Dark Tales

Dark Tales

Published by Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre. Text ©The Authors and LGAC 2014 Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre St.David’s Road Cwmbran Torfaen NP441PD T: +44(0)1633 483321 E: info@lgac.org.uk W: www.lgac.org.uk Touring enquiries welcome Front Cover: Kate Gilliland

Dark Tales Curated by Sarah James and Louise Jones-Williams

Julie Arkell, Amanda and Matt Caines, Jennifer Collier, Kate Gilliland, Virginia Head, Catrin Howell, Anna Collette Hunt, Anya Keeley, Anna Lewis, Emma Molony, Grainne Morton, Cleo Mussi, Sophie Woodrow.

A Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre Touring Exhibition

Anna Lewis

Fairy tales and folklore have fascinated

start to soften and sweeten these tales.

people for thousands of years. These

Yet often the dark heart of these stories

enthralling stories and the images they

remains. Fairy tales have never had a fixed

conjure up, have through the years

form, and regardless of their influence, the

captivated everyone from children to artists,

tellers constantly altered them for their

film makers and fashion houses.

own purposes. Despite being primarily a European tradition, their themes of journeys,

If you are looking for a sweet, soothing

being lost, disguise and transformation

tale before bed then the stories collected

are common to folk tales from all over

by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in the early

the world. Many of these stories have a

1800s are not what you’re looking for.

‘fairy-tale ending’, however the most

The two brothers were determined to

enduring and ultimately most interesting

preserve Germanic folktales, and the tales

are those which aim to scare. The darker

they recorded are capricious and often

and more frightening aspects appeal to

cruel. Only when they saw how the tales

our memories of childhood anxiety and

bewitched young readers, did the Grimms,

wonder.

and many writers and editors after them,

Julie Arkell

In the spirit of celebrated illustrator Arthur

and materials into work which will evokes

Rackham’s interpretation of the fairytales,

questions, illuminates curiosity and conjures

Dark Tales takes us on a sensuous journey.

fantastical tales.

Dark Tales was conceived by responding to the many exceptional makers that are

Julie Arkell is one of the country’s best

influenced by story-telling, asking them

recognised contemporary folk artists. She

to respond by delving deeper into the

forms and paints paper-mache bodies,

darker corners of their imagination and a

hand sewing and embroidering clothes

wonderful collection of work has emerged. A

and knitting the accessories. Her deeply

common thread amongst the collection are

personal, paper sculptures are layered,

the enduring use of found objects as a way

stitched and painted and often incorporate

of transforming items with an embedded

found objects to create quietly complex

history into pieces that are able to trigger

narratives. For Dark Tales Julie has examined

memories and emotion. Transformation is a

the perennially mysterious crow: “It all

common theme is fairy stories, stepmothers

began with the crows. I became fascinated

turn into witches, people into animals,

with them about a year ago. I like their dark

these artists transform everyday objects

blackness, the shape of them and their

Amanda and Matt Caines

rather sinister, clever and curious natures.

Amanda’s stitchwork techniques and Matt’s

This led me on to appreciating the colour

interest in the art of maritime scrimshaw and

black. I hardly had any black fabric in the

engraving on shed antler to create a body

studio (or wore it myself) so needed to

of free standing sculptures and hanging

dye an assortment of material to dress

pieces inspired by the anthropomorphic

the crow creatures. I marvelled at all the

nature of fairy tales and folklore. Man’s

different blacks that emerged – ink black,

identification with animals and the taking

brown black, dusty black, sooty black, grey

on of an animal’s properties dates back

black… the list could go on. Black can

from prehistory to contemporary film and

send a shiver down my spine. From an old

literature and underpins many fairy stories

crumpled black frock, black handwriting to

and folklore themes. Modern life has put

Susan Hills ‘a woman in black’…. Black can

distance between us and this powerful and

have dark tales to tell.”

primal imagery and yet we still feel the basic attraction in animal identification. Our new

Amanda and Matt Caines are both successful artists in their own right but often collaborate.

“Our latest work is a collaboration of

work explores this dilemma and conflict.”

Jennifer Collier

Eternally inventive artist Jennifer Collier,

and stitch the glimpses of the text give us a

has been investigating the possibilities of

glimpse of the story.

sculpting with paper for many years. Jennifer’s practice focuses on creating work from paper;

Imaginary tales from the past encapsulated

by bonding, waxing, trapping and stitching

in found and treasured objects spark Kate

and she produces unusual paper ‘fabrics’.

