SITE 12 Festival 1st -31st May. Launched

Posted on May 9, 2012 by Alisdair

Stroud’s Annual arts festival SITE 12 launched itself into the eyes of hundreds of eager artists, organisers and visitors on Saturday 5th.

Starting at the Brunel Goods Shed, ‘Sometimes Still’,  the sound and video installation by White Cube artist Darren Almond invited viewers into the darkness of the blacked out redbrick warehouse, various high definition video projections positioned around the room played back the passage of a Tendai novitiate monk on a ritual journey the hills of Mt. Hiei, nr Kyoto Japan.  Many people fell over whilst adjusting to the low light.

In another venue set in the disused basement of the Badbrook Project Space, Butch Queen, First Time in Drag, Site festivals only queer arts event showcased various video, photography and painting installations alongside brave performances by artists Christy O’Donnell, Jessica Mansel and Gemma Marmalade, an absolute highlight of the Launch.

A walk up the high street to The Weaving Shed lead to the enlightening and warming installation Kitty Lake’s Cabinet by artist/weaver Sally Hampson revealing the life of the female explorer Kitty Lake through photographs, textiles and film.

The tour of the evenings open sites ended at an installation in the Golden Fish Bar.  Fast Food Faster Paintings was a lively mix of bright colours, larger than life paintings and  geometric collages spread across the two floors of an disused take away, an exciting exhibition come watering hole and chill out zone!

Finally the SVA provided a space to party on till late in the night with DJ sets and Brickhouse Incarnation 8, a video installation curated by Guy Gormley.

The Site Festival 2012 continues until the 31st may with many more entertaining exhibitions, events, artwalks and much much more.

A full guide to the festivals events can be found at the SVA website.

Butch Queen, First Time in Drag; Christy O'Donnel installation and performance. Site 2012.

Butch Queen, First Time in Drag; Christy O'Donnell installation and performance. Site 2012.

More launch photos available on my Flikr page.

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The Moving Image

Posted on March 13, 2012 by Alisdair

Continuing my exploration in to the medium of the moving image I have recently begun to use my newly purchased Canon G12 to record varying locations, subjects and concepts.  The camera itself produces a nice 720p hd definition which is really great for the kind of sketch films and videos i’m putting together.

Having initially used Premiere Pro as my primary editing software I have recently switched over to Apples iMovie for its simplicity and speed and should in due course be experimenting with Final Cut for more complex projects.

Here are a couple of recent additions to my vaults which I deem ready to show the public.  The first is a sort of music video recorded on the London underground.  I was initially struck by the quality of the musician and asked if I could make a short film and he was more than happy to oblige. So this is ‘Wojtek Godzisz busking Hallelujah on the London Underground’ more information and music by Wojtek can be found here http://www.myspace.com/wojtekgodzisz

In the film I wanted to emphasise the characters of the passing commuters, especially those with a giving nature.  I found it quite amazing how many different personalities walked passed us during the shoot, each one unique and different.

The second film ‘Running From’ is a short concept sketch made in the Woodchester park during the snow of February.  Shot using the colour accent effect, greying out all colours except green, I wanted to create an ‘action’ scene of a character running through the forest, the brightness of the fallen snow along with the sound of it crunching underfoot and unusual colour effects all helped make the sketch more dynamic and interesting.

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Beyond the Comfort Zone

Posted on December 16, 2011 by Alisdair

Being a member of the PhotoStroud group and exhibitor in the recent group exhibition ‘Beyond the Comfort Zone’ I am allowed to be at least a little biased in saying what a great photography exhibition it turned out to be.

Having been set the slightly uncomfortable brief of ‘this exhibition is to be of new and developing work’  I was sure this was going to be a show of many surprises.

The concept of the exhibition challenged the artists ability and aptitude to step out of their ‘comfort zone’ and embrace the freedom of unshackled restraints, push aside the norm and go boldly were no photographer has gone before.

