Cover Photograph: Simon Reilly, still from Mind’s Eye, 2006. Hi Definition, Video transfer to DVD. Butler Gallery Collection
No answers, just discovery. An Artist’s Handbook. Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership, Carrigeens, Ballinful, Co. Sligo. t: 00353 71 91 24945 • e:info@kidsown.ie • w:www.kidsown.ie • ISBN:9781902432724
1
Foreword This publication What is Art? is made by children, for children, their families & friends, and it celebrates 10 years of the Solas Family Programme at the Butler Gallery. Throughout 2010 the Butler Gallery, in collaboration with Kids’ Own Publishing Partnership, ran a series of workshops at the gallery. The purpose of these workshops was for children to respond to the art exhibited in the gallery. These workshops were led by Kids’ Own artist & director Orla Kenny and writer Mary Branley who were supported by visual artist, Vanya Lambrecht Ward, Solas artist educators Jean Conroy, Jenny Dunne and education curator Jean Tormey. The group interviewed artists Aideen Barry, George Vaughan, Jackie Nickerson, and Declan Rooney about their work, their ideas, and about what it is that makes them artists.
In 2010 our Solas children had the fabulous opportunity to work closely with four very distinctive artists making very different individual work. This group of children, made up of long-standing Solas participants, were given the chance to ask tough questions of the artists; questions they always wanted to ask but couldn’t up until now. They were rewarded with honesty from the artists, who were willing to share, reveal and exchange. The results of these conversations and workshops are illustrated in this book, and will hopefully help you to navigate your way through visits to galleries and museums in the future. One of the questions the Solas children asked was how artists end up showing their work at the Butler Gallery, and what we are about as an organisation. The Butler Gallery has a Permanent Collection and has been showing the work of all kinds of artists since 1943. As the Director and Chief Curator of the gallery, one part of my job is to choose the artists to exhibit, and then organise the exhibitions. I also work with a Programme Committee, made up of people from our Board and invited guests, to review applications made by artists who would like to exhibit with us. We exhibit artists at different stages of their careers and provide a supportive place to show their work and share new ideas.
So, what is art? This is a big question with lots of answers. For me, art is the imagination coming to life. Art is passionate stuff, and artists are passionate people who react and respond, each in their unique way, to the life around us all. In a visual artist’s life this can mean following a natural impulse to make a mark on paper or canvas, shape something out of nothing, develop an idea, and ultimately In answering the question on how the Butler Gallery works, I needed look communicate with an audience. no further than the artists involved in 2
the workshops: Aideen Barry, George Vaughan, Jackie Nickerson and Declan Rooney. These four artists were given the freedom to present a new body of work especially for the gallery, and to use the four gallery spaces as they wished. The gallery can be changed to suit each artist. We can paint the walls different colours, put up walls, or even in the case of Declan Rooney we enabled him to invite a group of young skateboarders into the gallery as part of a performance art event. We are very democratic and want to give the public exhibitions that reflect the constantly changing nature of visual art practice and the range of media used in the making of contemporary work. The Butler Gallery has continually sought to be a platform for presenting the best of Irish art today, along with demonstrating a strong commitment to presenting work by artists of international repute. With that philosophy as our backbone, we aim to stimulate, inspire and challenge our audience.
committed to the Solas Programme over these 10 years and have played a huge part in the development of Solas children into sophisticated art aficionados. I want to thank Orla Kenny and Mary Branley of Kids’ Own for a wonderful partnership and for the talent and skill they have displayed in putting this book together. Thanks also to Jean Tormey, our tremendous Education Curator, who initiated and managed this project from the beginning. Also, grateful thanks are extended to the funders who made this book possible. They are taxback.com, Leader Rural Funds, Kilkenny County Council Arts Office & Libraries, Kilkenny Education Centre and the many funders who supported us through the crowd funding website, Fund:It.