Gilliland’s imagination. Old collections,

The original concept for her work came from

cabinets crammed with an eclectic mix

the novel ‘Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit’

of the weird and the wonderful inspire a

by Jeanette Winterson, and whenever she

great deal of her work. “I try to set my own

needs inspiration she returns to literature or

stories in my pieces and stir the fantastic

poetry. The papers themselves serve as both

to life. Protective cases preserve and record

the inspiration and the media for her work,

found treasures, small dead creatures,

with the narrative of the books and papers

skulls, teeth, bone, act as small reliquaries,

suggesting the forms. For this exhibition

bringing

Jennifer has taken stories of folklore and fairy

illuminating, evoking and asking questions.”

tales, reusing and transforming them into

Kate’s jewellery preserve a little piece

dresses, shoes and gloves with embroidery

of the past for the future, each delicate

atmospheric

stories

to

life,

Kate Gilliland

handcrafted piece sparks your imagination

dimensions of shape-shifters and hybrid

with fantastical tales. A wondrous piece of

animals, courting the dangers of riding bare-

wearable natural history, immortalised in

back and rough-shod alongside the devil

precious metal. Â The treasured animals that

himself. “Fairy tales have become stripped

inspire her jewellery are all found already

of their darker, more menacing message by

dead, by Kate or friends. She encourages

those who deem them too sinister, blood-

you to see the tiny detail and beauty in

thirsty or frightening for little children.

these beautiful little animals. From foraging

Themes such as abandonment, amputation,

in the British woodland to finding these

torture and murder were common in the

beautiful fragments of nature in the urban

original tales and served as a warning

landscape, every animal has their own story

against straying far from the path: the path

which could be a remnant from a fairy tale.

Mother would prefer her child to take.

However, children are curious, adventurous

Virginia Head’s drawings access the wild

and wilful. They seek excitement and yearn

and uncharted depths of the psyche,

to explore the world outside. And so it is

teasing out imagined worlds of demons,

that the child learns about danger, threat,

imps and wayward travellers. We enter other

wrong-doing and its terrible consequences.

Catrin Howell

The moral code of the fairy tale teaches

Animals and the roles they play in mythology

the child patience, endurance, tenacity,

are a constant theme in Catrin Howell’s

perseverance, and courage. She learns about

work. The internationally acclaimed ceramic

true love and the strange guises it may

artist is interested in the universality

appear in. Through metaphor and parable

of myth, narrative and symbolism.

she learns how to recognise opportunities

writes: “I am fascinated by animals and the

to help others less fortunate, to give freely

way they are used to convey narratives.

of her time and skills, to work hard, to serve

From the roles they play in mythology, as

and wait on those who deride or scorn her.

iconic symbols and their ability to trigger

She learns that beauty comes inside - from

memories and emotion...” “I am drawn to

purity of intention, inner strength, versatility

myth because it allows the impossible

and determination. Against all odds good

to happen; challenging perceptions, by

wins out over evil, and the many ‘deaths’ she

playing with assumptions of the real and the

faces are but initiations. Such is the power

supposed.” The Mabinogion continues to

of the fairy tale to educate and enlighten

inspire and this historic narrative combined

that it is easy to understand why adults still

with contemporary stories and folktales

hunger after them, in all their gory detail. “

feed into Howell’s work. A recent collection

She

Anna Collette Hunt

was inspired by Medieval Bestiaries and

natural history collections and specimens.

tapestries. Recurring themes such as

After studying entomology collections she

metamorphosis and transformation, and

was inspired to write a fairy tale in which

the painting of ‘The Vision of St Eustace’

the specimens mysteriously came back to

by Pisanello inform her current work.

life. She then fabricated this story with clay, creating a swarm of ceramic insects.