Of course the beauty of such a brief inspired an incredibly versatile and eclectic       exhibition of wonderfully uncontrived and open photography, allowing each photographer to respond in a unique way, developing ideas, locations, mediums and concepts from a (excuse the pun) new perspective to their normal work.  Accumulating together a visual feast of photography, concepts and art.

The brief and title of the show also bought out the most daring in various artists boldly exhibiting incredibly emotional work such as Jimmy Edmonds What Remains, ephemeral, melancholic series of fading anthotypes and the passionate and raw Phoenix Rising nudes by Nikki Simpson deemed too visually powerful for the public gallery.

A vast variety of skill, detail, competent photography and developing techniques was also evident throughout the exhibition from the dark and moody Ceibwr Bay, Pembrokeshire seascapes by Alexander Caminada to the stoic Eiffel Tower beer can pin hole exposure by Fred Chance.  Tom Keating’s beautiful Butterfly made using a 5×4 field camera, processed on location using darkroom equipment and processing tray was for me quite an eloquent touch and tip of the cap to such nostalgic techniques whilst Dan Hayon’s fine miniature QR tag concept portraits Tintype snapshots and The return of the prodigal son and Kel Portman’s illustrious logarithmic panoramas Vernal Equilux – Autumnal Equilux and Atsitsa to Kyra Panagia Walk of 1000 Paces 1 Square Meter embraced an equally engaging approach to more contemporary digital artistry.

Overall the exhibition left me inspired, captivated and even mesmerised by the content and quality of the work, hoping to see many more PhotoStroud shows in the future.

A fully published guide to  ’Beyond the Comfort Zone, new and unseen works by member of of PhotoStroud’ can be found to buy and view on line by clicking here

‘Beyond the Comfort Zone’ was an exhibition organised by PhotoStroud and Walking the Land artist Kel Portman at Ruskin Mill College Gallery, Gloucestershire 5th-19th November 2011

'Butterfly' Lith Print by Tom Keating
‘Butterfly’ Lith Print by Tom Keating

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The White Spring, Glastonbury

Posted on November 12, 2011 by Alisdair

Recently finished by Alisdair Shepherd Design; the new White Spring website.  A water temple based in Glastonbury, under the famous tor where the white and red springs converge.

The aim of my production was to instil the essence of a the spring whilst creating a timeless  manuscript feel to the site in tune with its essence and vision.  The quantity of text in the site additionally influenced the layout and design, spacing the paragraphs to help the reader read and digest the information was paramount to me.

The integration of a WordPress blog into a website has become an integral part of my webdesign.  Allowing the web author full access to update events, news and images, whilst giving the designer a stable and fully customisable frame work; functionality and flexability all in the same hat.

http://www.whitespring.org.uk/

The White Spring

The White Spring

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Cafe Culture- Paintings by Alisdair Shepherd, Star Anise Cafe, 2011

Posted on August 17, 2011 by Alisdair

Running from August 6th to September 10th coinciding with Stroud Fringe at the Star Anise Cafe, Stroud an exhibition of new and old paintings by myself hangs along side hungry cafe critiques.

Cafe Culture was an exhibition inspired by the love of abstract painting and the concept of displaying art in the context of a cafe rather than a gallery.  The paintings were mostly created during the winter, spring and summer of 2011 and are co exhibited with framed oil paintings made around 10 years ago in 2001.

I began the new oil paintings with virtually no pre-conceived ideas on composition, colour or tone, I was quite literally to paint in an almost abstract expressionist style until I was happy with the painting.  Interestingly this created a set of work in varying styles and appearance making each work very individual, each intense and exciting as the other.  The large scale of most of the paintings also allowed me to be very expressive with the paint and brush strokes, using full arm movements to create lush textures,  gestures and forms.

