work in progress... derek hill

a sneaky peek at some of the things that derek hill's been working on for the advent show...

introducing... bukkie dos santos

Bukkie is an internationally exhibited and award winning photographer with a striking portfolio of work. Her style of photography is built on a dynamic approach to the world around us and is a tribute to her creative talents.

Bukkie has always been interested in culture and Cultural diversity. Paying particular attention to our rituals as individuals and as communities. “I believe that man defines himself by ritual” It is this line of thinking that has strengthened her interest in documentary photography which is area of photography that she currently does most of her work.

ARTIST STATEMENT: I love working with people, they make excellent subjects. An expression is all it takes to tell a life’s story. We are creatures of habit, we respond to the spaces around us, our presence or absence from a space evokes a response of some kind, and it is this response that creates stories that can be recorded visually. I feel like I’m a story teller, with my photographs I hope I can bring millions of stories to life.

[Bukkie's website]

introducing... paul airy

"Long ago, pearl fishermen swam deep underwater to find their treasures from the ocean. From there, they brought them to the surface for all to see, and some to own.

As someone who has been described as deep, I too go below the surface – in thought, observation and reflection, on an adventure into both the seen and unseen worlds, discovering, uncovering and bringing what I’ve found to the surface, and revealing it for all to see in graphic art form.

Not unlike the outward appearance of a pearl, my work is clean and graphic, simple though not simplistic. It often features motifs, metaphors, symbols and structure, drawing on natural elements such as trees, fish and water, and man-made elements such as aircraft, digital clocks and buildings.

However, it’s only when you take a closer at my work, that you find that there is more to discover, and that what at first seems ordinary, has contained within it something special."

Visit Paul's website here.

introducing... imy afzal

‘To us art is an adventure into an unknown world, which can be explored only by those willing to take the risks.’
Mark Rothko

Imi Afzal’s continuous work entitled Paradigm Episteme is the exploration of social concerns. The project consists of six themes, Society, Religion/Belief, Globalisation, Conflict (Palestine /Israel), Dasein and Time/Space/Evolution. Paradigm Episteme is a complex, sculptural installation which attempts to explore human nature. The installation consists of six individual sculptures which are interconnected to make the whole greater than the sum of its parts. Paradigm Episteme purpose is to stimulate an individual's thoughts, emotions, beliefs and ideas through the senses with a sophisticated and imaginative approach.

Imi Afzal is a conceptual artist who recently graduated from Bradford School of Arts in Fine Art. He is engaged and intrigued in art, design, science, and philosophy.

introducing... martin wilson

"My pictures are painstakingly created frame by frame on 35mm film. I get the whole film developed, scan it, then piece the final image together on the computer, making a large contact sheet. It's only when the completed film strips are laid out side by side in the contact sheets that the final image appear.

Each work usually takes months to complete, as each frame is obsessively taken in sequence. No pasting together after the event, no cheating in Photoshop!
If I make a mistake or take a frame out of place I start the film again from the beginning.

The works are all records of real journeys, the visual remnants of hours walking or cycling round town, bringing to life the unheard voices of the city..."

See more at martin's website.

introducing... burley st. matthias C of E primary school

"Burley St Matthias is a 210-place Church of England Primary School, one mile from the city centre in North West Leeds. Overlooking the rich industrial landscape of the Kirkstall Valley, we are within walking distance of a Nature Reserve, Kirkstall Abbey, Armley Mills Industrial Museum, Burley Park, the River Aire and the Leeds and Liverpool Canal.

The school serves a very diverse population and we are proud of the fact that you can meet people here from all walks of life and from all around the world. The globe on our school logo helps to sum that up and the thumbprint on it shows how we value each and every person’s uniqueness – “Everyone Is Special”.

With our very high standards, our inclusive approach to special needs, our broad range of extra curricular opportunities and wrap around care, a very committed and caring staff and our superb outdoor space, Burley St Matthias offers a wonderful learning environment for everyone who comes here."

Children from years three and four have been working with visiting artists to produce work for the Advent exhibition, and you can visit the school's webiste here

introducing... jane kay

" I used to dream in lists - now I just write them - things to do, buy; lists on scraps of paper, in notebooks. Sadly I have been known to get up with Sidney ( the cat) at 3am to scribble something in case I've forgotten by the morning (actually I'm just getting up to let him out but didn't want anyone to think that the cat(s) have taken over). I have been known to make my lists into art work but will try not to do this for Left Bank ...what I am doing for Advent is still a bit of a mystery to me - it may be weave or print or writing or a combination of all of these. It will almost certainly involve the pulpit. and a bale of straw. Any ideas - let me know - quickly."

introducing... james kessell

James Kessell's approach to making art employs diverse strategies and media.
Engaged in the exploration and expression of human ideas and life experience, his work at times includes drawing and painting, sculpture, digital media and projection, installation and intervention, photography and sound. His recent work expresses thoughts relating to the interplay and effect of opposing human and spiritual concepts.
James Kessell's work has been shown at various venues in the UK, the USA, The Netherlands and Jerusalem, and also seen internationally as part of a number of publishing and design projects.

Visit James' website here.

introducing... si smith

For as long as he can remember Si Smith has been an avid draw-er of stuff. Maybe it's in his genes - his father paints and exhibits, his grandfather was also an artist and his brother is a graphic designer and cartoonist.

He was born in Leicester in 1966, and he's currently resident in north Leeds with his wife Sue and their sons Eddie and Jonah.
So far, during the course of his largely uneventful life Si has met Rolf Harris, been in a documentary, witnessed Gary Lineker's league debut, visited Scarborough, spent five years teaching in a primary school, agitated an alternative worship event into being, author-illustrated three books, been deservedly rebuked by a bishop, run a football team, bought a composter, created a church comedy event and co-edited a comic. He's currently curating this very exhibition and thinking about things for the Greenbelt Festival, when he probably should be working.

Si has a blog that you can see here.
(He has a website too, but it's permanently in need of updating...)

introducing... emmy twigge

"Yes that's right I have a plastic seagull covered in plasters strapped to my chest. You see you never know where you'll end up if you follow an instinct...and that's how I start making work. And once I start a piece it's very process led so I never know what I'll end up with. To offer more insight into this process check out my sketchblog for Advent...

and...
http://www.emmytwigge.com/"

introducing... john lloyd

John Lloyd is a freelance designer and photographer, often combining the two. Like Henry's Cat he knows bits of everything but not much of anything. He got his first iPod in 2003 (yes, years before you did) and has never been able to touch his toes.

john's website.

sign up and volunteer...

we're now recruiting volunteers to help with the show - primarily that'll involve sitting in and supervising the show while it's open, handing leaflets out, smiling at punters, making sure that everything's switched on and working, that sort of stuff.

if you'd like to help with that, and can spare us two and a half hours of time one weekend in advent, then leave your email in the comments here, and we'll send you details of how you can sign up... :-)

cheers!

(apologies)

apologies if you've tried to leave a comment here, but been unable to. i think that the glitch is fixed, so commenting should be possible from now on...!

poster

(designed by lloydy)