Anna Collette Hunt uses clay to create vivid

Anna has continued this work allowing the

worlds you can step into. They may be

audience to step into the fable, engaging

universes or they may be mere fragments,

with both the story and the sinister beauty

it depends on how much she chooses

of the work.

to reveal. The scenes and compositions captured speak of historic grandeur and

Anya Keeley is a creator and curator of

past traditions, whilst on closer inspection

curious creatures and whimsical wonders.

whisper darker sentiments delicately into

From a young age, Anya has compulsively

your ear. The curiously odd ceramics radiate

collected found objects and ephemera,

her preoccupation with historic houses for

squirreling them away into jars, tins and

their decoration, opulence, and obsessive

suitcases - driftwood, sheet music, darning

Anya Keeley

mushrooms, oil cans, vintage kitchenalia

and exploring ideas about decorating death

and board games. Enticed by the beauty

or death as decoration. Inspiration has come

of patina, which only comes with age and

from taxidermy, mourning photography and

wear, Anya assembles these pieces into

the relationship of human and animal. Often

whimsical works of art. Inspiration comes

using myths as a starting point her work is

from fairy tales, nursery rhymes and the

about magic and imagination but here she

curiousness of the natural world. Often the

is exploring a much darker theme, a much

creatures she makes are pure figments of

darker aesthetic linked to an investigation

her imagination. She tries to envisage the

into the uncanny. Veiling has become a

oddities that many a Victorian explorer

focus, the model is denied sight, and she is

could have encountered on voyages to

hidden from view. This is the idea of veiling

different lands. These whimsies are then

protecting us from the real.

named and labelled. A museum of her own fantasy.

Inspired by the European tradition of papercutting and silhouettes, particularly

Anna Lewis’s latest work stems from a body

the papercuts of Hans Christian Andersen,

of research into notions of death, beauty

much of Emma Molony’s work starts with

Emma Molony

designs cut with blades and is then

Collecting objects from the obscure to

transferred onto screens so she can

the miniature, found and fabricated, is the

experiment

repeat

starting point for most of Grainne Morton’s

patterns. “These pieces are inspired by

designs. Since she can remember, Grainne

wolves in short stories. I am interested in

Morton has been a bit of a magpie, hoarding

layering various printmaking processes and

incessantly anything miniature or eclectic

combining the detail of lasercutting with

that has caught her eye. These objects

print to create small details which brings

become the narrative form for her jewellery

the viewer closer to the detail and fabric of

and are collaged together by arrangement

the tale. The idea of creating scenes and

and rearrangement until all the objects

stories in baubles came about when I was

connect with each other in order to create

creating some work inspired by The Snow

lively, colourful spontaneous stories. “In

Queen and I liked the possibility of a story

most of my designs I aspire to evoke a

in a snowflake. These baubles are meant to

feeling of nostalgia. I consciously work in

be little imaginary worlds in a globe.”

a miniature scale, using a diverse range of

with

colours

and

materials in order to create attention so that the onlooker has to become more involved

Cleo Mussi

in the piece, hopefully sparking memory and

spiritual feel as if she is creating modern

thought, as well as making them smile.”

day totems, steeped in iconographic symbolism.

There is an inherent sense of humour in Cleo Mussi’s work, even though many of

Sophie

her pieces deal with serious themes – love,

figures explore the fluid space between

death, nature, faith, genetic engineering and

the animal and human worlds that we find

medical research. “My work appears to be

in myths and fairy tales. She is interested

pretty and attractive and banal but there’s

in the blurring of reality and the surreal

something else going on underneath the

in these stories, which reflects the way

surface. When you look a bit deeper you

our minds process imagery, emotions and

see that it is slightly sinister and actually

information. Using a coiling and pinching

quite black”. The narrative within her work

method her uncanny creatures bring to

is reflected within the ceramic that she

mind the dark tales, told to us in childhood

incorporates. Her intuitive use of colour

and nurtured in our subconscious.

gives the appearance of the pieces being studded with jewels and they emanate a

Woodrow’s

delicate

porcelain

Sophie Woodrow

Enchanted forests, duplicitous figures,

and fears through their work and maybe

macabre

question what broody malevolence lurks in

creatures,

talking

and

metamorphous animals have long been

those fairy tale forests.

used as cautionary tales as well as thrilling entertainment for adults and children.

Initially passed on by word of mouth, later the imagination of artists gave flight to these stories in print and created images which are now ingrained into our visual memories.

They depict a darker side to life where mythical beasts and items from imaginary worlds allow the impossible happen. Fear of the dark is probably one of the most common and primal of fears, but can also be a great source of creativity: to imagine what could be out there. The artists in this exhibition look at life’s mysteries, desires,

Sarah James and Louise Jones-Williams

Julie Arkell

Julie Arkell “It all began with the crows. I became fascinated

their walking sticks in a barren landscape.

with them about a year ago. I like their dark

Black can send a shiver down my spine.

blackness, the shape of them and their rather

From an old crumpled black frock, black

sinister, clever and curious natures.

handwriting to Susan Hills ‘a woman in black’... Black can have dark tales to tell.”