We hope you will enjoy this book and that it will give you the confidence and encouragement to ask all the questions you have ever wanted to ask about art and artists. There is no better starting point than experiencing art as a child or I want to thank all the children involved viewing art with the eyes of a child, and in the making of this book – David Colli- then seeing what questions unfold. son, Jesse Dunne, Ferdia Manning, Alan Mooney, Clara Mooney, Niamh Phelan, Anna O’Sullivan, Director, Butler Gallery. Clodagh Read, Jamie Reid, Niall Reid, Feidhlim Ryan, Donna Walsh, Maggie Welland and Roisin Welland. I salute our fabulous artist educators Jean Conroy and Jenny Dunne. They have been greatly
To view video from Declan Rooney’s performance piece with skateboarders from the exhibition Happenings And NonEvents point your QRT enabled mobile device at this target or visit http://vimeo.com/28359509. 3
4
What is Art?.. 6 Perception. .9 Response.. 10 Media.. 24 Materials.. 26 technique.. 28 Inspiration. .34 Questions.. 42 How we made this book.. 48 Glossary.. 50 About us.. 52 About you.. 54
This book is about art and what we think about it. A dozen of us have compiled this journal over a year. We interviewed four artists who exhibited their work in the Butler Gallery in Kilkenny Castle. They explained to us their views on art. Afterwards we discussed what we thought about their exhibitions and what was going in this book. The reason this book is in the form of a journal is for you to have your own experience. We encourage you to go to all kinds of exhibitions, no matter what age you are, and ask yourself, WHAT IS ART? There are so many meanings, you too can have your own idea. We are not trying to be funny but if you have more questions than answers you are on the right track. We have left space for you to draw, write, doodle and colour. We have added links for you to watch the interviews and see some of the actual work created by the artists we spoke to.
Introduction All
Declan Rooney explains the meaning behind his work during an artist interview we held in 2010 at the Butler Gallery and children respond to Aideen Barry’s work. All the films in this book can be found on www.vimeo.com/whatisart.
5
What is Art?..
We asked everyone ‘what is art?’ and we got loads of answers. We looked in an online dictionary. It said ‘Art is the imaginative skill as applied to representations of the natural world or figments of the imagination.’ Jackie Nickerson said ‘Art isn’t something you put in a frame, there are no rules, you can do what ever you like.’ Clara said ‘Art is colourful and different’. Jamie said ‘Art is bright’. Aideen Barry said ‘Art is about communication.’ Declan Rooney said ‘Art is about transformation, changing objects into something else, giving a different impression’. In fact everyone we asked had something different to say. That’s confusing. In everyone’s mind art is different. Art isn’t just drawing, it’s sculpture and video, performance, photography, painting, sketching. Art can be made in all different ways. In making this book we looked at loads of paintings, sculptures, drawings, videos, photographs and models. We interviewed four different artists about their work and we asked them lots of questions like why do people
6
Declan Rooney said art is the way you mirror the world.
Performance artist Declan Rooney talks to the group during his exhibition – Happenings And NonEvents.
intro
become artists? Jackie Nickerson said, ‘I don’t think it’s a decision, I just kind of know it, but I don’t know how.’ George Vaughan started painting in hospital because he had TB and was in for fourteen months.‘The painting started then even if it messed up the sheets.’ What is creativity? Being yourself, not following the crowd, doing something new, being original. Do we need art in the world? Of course we do. You couldn’t have a good story without art, art is part of our lives. Aideen Barry said ‘I like doodling a lot, I think that’s actually my favourite part, drawing. At least I’m not hurting myself by doing the drawing, like jumping on the same spot for seven days’ (Aideen made a video of herself doing housework, but it looked like she was levitating). Some artists have names on their work, others do not. Sometimes art can have a message and want us to think about an issue, like the planet, or the past.
So what is art in your mind? It’s a big question and we haven’t all the answers, so you’ll have to try and find out for yourself. But we hope our book will help.
To view Aideen Barry’s performative film, Levitating, (2 minute looped video with sound), point your QRT enabled mobile device at this target or visit http://vimeo.com/28358668.
7
What is Art?
What is it made from?
What does it mean?
8
Perception Perception is a big word, but what it means is how we use our eyes, ears, smell, touch and taste to learn about something. In this book we are talking about art, so we didn’t taste or touch the pictures, we just looked at them and not all of us saw the same because we think differently. We are different ages, and have different experiences. There isn’t a right or wrong way to look...
