Along Those Lines – Monro Room

It is too often assumed that art is either abstract or figurative. For some artists this either/or is unnecessarily rigid. Along Those Lines is an exhibition that looks at the hybrid use of geometry in art. Curator Clare Bradley has chosen six artists who play with the infinite possibilities of geometrical forms as elements inside a wider representational context. Each of them in their different way is looking at the unbound resonance of geometric abstraction and what it does to us, intuitively and cognitively. For this, there are no boundaries and no limit to where it starts and stops.

The artists on show are:
Kerry Andrews
Richard Caldicott
Fieroza Doorsen
Günther Herbst
Bérénice Mayaux
Michael Stubbs

Magnus Gjoen with Art Surgery – Dickens Room

Born in London to Norwegian parents, Magnus Gjoen grew up in Switzerland, Denmark, Italy as well as in the UK. As a contemporary artist Gjoen has exhibited worldwide and questions the notions of beauty by juxtaposing a range of styles and media, incorporating a street and pop aesthetic with a fine art approach. His pieces draw on history and allusion, using existing artworks or fragments from the past to create his own, contemporary.

Please join Dan Hillier on Friday 24th January, 6:30pm – 9 pm, for an intimate ‘Meet the Artist’ evening at the House of St Barnabas in Soho, London.

Rob’s work identifies with the bare essentials of what it means to be human. His paper cutting technique removes any interruption from grave, honest and occasionally humorous insights into his world, leaving whispered sentiments silhouetted as clear as black and white.

HoSB: In a previous interview you mentioned that your job is to always be looking at stuff, to always be thinking and kind of open and be a conduit. – is there a particular time of day or means in which you find your inspiration?

No, because it depends on your mood. Some times of the day you have to get on with work, some times eating meals. There’s no scheduled time for feeling sad or thoughtful or whatever but I suppose I kind of organize my life so I leave some time to make room for my own weird kind of contemplation. It’s fine being inspired and having thoughts you can convert into art but the most important thing is being able to capture it on paper, to remember it, and also remember the significance it had to you at the time. 

HoSB: We hear that you still like to read the occasional children story, what is it about them that you find interesting?

To me, there is something complete and perfect about a certain type of childrens story. Prime examples would be J.B.S Haldane’s, ‘My Friend Mr Leakey’, anything by Betsy Byars and of course ‘Fattypuffs and Thinifers’ by Andre Maurois. There is within them a realistic possibility for things that are slightly fantastical to exist within the mundane world but yet still seem plausible to the reader, and at the same time be funny and sad but also hold wise lessons within them which in a story for adults might seem condescending and preachy.  

HoSB: Tell us about your love of ‘Swiss paper cuts’.

I think, and I might be wrong here, that they were made by people to decorate their own homes with. It’s the true essence of real ‘folk’ art, not for sale but just for yourself to enjoy and live with. I think I like that aspect of them more than the actual pictures themselves.

HoSB: In an interview with Etsy you mention that a big part of your work is about “seeing and appreciating the beauty in the everyday, and to make people see how beautiful the world is and how beautiful their lives are.” – Have you always found that you’ve looked for the beauty in the world or is this something that you’ve had to practice?

I’m not sure, I definitely think that as you get older (I’m 56 next month) you appreciate everything in life more, you realise you have only so many years left to enjoy it, Earth – the most beautiful planet there ever was.

HoSB: Lastly, in true House of St Barnabas fashion, what encouraging words of wisdom would you give someone that wants to start making art?

Hmmm. Carry a notebook / sketchbook with you at all times, that would be a good way to start.

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Thank you for your time away From your drawing/cutting board. We can’t wait to have you work with us!

‘The Real Face’ took place in our Chapel on Friday 6th October, an exhibition showcasing works by Italian artist Denis Volpiana, courtesy of Meet Art Projects. During this temporary exhibition, Denis invited visitors to join him in a little creative painting on found objects, including everything from broken plant pots to bits of wood and polystyrene.

It was a wonderful experience, even though it lasted just a day it left me with a positive and uplifting feeling. I had a chance to meet the artist and chat with him about his hometown and art studio in Italy while sitting down to do a little painting, which for me was a lovely moment of spontaneity – it can be as much fun and creative as the well thought out paintings he was exhibiting.

For me, his art demonstrates different ideas explored through the range of colours and shades he uses, provoking diverse experiences in the viewer, even if they’re looking at the same painting. The Real Face has left me with pleasant memories as well as being a great learning experience…and now on to our Q&A!

Hi Denis, what’s your story so far – how did you first get into art and then how have you become an artist?

I got close to art mainly through books. When I was a child my mum used to collect and recycle abandoned things, many of these objects were books and I used to love browsing their pages, observing the images in order to draw them and re-create them in my own way. I was especially attracted by ancient artworks, from cave paintings to 16th century Baroque monuments. Ever since my passion for creating art has been inspired by the observation of these masterpieces and the emotions they stimulate in me.