This led me on to appreciating the colour black. I hardly had any black fabric in the

Julie Arkell is one of the country’s best

studio (or wore it myself) so needed to dye

recognised contemporary folk artists. After

an assortment of material to dress the crow

studying fashion at St Martin’s, she began

creatures. I marvelled at all the different

selling her work at a stall in Covent Garden

blacks that emerged – ink black, brown

and now shows her wonderful creatures in

black, dusty black, sooty black, grey black...

galleries around the world. Working from

the list could go on. I gaze each day at an

her London studio, she forms and paints

August Sander black and white photograph

their paper-mache bodies, hand sewing and

‘peasants on way to a dance, Westenwald

embroidering their clothes and knitting the

1914’. I have loved this picture for years, now

accessories. Julie regularly holds workshops

I saw them as crows, seriously standing with

both in the UK and abroad.

Amanda and Matt Caines

Amanda and Matt Caines “Our latest work is a collaboration of

Amanda and Matt are both successful

Amanda’s stitchwork techniques and Matt’s

artists in their own right but often

interest in the art of maritime scrimshaw and

collaborate, they have recently relocated

engraving on shed antler to create a body

to Abergavenny. Amanda creates unique

of free standing sculptures and hanging

hand stitched and bound fabric jewellery

pieces inspired by the anthropomorphic

and icons using semi-precious stones,

nature of fairy tales and folklore. Man’s

wood, object d’art and tumbled glass. From

identification with animals and the taking

childhood she has always been a magpie,

on of an animal’s properties dates back

collecting anything that captured her eye

from prehistory to contemporary film and

or imagination. Through her jewellery she

literature and underpins many fairy stories

explores the realms of archeology, collecting

and folklore themes. Modern life has put

and recycling. In November 2010 Amanda

distance between us and this powerful and

won the ‘New Traditional Jewellery’ Award at

primal imagery and yet we still feel the basic

Sieraad, the International Jewellery Art Fair

attraction in animal identification. Our new

held in Amsterdam.

work explores this dilemma and conflict.”

Amanda and Matt Caines Matt is a sculptor working in marble, red soapstone, oak, flint, antler and slate, seeking something timeless and solid in his work, giving you a link to an unending stream of human expression. Recent work includes creating a plaque and workshops at the Museum of London based on Roman artifacts and at the Sir John Soane Museum; and the restoration of Sam Wanamaker’s stone at the Globe Theatre. He has over a decade’s experience in teaching and has worked in Carrara, Italy and Greece and recently Arctic Canada.

Amanda and Matt Caines

Jennifer Collier

Jennifer Collier Jennifer’s practice focuses on creating work

forms. For this exhibition Jennifer has taken

from paper; by bonding, waxing, trapping

stories of folklore and fairy tales, reusing

and

unusual

and transforming them into dresses, shoes

paper ‘fabrics’ which are used to explore

and gloves with embroidery and stitch the

the ‘remaking’ of clothes and household

glimpses of the text give us a glimpse of the

objects. The papers are treated as if cloth,

story.

stitching

she

produces

with the main technique employed being stitch; a contemporary twist on traditional

Working from her studio in Stafford, Jennifer

textiles. The original concept for her work

also runs her own gallery, Unit Twelve,

came from the novel ‘Oranges Are Not

housing artist’s studios, contemporary craft

the Only Fruit’ by Jeanette Winterson,

exhibitions and art workshops. Jennifer

which she used as the basis for her degree

has exhibited widely and been running art

show. Whenever she needs inspiration she

workshop for 15 years including at many

returns to literature or poetry. The papers

galleries such as The V&A, Tate Liverpool

themselves serve as both the inspiration and

and Manchester Art Gallery.

the media for her work, with the narrative of the books and papers suggesting the

Kate Gilliland

Kate Gilliland Imaginary tales from the past encapsulated

treasured animals that inspire her jewellery

in found and treasured objects spark Kate’s

are all found already dead, by Kate or friends.

imagination.

cabinets

She encourages you to see the tiny detail

crammed with an eclectic mix of the weird

and beauty in these beautiful little animals.

and the wonderful inspire a great deal of

From foraging in the British woodland to

her work. “I try to set my own stories in my

finding these beautiful fragments of nature

pieces and stir the fantastic to life. Protective

in the urban landscape, every animal has

cases preserve and record found treasures,

their own story which could be a remnant

small dead creatures, skulls, teeth, bone, act

from a fairy tale.