9
In one of the exhibitions there was a huge life-size photograph of a girl in her wedding dress in the Gulf of Oman. Her hands were decorated in henna paint in the traditional way. A group of us girls connected with the photograph and sat on the ground for ages and talked about our feelings and thoughts, wondering if the girl in the photo was happy or sad. We couldn’t tell. We shared our memories of being sad and crying sometimes for no reason. It’s another way of thinking about art, that we are touched and deeply moved by it. We had a great experience.
Our Response Spending time with Jackie Nickerson’s photos and we took our own photos Jackie Nickerson, Untitled, Digital C print,Digital 2001, C92print, x 72 92 inches, Print too. Jackie Nickerson, Untitled, x 72 Unique inches, 2001, © Jackie Nickerson © Jackie Nickerson. 10
Donna Walsh’s response to Jackie Nickerson’s work, 8.3 x 11.7 inches, Pencil Drawing on Paper © Donna Walsh. Donna Walsh’s response to Jackie Nickerson’s work To view our interview with Jackie Nickerson, point your QRT enabled mobile device at this target or visit http://vimeo.com/28358668.
11
12
Jackie Nickerson, Untitled, Digital C print, 44 x 60 inches, Edition 1/3, 2001 Š Jackie Nickerson. Now in the Butler Gallery Collection.
When Jackie Nickerson showed her work at the gallery we each picked one piece we liked and drew our own response to it. We all read the work differently. We all had a different perspective on the work.
Roísín Welland’s response to Jackie Nickerson’s work. 8.3 x 11.7 inches, Pencil Drawing on Paper © Roísín Welland.
13
14
Jackie Nickerson, Untitled, Digital C print, 92 x 72 inches, 2001, Š Jackie Nickerson.
Niamh Phelan’s response to Jackie Nickerson’s work, 8.3 x 11.7 inches, Coloured Pencil Drawing on Paper © Niamh Phelan.
15
16
Jackie Nickerson, Untitled, Digital C print, 92 x 72 inches, 2001 Š Jackie Nickerson.
Maggie Welland’s response to Jackie Nickerson’s Work, 8.3 x 11.7 inches, Chalk Pastel on Paper, ©Maggie Welland.
17
If you wish to continue your search for the true meaning of art turn to page 24 18
Question
he Jamie likes art as much as the likes hurling -but what is d difference between art an sport?
Simon Reilly’s work came up a lot when we discussed our favourite exhibition at the Butler Gallery. Simon Reilly, Mind’s Eye, Hi Definition, Video transfer to DVD, 2-channel audio, 6.30 minutes Edition 1/3, 2006. Butler Gallery Collection.
Young artists respond to Simon Reilly’s work as part of the Solas exhibition in 2006. To view Minds’ Eye, point your mobile device at this target or visit http://vimeo.com/28357748
19
Aideen Barry often makes drawings that are part human/ part machine, like this one. We made our own Aideen Barry creatures and she made a new one for us!
Aideen Barry, Hoover Hoover, Pen and Ink on Paper, 28 x 24cm, 2010. Š Aideen Barry. 20
Young artist, Beth Fogarty attended Aideen Barry’s interview. This is her response to Aideen’s work – some ‘future humans’ of her own! To view our interview with Aideen Barry, point your mobile device at the target or visit http://vimeo.com/28356184
21
e s on p es R r You A free space for you to draw your own future humans or a response to an exhibition.
22
23
to continue your search for the true meaning of art turn to page 46 24
Media
Fashion Painting Land Art Photography ic s u M Movement Textiles Print Light Street Art nd ou S Digital M Dance ed i g a in h is l b u Drawing P Installation Sculpture Performance Mixed Media For this book, we looked at lots of different artists who use lots of different media, highlighting the variety and unlimited combinations and possibilities for expressing yourself. Art isn’t just drawing, it’s sculpture video, performance, photography, painting. Art can be made in all different ways. Making art is a combination of inspiration, media, materials and technique.
Film
We discovered that artists don’t always make their work with their own hands. Some artists use ‘found objects’ that they find when going about their day-to-day business and use in their art. These can also be called ‘ready-made’ objects. Others work with a team of people to make their work with them, and in Aideen Barry’s case, the artist asked engineers from Cork to make the objects made of aluminium, brass and steel that made up her ‘Mine Field’ installation (see illustration). It doesn’t matter that the artist didn’t make them – what matters is that Aideen had the idea to make the work and decided on the final structure and placement of it.