The exhibition space it self is an arts cafe specialising in delicious organic, local and bio dynamic food, music, workshops and art.  Set in a beautifully decorated and built red brick and timber building with skylights, the Star Anise Cafe presented itself as an excellent alternative to the gallery space for exhibition.  Allowing the paintings to be seen in a setting more natural to the intended space of a collectors home gives a great atmosphere to the work.  The addition of a kitchen and bar also made it an excellent venue for the opening night, Nick from Star providing bruschettas, wine and juice to keep visitors refreshed.

The opening was very successful and a few paintings have already sold, adding this to the huge amount of customers coming into the cafe and seeing the work, I hope to make a few more contacts and a new series of work of the back of this exhibition, coming soon to a cafe or restaurant near you…

For more images of the Cafe Culture exhibition please follow this link to the Painting page of the site, click here.

Cafe Culture- Paintings by Alisdair Shepherd, Star Anise Cafe, 2011

Cafe Culture- Paintings by Alisdair Shepherd, Star Anise Cafe, 2011

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WaterWay

Posted on July 20, 2011 by Alisdair

On Sunday I made a trip to The Old Passage in Arlingham, Gloucestershire, a wonderful seafood restaurant situated on the edge of an oxbow formed by the river Severn.

The reason for this impromptu visit was to see a painting of mine hung as part of an exhibition exploring the Gloucestershire’s rivers and canals.  The exhibition curated and selected by Walking the Land artist Kel Portman bought together various artists of varying skill in an eclectic fun and flowing exhibition reflecting the wildlife, trade and recreation bought to us by our rivers and canals.

The painting by myself included in the show was in fact an oil on canvas painted in 2001 from a sketch I made whilst walking the Stroud to Miserden canal.  The image depicts a view across a lake frequented by otters.  A rather painterly impressionist piece of work mirroring the Autumn colours and transparency of the lake.

The exhibition it’s self will be ongoing and donations from all work sold will be going to SARA- Severn River Rescue Association an inshore rescue boat and land search organisation covering the Severn estuary.

An on-line catalogue WaterWay edited by Kel Portman has additionally been made available to view and purchase though Blurb.

By the Otters Lake, oil, 2001, Alisdair Shepherd

By the Otters Lake, oil, 2001, Alisdair Shepherd

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Site Festival 2011 1st-30th June: Wasteland in Sight

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Alisdair

The Stroud festival of Art has begun, other wise known as Site Festival and in conjunction with the Open Studios, for the month of June turns Stroud, Gloucestershire into a festival of exhibitions, open studios, happenings, artwalks, and art projects.

Wasteland is a place, it’s a thing, it’s moment, an idea, a philosophy, an adventure, movement, chaos, books, records, radio, noise, sound, space, void.

Wasteland is the invention of two of Stroud’s most energetic, exciting and innovative young artists;  Uta Baldauf and Christy O’Donnell.  Starting out as a radio show hosted by the pair on Stroud FM, Wasteland has evolved and possibly devolved into art galleries and abandoned spaces around Southern England as a performance installation and interactive transient project.

Popping up in for the Site Festival in Unit 26 Merrywalks, Stroud.  Wasteland will be creating, inspiring, communicating, living and breathing with all those who walk though its rather derelict looking doors and into the abandoned shop front complete with white washed breeze block walls, dripping pipes, exposed electric cables, dusty floor and scattered artwork.

Clambering over the back wheel of parked bicycle I stepped into Wasteland for the Origami Bird Making Day, the remnants of last nights opening antics were being hastily scrubbed off the walls and the sound of 50′s jazz music filled the space.  A small group had gathered and we set about creating Origami cranes to hang upon the washing lines stretched across the shop walls.  After many folds, amusing anecdotes and cravings to give up I finally completed my crane and duly had my photograph taken as evidence of my hard work, I had become part of Wasteland and so had my crane.

Open for the majority of the month, Wasteland will be inviting the public and other artists to come along, take part in and experience the phenomena that is Wasteland.  Events include the Slut March, Short Stories, visiting artists, performances, album party’s and work days.

Look out for my new film The Beach on display in Wasteland.