Old

collections,

as small reliquaries, bringing atmospheric stories to life, illuminating, evoking and

She has exhibited at The National Centre

asking questions.” Kate’s jewellery designs

for Craft and Design, Unit Twelve and RBSA

preserve a little piece of the past for the

Gallery, Birmingham. She works from a shared

future, each delicate handcrafted piece

workshop, in Birmingham’s historic jewellery

sparks your imagination with fantastical

quarter and helped form the Quarter Studios

tales. A wondrous piece of wearable natural

Collective in 2011.

history, immortalised in precious metal. The

Virginia Head

Virginia Head Virginia’s drawings access the wild and

prefer her child to take. However, children

uncharted depths of the psyche, teasing

are curious, adventurous and wilful. They

out imagined worlds of demons, imps

seek excitement and yearn to explore the

and wayward travellers. We enter other

world outside. And so it is that the child

dimensions of shape-shifters and hybrid

learns about danger, threat, wrong-doing

animals, courting the dangers of riding

and its terrible consequences. The moral

bare-back and rough-shod alongside the

code of the fairy tale teaches the child

devil himself.

patience, endurance, tenacity, perseverance, and courage. She learns about true love and

Fairy tales have become stripped of their

the strange guises it may appear in.

darker, more menacing message by those who deem them too sinister, blood-thirsty or

Through metaphor and parable she learns

frightening for little children. Themes such

how to recognise opportunities to help

as abandonment, amputation, torture and

others less fortunate, to give freely of her

murder were common in the original tales

time and skills, to work hard, to serve and

and served as a warning against straying

wait on those who deride or scorn her. She

far from the path: the path Mother would

learns that beauty comes inside - from purity

Virginia Head of intention, inner strength, versatility and determination. Against all odds good wins out over evil, and the many ‘deaths’ she faces are but initiations. Such is the power of the fairy tale to educate and enlighten that it is easy to understand why adults still hunger after them, in all their gory detail.

Virginia Head

Catrin Howell

Catrin Howell Animals and the roles they play in mythology

Recurring themes such as metamorphosis

are a constant theme in Catrin’s work. She

and transformation, and the painting of ‘The

is interested in the universality of myth,

Vision of St Eustace’ by Pisanello inform my

narrative and symbolism. She is drawn to

current work.

myth because it allows the impossible to happen; challenging our perceptions by

Born and brought up on a farm in west Wales

playing with assumptions of the real and the

it seems natural that animals should provide

supposed. She is fascinated by animals and

inspiration for Catrin’s work. Her work is

the way they are used to convey narratives,

in collections across Europe and the UK,

from the roles they play in mythology, as

including Prague’s Museum of Decorative

iconic symbols, and their ability to convey

Arts, and the International Ceramics

messages, often carrying out complex roles.

Studio Collection in Kecskemet, Hungary.

The Mabinogion continues to inspire Catrin

Having graduated from the University of

, and this historic narrative combined with

Wolverhampton and later the Royal College

contemporary stories and folktales feed

of Art in London, Catrin has also won many

into her work. Recent work is inspired

awards.

by Medieval Bestiaries and tapestries.

Anna Collette Hunt

Anna Collette Hunt Anna uses clay to create vivid worlds you

After studying entomology collections she

can step into. They may be universes or

was inspired to write a fairy tale in which

they may be mere fragments, it depends

the specimens mysteriously came back to

on how much she chooses to reveal. The

life. She then fabricated this story with

scenes and compositions captured speak

clay, creating a swarm of of ceramic insects.

of historic grandeur and past traditions,

Anna has continued this work allowing the

whilst

whisper

audience to step into the fable, engaging

darker sentiments delicately into your ear.

with both the story and the sinister beauty

The curiously odd ceramics radiate her

of the work.

on

closer

inspection

preoccupation with historic houses for their decoration, opulence, and obsessive

Anna Collette Hunt is a based in

natural history collections and specimens.

Nottingham and specialising in ceramics

Drawings of these elements are playfully

and illustration. She has also created large

translated onto the clay, exerting a rich and

scale installations, her first was ‘Stirring the

captivating presence that delights, intrigues

Swarm’ which was unveiled at Nottingham

and is sometimes haunting to the eye.