Aideen Barry, Mine Field, Aluminium, Brass, Steel, Dimensions variable, 2009. © Aideen Barry. Some of our own drawings of the mines. 25
s l a i er Mat
Fabric Found object Pastels Stone Metal Ink
Materials can be a source of inspiration, materials can be the starting point for a piece of work. You can use anything. When picking your materials there are things to think about, like how long they last and does the material help you say what you want to say. There are lots of materials you can use...
Wood
Glitter a r me A C le p o Pe Beads Pencil canvas wire Charcoal Oil Paint Watercolor BRONZE Lead Lino Acrylic Paint Tape sand Ice Cubes Clay
26
Dorothy Cross, Skate, Bronze, Wire and Various Metals, Dimensions variable, c.1990, Š Dorothy Cross. Butler Gallery Collection. Some installation shots of work that we enjoyed at the Butler Gallery...
wood
Nature electricity
paper
Skateboard
David Beattie, Cloudmaker, Electric Hob, Water Container, Wood, Electrical Cable, 220 x 120 x 120 cm, 2009. © David Beattie. Images different performances Declan Rooney at the Butler Gallery Declan of Rooney, Performance One,byJune 12, 2010. in 2010 as part of his exhibition – ‘Happenings and non-Events’. (Participants: Urban Sports Kilkenny).
27
technique
cutting smudging construction etching animation drawing projection Dripping portraiture collage scratching Cross hatching and lots more. . .
What we look at in galleries is a lot to do with an artist’s technique and their way of using the materials they choose to work with. Sometimes they choose to experiment with the materials they are using. In Solas workshops, we use lots of different techniques that are often used by artists themselves in their work. Gallery Collections of modern and contemporary art can be a good inspiration for techniques to try at home. For example, cross-hatching can be seen in this lithograph of a horse by Stephen Lawlor called Sacromoso from 1989, and Barrie Cooke uses water to dilute the ink in his Elk print from 1980. We looked at these works at the very beginning of the process when we were thinking of ideas to include in the book.
Question
Why did the Artist use this technique? Sometimes the background says more than the main painting. Does the blurred background above represent motion?
28
Barry Cooke, Elk, Lithograph, 59 x 52 cm, 1980. Stephen Lawlor, ‘Sacramoso’, Lithograph, 48 x 64 cm, 1989. Both from Butler Gallery Collection.
How you use the material is the technique. Technique is different methods of doing something. Being very loose or very specific can lead to different results. Different tools and strange uses of materials can make for unusual pictures. Artists often develop their own techniques to express their individual aesthetic. The performance artist Declan Rooney uses his body as the medium. The sets that Declan uses look a bit like a stage and look very minimal. We found his technique curious and mysterious. Filming the performance was a big part of his technique and he included films of his performances in the exhibition space.
Declan Rooney, Performance Two, June 26th, 2010. Declan Rooney, Performance Three, July 10th, 2010; participants from KCAT’s Equinox Theatre Company. Declan Rooney in conversation with us.
29
30
Colour Colour can be contrasting or similar, and there are endless shades. Colour can symbolise a place, a thing or a culture such as a country flag. For example the blue of the sea or the yellow, oranges and reds that George Vaughan associates with Spain. Colour can set the mood and through different combinations can create lots of different effects and new colour, like different ingredients in a curry.
b.t.w.
a n Barry had Artist Aidee after her. d e m a n r u lo co lions and There are mil olours. millions of c 31
MAke your own colours inspired by the materials around you. .
32
33
Inspiration
Everything can be inspiring; abstract things (something crazy that you get a different thing from every time you look at it), nature, weather, seasons, the world, wrappers, housework, dreams, thoughts, music videos. We asked the artists where they got their inspiration from, they all had different answers. Aideen Barry gets some of her titles for her work from books, like Dr Frankenstein. Inspiration can hit artists at any time – Aideen Barry had gathered lots of different inspiration from different places.
34
Question
What is inspiration and how do we get it?
To view our interview with Aideen Barry, point your QRT enabled mobile device at this target or visit http://vimeo.com/28356534. Another future human by Clara Mooney inspired by Aideen Barry.