Wasteland in Sight

Wasteland in Sight- 2011

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Site Festival 2011 1st-30th June: Strange Beasts

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Alisdair

The Stroud festival of Art has begun, other wise known as Site Festival and in conjunction with the Open Studios, for the month of June turns Stroud, Gloucestershire into a festival of exhibitions, open studios, happenings, artwalks, and art projects.

My adventure began with a trip to Gallery Pangolin, part of the Pangolin bronze refinery one of Britain’s largest sculpture foundries famous for casting work by leading modern artists including Damian Hirst,  Angus Fairhurst, Michael Joo, Terence Coventry, Sarah Lucas, Lynn Chadwick, Daniel Chadwick and Anthony Abrahams to name a few.

Strange Beasts Lynn Chadwick and the New Generation is and superb exhibition bought together by guest curator and Jerwood Award winner Lorraine Robbins.  Inviting five other artists with close links to the local area to choose one sculpture by Lynn Chadwick and make four sculptures inspired by it.  The result is collection of excellent quality modern art produced that interests, excites, stupefies and fascinates.   The six artists evolved; Robbins, Cockings and Hodge, Daniel Sparkes, Gavin McClafferty and Ralph Macartney all excel in producing original, individual and highly professional exhibits that must genuianly mark their arrival into the world of contemporary art.

Pyro-Biro III (Negative) by Ralph Macartney 2011

Pyro-Biro III (Negative) by Ralph Macartney 2011

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Exhibition Reviews: London 7th – 9th May 2011

Posted on May 10, 2011 by Alisdair

Photography as a Form of Documentation

Photography: New Documentary Forms at Tate Modern, 1 May 2011  –  31 March 2012.

Exploring the use of photography as a documentary medium, the Tate has chosen an exciting group of international photographers investigating cultures such as the Congo, Soviet Ukraine, Beirut, the USA and conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.  As one might imagine, the images are quintessential examples of the country of origin and contain typical flavours and production techniques which in some cases may seem stereotypical but ultimately allow the viewer to enjoy and absorb some of the beautifully caught scenes and exotic emotions captured by the photographers.  Staring Luc Delahaye, Mitch Epstein, Guy Tillim and Akram Zaatari.

Burke + Norfolk: Photographs From The War In Afghanistan at Tate Modern – 6 May  –  10 July 2011

Continuing the theme of photography as a medium of documentary, Simon Norfolk exhibits a series of photographs Afghanistan taken in response to the 19th century British photographer John Burke’s documentation of the Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878 to 1880)  Norfolk openly critical in his objection to the occupying forces in Afghanistan explains in a film how the driving motivation behind his work is to voice his opinion of the ongoing conflict, and discloses how ‘beauty’ is not of chief concern or decisive outcome of the photograph but more so a vessel to carry the significance of the message.   In this interesting and enlightening collection of images relating the appropriation and consequnt loss and disaccord experienced by Afghanistan in the aftermath of one of the most bitter struggles their country has ever seen, Norfolk in his trademark colour drenched luminous photography takes direct influence from Burke who’s prints shown alongside are the oldest known photographs of Afghanistan;  militar are arranged in similar poses and contrasting modern activity is shown along side categorical 19th century life, militaristic detail stunning landscape.

Simon Norfolk- Archival Pigment Print. From an edition of 7 40x53"

Simon Norfolk- Archival Pigment Print. From an edition of 7 40x53" A dumping ground for an abandoned Russian-era bomber that has now been incorporated into the car park of ‘Shamshad TV’, a new media company supported heavily by American money.

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Staggy – The Movie

Posted on April 18, 2011 by Alisdair

Having recently decided to try and focus some of my creative energy on film making, I picked up my ancient Canon MVX200I mini DV and dashed of to the Bloc festival of dance music in Butlins: Minehead to make a short candid documentation film of my friends stag weekend, silliness ensued and the result is a very amusing short with lots of silly banter and macho behaviour!!  The following is the trailer for the film which I intend to release in the next few weeks, be sure to check out my profile on IMDB

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