Castle. Anna graduated from Nottingham Trent University, in 2010 received a grant

Anna Collette Hunt from the Craft Pottery Charitable Trust. The ‘Stirring the Swarm’ project is still evolving and she was awarded a digital commission

by Craftspace, to produce an IPhone App to extend and enhance the experience of Stirring the Swarm.

Anna Collette Hunt

Anya Keeley

Anya Keeley Anya is a creator and curator of curious

explorer could have encountered on voyages

creatures & whimsical wonders. From a

to different lands. These whimsies are then

young age, Anya has compulsively collected

named and labelled. A museum of her own

found objects and ephemera, squirreling

fantasy.

them away into jars, tins and suitcases - driftwood, sheet music and ephemera,

Anya uses an array of processes in her work

darning mushrooms, oil cans, vintage

because of the variety of mediums she

kitchenalia and board games. Enticed by

incorporates; however, wire-working is a

the beauty of patina, which only comes with

common feature. She uses brass wire, shaped,

age and wear, Anya assembles these pieces

soldered and hammered, to form the basis

into whimsical works of art.

of her dioramas and brush sculptures. The final stage of each piece consists of using a

Inspiration comes from fairy tales, nursery

water based varnish to seal and protect any

rhymes and the curiousness of the natural

vintage paper and ephemera

world. Often the creatures she makes are pure figments of her imagination. She tries to

Anya is based in Hereford and exhibits

envisage the oddities that many a Victorian

widely across Britain.

Anna Lewis

Anna Lewis Anna’s latest work stems from a body of

Anna Lewis is a jewellery designer based in

research into notions of death and beauty

Swansea. Previously her work explored ideas

through the vehicle of a fashion object.

of memory, of storytelling and fantasy. She

Exploring ideas about decorating death or

has worked in a range of mediums such as

death as decoration. Inspiration has come

printed feathers, leather and wood combined

from thoughts on taxidermy, on mourning

with silver and stones. She has worked

photography and the relationship of

across many disciplines from installation

human and animal. Often using myths as

to art direction and production design for

a starting point her work is about magic

fashion photography and music videos.

and imagination but here she is exploring a

Having just completed an MA Anna’s work is

much darker theme, a much darker aesthetic

now exploring a much darker aesthetic with

linked to an investigation into the uncanny.

uncanny undertones interpreted through

Veiling has become a focus, the model is

fashion objects and photography.

denied sight, and she is hidden from view.

This is the idea of veiling protecting us from the real.

Emma Molony

Emma Molony Inspired by the European tradition of

the tale. The idea of creating scenes and

papercutting and silhouettes, particularly

stories in baubles came about when I was

the papercuts of Hans Christian Andersen,

creating some work inspired by The Snow

much of Emma’s work starts with designs

Queen and I liked the possibility of a story

cut with blades and is then transferred onto

in a snowflake. These baubles are meant to

screens so she can experiment with colours

be little imaginary worlds in a globe.”

and repeat patterns. “I don’t want to stray too far from the tactile process of sticky

Emma started printmaking in 2002 when

black ink, damp paper and rolling plates

she was living in Venice and was fascinated

through the etching press though, because

by the dark inky print studios. She learnt

that’s where the unpredictable printing

etching,

magic takes place. These pieces are inspired

Stamperia Albrizzi and Stamperia del

by wolves in short stories. I am interested in

Tintoretto. She returned to Devon in 2005

layering various printmaking processes and

and is now one of the directors of Double

combining the detail of lasercutting with

Elephant Print Workshop in Exeter. She also

print to create small details which brings

teaches printmaking using a portable press

the viewer closer to the detail and fabric of

and mobile workshop – taking printmaking

mezzotint,

and

woodcut

at

Emma Molony out to the wider community at galleries, schools, hospitals, prisons and community centres. She designs and sells screenprinted wallpaper and prints as well as undertaking a range of site-specific commissions throughout the UK.

