My submission to the Gallery North interns

Perspex, plywood, leaf pulp

Turfin' 9 to 5...

Human Environment Interaction

This is a recent installation I completed for the exhibition 'Space Invaders'. I use a strong underlying theme of environmentalism in my work, the cubes in this piece have been created from gathered leaves and processed using a papermaking technique to create a sculptural material. 

Offsetting the organic materials, I have juxtaposed the sculpture with sheets of brightly coloured perspex, bringing forth a defined artificial aesthetic.

Within this space I have created an environment that immersed the viewer as they traverse the installation. The contrast between artificial and organic and methods of processing and production are brought to the viewer's attention, yet also allow the viewer to become aware of their own bodily presence within a given environment .

Ai Weiwei

Grayson Perry

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/video/2012/apr/11/grayson-perry-interview-video

Damien Hirst

Last night I watched the Hirst programmes on channel four, I wasn't really sure what to make of them really. I've never felt that much of a connection with Hirst's work, his formaldehyde pieces appealed to me in ways and I find the pastel colours in the spot paintings, well...  nice?
I think what I really found interesting about the programmes was the portrayal of positive, forward thinking. The Freeze show for example in the early nineties, that I find inspiring. Sometimes I look around at the moment and I see young artists like myself who don't seem to be thinking in a forward way, they are quite content with plodding along in the mulch rather than wanting to jump out and make themselves known. The idea of getting hold of an old warehouse and turning it into an exhibition space seems fantastic to me. Yes it might be daunting, but what is life without a few risks?
I don't think you can talk about Hirst without talking about money. I have no idea how much he has now but what I'd really like to know was how much he had when he was putting on the Freeze show? How would it compare in today's terms? Maybe what I really want to know is how much would it cost me to get a warehouse for a month...