Later during my teenage years, I studied in a seminary where I had the first impactful experience related to the history of art. In this period I was fascinated by the life and work of Cézanne and Picasso but despite the fact that I tried to reproduce their work as accurately as possible my imagination was always stronger than my hand – these studies became my very first original drawings.

In the following years, I attempted to study accountancy and start a professional career in this field, I worked in the factory owned by my father and then travelled around Europe finding temporary jobs and selling my drawings in streets and parks. In the end I had to accept that the only career I could and wanted to pursue was being an artist, so I graduated at the New Academy of Fine Arts in Milan and started my life as a painter, collaborating with other artists and working with a small circle of collectors and curators.

What influences your work?

An important element that constantly inspires me is nature, its strength and its ability to regenerate. This has also been an inspiration for me to face challenging life experiences. My work is also inspired by the people I meet every day, by exchanges of energies between human beings and by the sense of hope I feel when I meet someone who is honest and authentic.

How does the act of painting make you feel?

Free. When I paint my mind goes to a sort of different reality. I almost never realise or remember the instants when this new state of mind begins, time start moving in a sort of constant, unique flow, without hours or minutes.

You engaged with people during your exhibition in our chapel, inviting them to join you in painting – what was that experience like?

It’s been a great experience that I will always remember as a very happy moment. I felt really welcomed and I was glad to see so many people appreciating my work and interacting with me.

I hear you make sculptures, can you tell me a little about that?

I have a very intimate approach towards sculpture, it is my way to experiment with different materials. I like to create, destroy and transform. I use different materials like tree branches or concrete but I also compose assemblages using toys and found objects. In all my works I try to play with materials and shapes to communicate feelings and concepts I care about.

What was special about exhibiting at HoSB?

I am really happy to have had the chance to exhibit at The House of St Barnabas, an organisation that not only collaborates with great established artists but also promotes new talent in multiple creative fields. It also felt really special to have the opportunity to exhibit my work in a historic venue and in such an unusual and unique space as the Chapel, which related to my artworks and somehow to my life and artistic career.

Have you created a piece that you haven’t been able to part with?

I used to feel like this towards almost all of my artworks but when I understood that their power to resonate with me or even solve my own issues and change my state of mind could have the same effect on others, I changed my approach and since then I have never had any real favourite, they are all made to be shared.

Which artists do you look up to?

Pablo Picasso, Jackson Pollock, Umberto Boccioni, Cy Twombly, Alberto Giacometti and Yayoi Kusama. Also, the romantics and in particular Caspar David Friedrich and William Turner inspire my research of movement and interest for nature, I often use resin drippings to give the shapes I draw and paint a more natural character of spontaneity.

Would you be able to take us through your day-to-day?

I see what’s on, maybe go into the sea, if not then I get to my studio and usually sit and think quietly, kind of like a cat when you introduce it to a new home, I check out every corner of the studio. I look at the mess from the day before, some things will have dried overnight and this would have altered it, which is quite exciting.

In my imagery I use myself a lot so I might move the other paintings to make room, I get a friend over, get naked and we take some photos. Every painting is a self-portrait, I think my aim is to produce a series of paintings that show my deterioration, so hopefully, if I’ve got a bit of time here the imagery will change with me. I want to have a kind of catalogue so I can tell exactly what was going on when I look back at each piece.

So yer, midday I’ll have a pasty, have a couple of pints and then go back to the studio. I like being repetitive, I can listen to the same song for a couple of hours whilst I paint.

Do you consider selling your work when you’re making it?

My work is highly personal so by the end of the day it’s like I’ve written my diary entry. I’ll often end up with a product but I wouldn’t know how to present it. There have been times where I’ve made paintings on panels and then walked over them for weeks. The product wasn’t the thing for me, it was the making of it. Everything has been very raw and rough until recently. I’ve just started painting on canvas because I can afford them now and the people I work with like that. Sometimes I used to make work then cut it up because I needed that piece of wood, I’ve destroyed a lot of my early archive because I didn’t have money and I needed to make something new, but the important thing for me is that painting has kept me level.

Who or what has had the most influence on your aesthetic?

I really like the work of Dadaists and religious art. I look at religious art a lot, there was a long time in my life that I needed to find a feeling of belonging, because I felt that I needed a faith, to belong to something, to have guidance. I want to live simpler, I needed that contemplative, meditative process in my life and I like the ‘make-do’ of some really old religious art. Art that comes out of factories doesn’t really do it for me, I like a two -thousands-year-old carving. Something about the hand, the presence of the maker that I like.

You made The Great Squall after working on a roof in Perranuthnoe, Cornwall. Is the storm that it depicts a reference to something?

The painting is very much about change. When I was working on that roof through the winter, which was so bleak, but lush at the same time, you have the South Westerly wind that brought storms in, you can count the rain coming in by the time it takes you to make a cup of tea. You can sit and see it drift across the bay. What I wanted to do is get an element of that landscape so the very moody dark sky pushing across the horizon.