SPACE Doctor Who
obsession Environment
5th Class Teacher
mutation Lewis Carroll
Arthur C Clarke House-work 35
Declan Rooney gets his inspiration from all over. He is inspired by people and their behaviour. Declan observes and distills elements from the everyday. As an artist, Declan transforms the everyday, representing the world through lots of different types of media.
what is going on in your life? 36
Visiting Declan Rooney’s exhibition was like walking into a crime scene – we had loads of questions about the shapes on the wall.
Declan Rooney creates work that involves audience participation. His genre of work is called performance art. One of the main features of performance art is that it is live in front of an audience. Performance art is all about the communication between the performer and the public...
‘Inspiration is.. taking Action’ Declan Rooney, Performance Two, June 26th, 2010. Declan Rooney, Perforance Three, July 10th, 2010.
37
Joke
Why did the artist stand in the middle of the road? To get hit with
Inspiratio n 38
Niall and Jamie Reid’s response to George Vaughan’s work and an example of how an artist gets ideas for their work from their memory of places. To view our interview with George Vaughan point your mobile device at the target or visit http://www.vimeo.com/album/1681544
Thinking about the past, present or future can spark your creativity. George said he got his ideas from places, visiting places, memory of places. ‘Very often I get an idea for the next painting from the one I’m working on’.
‘There is thinking.. and then there is inspiration!’ George Vaughan, Gigue, Oil on board, 122 x 122 cm, 2009 George Vaughan, Oilcm,on2009 board, 122 x 122 cm, 2009. George Vaughan, Embers II, Prospero’s Oil on board,Cell 122 x, 122 George Vaughan, Embers II, Oil on board, 122 x 122 cm, 2009.
39
Who and what inspires you?
40
Why Do it?
41
Questions This book starts and ends with questions and doesn’t always answer them. Coming up with the content of the book involved asking ourselves questions about the work and asking Aideen, George, Jackie and Declan about their work and their experiences as artists. Now it’s time for us to give you some questions to bring with you to galleries and museums… they help you learn more about artists’ ideas, thoughts and choices. Here are the top questions we think you can ask. • • • • • • • • • • •
42
What are you looking at? What is your first impression? What materials is it made from and how was it made? Why did the artists choose these materials? Is there a story or a message in the art work? Is it abstract? What culture is this art from? Where is the artist from? What is the artist inspired by? How does this work make you feel? Who is the art for?
? rt A be g in th y an can
Sometimes you have to act like a detective in a gallery or museum. This is what we did in Declan Rooney’s exhibition – what had happened in the gallery during the performance and why?!
43
Question
Why did Jackie photograph these girls? Why are they in a gallery?
44
Our Response to Jackie Nickerson’s work. To view our interview with Jackie Nickerson point your mobile device at the target or visit http://www.vimeo.com/album/1681538.
What l do I s anguage peak?
I spea k and S Visual panis h.
Question
u think Does it matter if yo to what something different the artist means?
George Vaughan, Temple of Artemis, Oil and mixed media on board, 122 x 122 cm, 2009. Jackie interviewed by the 122 group in 2010 during GeorgeNickerson Vaughan, being Embers I, Oil on board, x 122 cm 2009. her exhibition at the Gallery – ‘Gulf’ © George Vaughan
45
There is no one answer you have to fnd out for yourself!
? s on ti es u Q Your
To view more information about the four artists we interviewed please visit their websites. 46
Ho wit w do h p I sa ain y th t? at
g oin t? d e n e w nme er r a o aft at vir Wh ur en oking o s? o to we l selve e Ar our e e th k? v l vo or I in my w o w d in Ho ience aud
Jus t is b beca it is roken suse s not doe ome bea s no thin uti ful t mea g . n
Aideen Barry http://www.aideenbarry.com/ Declan Rooney http://www.declanrooney.com/ Jackie Nickerson http://www.jackienickerson.com/ George Vaughan, Interview, http://www.vimeo.com/album/1681544
47
How we book
made this
happ going to s a w t a h ning w the begin t. in w o n k u We didn’t as going to be abo w k this boo
er Ga at the Butl s n io it ib h four ex We viewed
48
llery.
at en or wh
de n hand ma w o r u o in ibition to each exh e s n o sp re r own gs. We had ou ugh drawin ro th d n a ls journa
e ibiting at th
s exh e four artist th f o h c a e wed We intervie ry in 2010. Butler Galle
s to put in ifferent idea
d We selected
the book.
