, working in an instinctive way before sourcing pieces of wood and playing with them to construct playful depictions of winged creatures. Swedish artist Mikael Nilsson focuses in particular upon depicting the menacing form of crows, resembling birds similar to those featured in the iconic Alfred Hitchcock film! The rough nature of the wood he sources lends itself to the ominous appearance of his birds. Robert Race makes automata from driftwood, moving in simple but interesting ways, incorporating a wide range of natural, re-used and recycled materials. Traditional ‘moving toys’ have influenced him strongly, as have his travels across Europe, Indonesia, Mexico, India and Japan. Robert’s most recent series has given him a good excuse for looking for inspiration at the seaside! Energy plays a huge part in Emma Rodgers ceramic bird sculptures. She aims to depict subjects in a raw state. The use of sketches and rapid, fluid images allow her to capture the essence of a subject’s energy. This is then transferred to clay echoing movement and attempting not to lose the spirit of the creature. Jeff Soan is best known for his articulating wooden creatures, which he has been creating since 1987. The technique produces remarkably sinuous and lifelike movements.

For further information and high resolution images please contact Bluecoat Display Centre by email at [email protected].

50-51 The Bluecoat, College Lane Entrance, Liverpool L1 3BZ T: +44 (0)151 7094014 W: www.bluecoatdisplaycentre.com