Where I live there has been a massive shift for me and many locals in terms of affordable housing, now actually being able to afford to rent a house in where you’ve lived worked and grown-up is changing. The painting was very much about how people are being displaced, it’s about the change on the social-economical horizon, and of technology as well. Everything is becoming screen-based, and that’s another change that’s being forced on you, my need to have a simpler life goes against it.

Lastly, in true House of St Barnabas fashion what encouraging words of wisdom would you give someone that wants to start making art?

For me, painting and making in general has been a go-to in many parts of my life when I’ve needed a way to work things out. Making imagery and the act of doing has helped me. I think of my studio as a councilor’s room, it’s a place to dig deeper and question why I’m where I am.

The act of doing is very important, not the end result, so don’t put pressure on yourself. Cutting up old paintings to make new ones has stopped me worrying about being ‘good’ and being able to let go or remain detached has been a good lesson for me, one that I’ve learnt through making art.

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Big thanks to Samuel for talking to us about his intimate practice. If you’re interested in viewing this work and many others from emerging to established artists then join the next art tour of our not-for-profit art Programme, The Collective.

Find out more about Samuel’s work by visiting Anima-Mundi .

Everything we do here at the House works towards our mission to break the cycle of homelessness. Our art programme shares this ethos, all proceeds from the sale of any artwork is split between the artist and our Employment Academy, nurturing new talent whilst supporting people on their journey from homelessness into lasting paid work.

Michael Henley is a London based artist and we’re so happy to have his intricate drawings hanging in our Dickens Room. His work communicates the transience of life through miscellaneous collections of drawn human skulls, fungi, Rhino beetles, the pelvis bone of a rabbit, and even jellyfish. We caught up with Michael to find out a little more about his work and what things inspire him most!

What’s your story so far – how did you first get into art?
From a young age I have always drawn, painted and made things and as I got a little older my grandfather was the one who would take me to life drawing classes with him, so I guess its always been a part of my life. I wanted to make sure it remained that way, all the way through school into a year of art foundation, to a degree in Illustration, which although took me away from fine art I found my way back through working within the art world at a number of galleries in London. The exposure to artists, projects and galleries has had a tremendous impact on my current work and really has inspired me to continue pursuing a career as an artist.

Can you tell us a little about your work?
My work, I would say is a combination of order and chaos, the process and research can be quite contradictory to itself. A part of me wants to design each piece in an ordered manner and another wants to fill every section of white space with as much detail as I can. So overall this has lead to a primary focus of perception – by distorting objects and matter in my way it creates a relationship with the viewer to decipher what they’re looking at. I think as far as materials I’m always trying to expand what I can do with a small amount of variation, I like the simplicity of pencil and paper, by cutting, layering and lighting I can create some different effects that really all relate to the same core idea of distorted perception.

What is it about drawing that appeals to you as a medium?
For me drawing is the lifeblood of any artist, I’ve always been drawing and I keep a regular sketchbook or two to jot and scribble ideas as they emerge. It seems natural for me, for the time being to draw everything and really push the medium as far as I can. I’m still seeing what I can do with it and by combining it with other, less traditional mediums I think it has great scope for me in the future.

What appeals most about exhibiting at The House of St Barnabas?
For me, exhibiting at The House of St Barnabas is all about raising awareness, for every person who comes to see all the amazing art, eat and drink and enjoy the space, the main reason we’re all there is to act as a driving force for change. I think to be exhibiting with a socially conscious enterprise is a wonderful opportunity and I hope the artwork will continue to contribute to that as it has done since the beginning.

Which artists do you look up to?
For me at this stage, I look up to any creative who is finding a way to do what they love more than doing what they have to do to get by! I think one of the benefits we have now is to be able to follow and view artwork by amazing contemporary artists across the globe who constantly inspire me to carry on creating no matter what.

What inspires you most?
It can be any number of things, mostly it is the natural world. This can come from any number of sources but I find more often than not it will be something grown naturally, or it’s what’s left after something has gone that grabs my attention. I’m constantly amazed as to what can inspire me everyday, usually when I’m not paying any attention!

Do you think art can be used as a tool for social change?
I do and I think to an extent it is already. By giving artists the opportunity to exhibit with an institution such as The House of St Barnabas it allows us to not only draw attention to our work but also highlight the great work being carried out by the club itself. I think artists have always been there to point out what’s right and wrong in the world, commenting in their chosen medium so anyone and everyone can form their own opinions. As a tool for social change artists have and do continue to contribute in whatever way they see fit.

If you were a colour, what colour would you be?
Gold!

Michael’s work has now moved on to pastures new, but you are welcome to join us for our next art tour to see the latest collection, plus donations and loans from celebrated artists such as founding member Hew Locke and artists including Tracey Emin, Jeff Koons, Damian Hirst, Peter Liversidge, Mark Titchner, Yinka Shonibare MBE, Cathy de Monchaux and The Chapman Brothers. Click here to book your free spot, or find out more about Michael’s work on his website.