s and rent image e iff d g in tt it. fully, by cu to go with e t r x a c te n e o th ti c d wrote ed each se rawings, an d We design r u o h it out w laying them
To view how we made this book, point your mobile device at the target or visit http://www.vimeo.com/album/1681544 49
(Glossary)
Big Words about Art
Contrast; the difference between things or people. Exhibition; a display of art or things to the public. Journal; a diary based on one’s self. Communication; how we transfer ideas and information. Transformation; how you change one thing into something else. Impression; how we are affected by an idea or a thing, like art. Original; the first one of something new. Issue; subject that art can be based on. Experience; something good or bad that you went through that you’ll remember. Response; a reply, a reaction, or an answer to something. Life-size; something the size it really would be in life. Installation; a work of more than one piece of art, that is installed with instructions from the artist. Ephemeral; lasting a short time. Culture; the different ways people live. 50
Turquoise; bright blue with a hint of green and grey.
Crimson; a red winey colour. Aesthetic; the study of beauty, everyone has their own idea. (Not to be confused with an anaesthetic, the injection you get to put you to sleep before you have an operation!) Palette; a range of colours. Technique; a way of doing something (in art there are many ways of doing things like performance, sculpture and drawing). Perspective; showing a 3D object on a flat surface or the way you see something. Perception; how you use your senses to become aware (your response). Interpretation; to explain or translate in your own way. Abstract; doesn’t look like an object you recognise immediately. Not from the real world. Conceptual; about an idea or mental picture. Composition; the way objects are arranged in a picture or a space. Narrative; the telling of a story. Materials; the things you use to make art. Inspiration; where ideas come from. Media; a means of communicating ideas and information. Method; a way of doing something. Genre; class or category of art. Lithograph; the process of making a print on a flat, specially prepared stone.
51
About us
52
Ferdia Manning age 11 from Kilkenny, five years Solas veteran, likes cars. He is a writer and artist in his spare time. Clara Mooney age 11 from Kilkenny, long time Solas participant. Likes reading, making art and acting in her spare time. Alan Mooney age 13 from Kilkenny. He has been coming to Solas art activities for seven years. Favourite artists Beatrix Potter and E.H. Shepard. Favourite artist in this project Aideen Barry. Roisin Welland age 8, lives in Kilkenny, is a two tip white belt in karate, loves art, reading and writing and when she grows up she wants to be an artist or writer! Maggie Welland age 11, loves karate (recently blue belt). Loves animals but adores dogs, wants to become a vet. Feidhlim Ryan age 13, lives outside Callan. He enjoys soccer, and go karting. Jamie Reid age 9, lives in Ballyhale in County Kilkenny. He loves soccer and is the second best goalie in Ballyhale. Niall Reid age 8, lives in Ballyhale County Kilkenny with his brother Jamie. He loves soccer and plays forward for his team. David Collison age 10, lives outside Kilkenny. He enjoys acting and spends a lot of time in his art studio at home. Favourite part of this experience was examining colour. Jesse Dunne age 13, lives in Kilkenny, hates homework but enjoys school. She loves gaelic football and hates hurling. Longest member of Solas, since she was three. Niamh Phelan age 15, lives in Kilkenny and long time participant of Solas. She likes art. Donna Walsh age 12, lives in Kilkenny and has been attending Solas art group at the Butler Gallery for years. She enjoys art of all descriptions. Clodagh Read age 13, lives in Kilkenny. My favourite subject at school is art, I love being with my friends and I spend a lot of time on the computer! I play hockey and the 53 piano and I like swimming and cycling. I have been in Solas since I was four.
. . ou y t Abou
Logos Achknowledgemnets
What’s your name?.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . How old are you?.. . . . . . . . . . . . What’s your favourite hobby?.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Do you like sports?.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . What’s art to you? .................................................... What’s your favourite type of art? ..................................................................... What’s your favourite artist or work? ...................................................................... What’s your favourite colour? ...................................................................... 54
55
Thanks to everyone for making our book happen..
Fund:it friends of What is Art? Mary Butler, Kilkenny. PJ & Olive Murphy, Cork. Jessica O’Donnell & Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane. Anne & Pat Tormey, Dublin. 56