Emma Molony

Grainne Morton

Grainne Morton Collecting objects from the obscure to

in the piece, hopefully sparking memory and

the miniature, found and fabricated, is the

thought, as well as making them smile.”

starting point for most of Grainne Morton’s designs. Since she can remember Grainne

Born and brought up in Northern Ireland,

has been a bit of a magpie, hoarding

Grainne moved to Edinburgh to attend

incessantly anything miniature or eclectic

Edinburgh College of Art. It was during

that has caught her eye. These objects

this time that she became an avid collector

become the narrative form for her jewellery

of vintage and antique ephemera. After

and are collaged together by arrangement

graduating, Grainne set up in business and

and rearrangement until all the objects

received a Startup Grant from The Scottish

connect with each other in order to create

Arts Council. Her work has been exhibited

lively, colourful spontaneous stories. “In

internationally, featured widely in the press

most of my designs I aspire to evoke a

and more recently, in various blogs. She

feeling of nostalgia. I consciously work in

supplies Barney’s in the US and Japan as well as

a miniature scale, using a diverse range of

Liberty’s in the UK. Grainne has also received

materials in order to create attention so that

many awards, including being short listed for

the onlooker has to become more involved

the Jerwood Applied Arts Prize - Jewellery.

Cleo Mussi

Cleo Mussi There is an inherent sense of humour in

aspirations and desire for ornamentation

Cleo Mussi’s work, even though many of

across the classes. The work holds cross

her pieces deal with serious themes – love,

cultural references in fashionable design

death, nature, faith, even medical research.

, travel and commerce and represents the

“My work appears to be pretty and

story of industrial ceramic history. Chinese

attractive and banal but there’s something

ceramic meets Wedgewood, Poole sits next

else going on underneath the surface.

to Japanese porcelain and Staffordshire

When you look a bit deeper you see that it

unites with Homebase to form a unique and

is slightly sinister and actually quite black”.

motley collection of work.

The narrative within her work is reflected within the ceramic that she incorporates.

Cleo

originally

studied

textiles

at

She recycles a large proportion of her

Goldsmiths and her interest in recycled

materials; the combinations of marks

fabrics, knowledge of pattern, print, weave

and glazes as well as functional forms

and stitch translates easily into reclaimed

are combined to produce works whose

ceramic. Based in Stroud, she scours junk

content reflect design styles and fashions

shops for broken china and buys seconds

within British ceramic history incorporating

from ceramicist Emma Bridgewater. Cleo

Cleo Mussi Mussi has produced large scale installations such as ‘The Crowd’, ‘A~Z- a hand book’ and ‘Pharma’s Market’. She has also completed a number of large commissions for public spaces including The John Lewis Partnership in Solihull and The BBC Asian Network in Leicester.

Cleo Mussi

Sophie Woodrow

Sophie Woodrow Sophie Woodrow’s delicate porcelain figures

the uniquely intricate technique of coiling,

explore the fluid space between the animal

incising and impressing that we see on

and human worlds that we find in myths and

her delicately textured figurines today.

fairy tales. She is interested in the blurring

Woodrow’s unusually striking porcelain

of reality and the surreal in these stories,

figures have been collected by devoted

which reflects the way our minds process

patrons for over ten years, with work on

imagery, emotions and information. Using a

display in numerous high-profile galleries

coiling and pinching method her uncanny

throughout the UK. Inspired by the Victorian

creatures bring to mind the dark tales, told

era and their idolisation of nature as art,

to us in childhood and nurtured in our

Sophie has put her own spin on the theories

subconscious.

of evolution with her unique collection. She also stocks an exclusive range at Heal’s.

Born in Bristol in 1979, Sophie Woodrow went on to study a BA Hons in Studio Ceramics at Falmouth College of Art. Ever since an early age Sophie has been drawn to working with clay, allowing her to refine

Grainne Morton

‘Dark Tales’ A Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre Touring Exhibition.

We would like to thank all the makers who have allowed us to exhibit their work in ‘Dark Tales’.

Exhibition Curators: Sarah James and Louise Jones-Williams Translation: Heddwen Pugh Edwards Design: Hillview Design Published by Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre. Text ©The Authors and LGAC 2014 Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre St.David’s Road Cwmbran Torfaen NP44 1PD T: +44(0)1633 483321 E: info@lgac.org.uk W: www.lgac.org.uk Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre is part of the Arts Council of Wales portfolio of Revenue Funded Organisations.

Registered Charity no: 1006933 Company Limited by Guarantee no: 2616241 Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre is funded by the Arts Council of Wales, Torfaen County Borough Council and Monmouthshire County Council.

This publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form without written permission from the publisher.

Back Cover: Anna Lewis