SNAPSHOT
MEETING ARTISTS THROUGH THE GRID
Exploring the new ways artists share their work, processes, influences and their worlds. An exhibition designed and curated by Ashley Hyland for Artwave Festival.
As the world has changed over the past few years, the way we meet artists has also changed. This exhibition brings together artists that I have met through instagram and social media, where they share their new work, their processes, photos of their homes and surroundings, their joys and their stresses. Exploring our connection has raised interesting questions about the function of exhibitions, our new insights into how artists think and how they are influenced by other artists and the worlds they live in.
In the past, we met the art first, in galleries and art fairs, in art books and shops. The art and the artists were carefully curated, managing our introduction. The artist remained hidden, found only through meetings at private views, interviews in magazines or encountered by chance.
And the world has changed.
I know them well, or rather I feel I know them well as we all feel we know the faces that smile at us through our screens - the new friends of our new lives. We have chatted and supported each other, critiqued ideas and developed new work. These artists held me accountable through their sharing and I have met some of them in the real world too.
The artist’s salon still exists… even in this increasingly virtual world.
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Bringing these images of the artists process, life and experience into an exhibition setting has raised the following questions:
Do these images feel more intimate on a gallery wall than in the digital world?
Does the sharing of process and setting make the work more interesting?
Do we understand more about the art being made and why it is being made?
Does this inform our understanding of art and how it lives in the artists’ world?
Do we place different values and expectations on seeing artwork in person?
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​As how we live in the world is changing so rapidly, I am interested to see how these changes are reflected in both the art we make and the ways we consume art.
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Ashley Hyland, Curator, SNAPSHOT
I would like to thank the following artists for accepting my invitation and generously contributing work and funding for this exhibition:
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Catherine Greenwood - England
Ashley Hyland - England
Joelle Matthews - England
Sara Jane Melville - Scotland
Kim Mounsey - New Zealand
Sally Ovenden - England
Angie Shrubsole-Brett - England
Alison Sutton - England
Minnie Teckman - England
Anna Tuggey - England
Each of these artists shares their artwork, thoughts and process on instagram, where more information can be found about their websites, contact information and art practice.
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I would also like to thank:
Stephen Hyland for exhibition support and funding.
South Downs YHA for supporting the Artist in Residence Programme.
Artwave Festival for supporting the YHA Arts Programme.
Fotobox in Seaford for their patient technical assistance.