Studio Practice: Light, Surface and Colour: Sauerbier House and Llanfairfechan. Proposal and Planning

Sauerbier House Cultural Exchange Program
Light, Surface and Colour: Sauerbier House and Llanfairfechan.
Proposal and Planning.

Looking south towards Bangor from Chawrel Lllanfairfechan Quarry

RATIONALE
The Sauerbier House Artist in Residence (AiR) Cultural Exchange is facilitated by the city of Onkaparinga Council, in the state of South Eastern Australia. It has been in place since 2015 with two artists resident each session. It will be my first long term residency at 12 weeks and have been allocated the Lounge Gallery for the exhibition of work completed during the AiR. The exhibition will run until the end of January 2019. Having participated in many Residency, Plein-Air and Symposium events for short durations of one or two weeks, this AiR is a more in depth residency with production, engagement and presentation central to making new work in situ whilst engaging with the community of Onkarparinga.

The rationale for applying and attending the AiR is to explore the landscape and estuary/river location of Ngangkiparingga (women’s river) towards the Willunga Basin and McLaren Vale. The landscape is formed of bi-cultural environment (Aboriginal and European) reflected in place, land management and agricultural practice. Place therefore, is the central theme to my planned AiR work. In approaching the new landscape, sensory, perceptive and intellectual responses will contrast with a biographical notion of place in relation to home territory, defined as ‘scapes’.

Central to the response of the new landscape is the reflection on the Welsh context that has developed through initial research for the planned work. There is Welsh heritage at Sauerbier House with the original owner of Emily Gwendoline Sauerbier (nee Davies) and the place from which Sauerbier house was originally named, Llanfairfechan. I plan to explore the landscape around Noarlunga and make contrasting works with research undertaken at Llanfairfechan before departure.

Objective 1: Portfolio Outcome. Develop a series of visual art work that seeks to convey a sense of the place through graphic, plastic and expressive 2D colour based paintings and drawings. I propose a series of drawings and 150 small paintings that through location and studio practice will attempt to create an aesthetic impression of place, seen and recalled.

Preliminary studies reflecting on upcoming project August Moreia Studio

Objective 2: Process. The first stage is to meet with I project Merched Chawel (see Background and Context). I will make an exploratory research visit to chawrel Llanfairfechan. This research and that made on site in the first two weeks will be used to start work on the contrasting landscapes iaround Onkaparinga and of chawrel Llanfairfechan.

Objective 3: Dissemination. As part of the engagement with the community of Onkaparinga, the studio door will remain open throughout the opening times for drop in visitors. For workshops, I will hold ‘Location: Landscape into Abstraction’ workshops.

Objective 4: Explore collaborative work as part of the residency and exhibition. My fellow AiR is Tristan Louth Robins, a sound artist based in Adelaide and who explores landscape through sonic media. I will be staying on the projct loaction of artist Gavin Malone, curator of Lot 50-Kanyanyapilla, McLaren Vale. This is a bi-cultural ecological and cultural regeneration project located 12 kilometres from Sauerbier House. During a short residential stay on the land (in the Shed) drawings and a video diary will be made particularly of the Maslin Swamp basin area to reference issues of water in the region. Malone's work uses local sourced materials (seed, sand and grass for example).

Objective 5: Impact on my practice in Wales. a) Practice Blog. The blog diary will track process and development during the residency. It will be shared as a blog link project with Merched Chawrel (see Background and Context). The thematic concerns of aesthetics being mediated by place will define the AiR exhibition and :

b) Exhibition at Royal Cambrian Academy. The work from Sauerbier House AiR will form a part of my solo exhibition planned for the RCA in March 2019. As the exhibition is scheduled soon after my return from Australia, the work made will feature prominently both in actual and referenced form. The creative documentary aspect of my AiR work will include a video exploring ‘scape’ the cultural and geographical features of the place edited from footage whilst resident in Noarlunga and particularly, Mclaren Vale.

BACKGROUND AND CONTEXT

My initial proposal focused on the exploration of the landscape and estuary/river location of Ngangkiparingga (Women’s River) and reflecting on the contrast of my home studio location in North Wales that is also a coastal area. Contrasting places, each with different cultures and environments would underpin my approach to looking and experiencing the place.

However, further research into Sauerbier House has revealed a connection with North Wales.

Quote from Sauerbier information:

"This Spanish slate which was previously on the roof of the Port Noarlunga Lifesaving Club and was salvaged by local Welshman Ken Davies and gifted it to Lisa fHarms (whilst she was the first Artist/Writer in Residence Sauerbier House 2015-2016). She then passed some of this slate to along with this information. Ken Davies is a recent recipient of a State Heritage. award for his master-craftsman skills which were presented at Sauerbier House August 2016. Harms connects the Welsh heritage of Emily Gwendoline Sauerbier (nee Davies) with the place for which Sauerbier house. was named Llanfairfechan (a seaside village not so far from Bangor slate quarry in Wales).

Llanfairfechan was the previous name of Sauerbier House."

Research site visit with Jwls Williams 17.9.18 Chawrel llanfairfechan Quarry

Therefore, my focus has now shifted to explore a bit busy the links with Llanfairfechan. Merched Chwarel is a collaboration between artists Marged Pendrell, Jwls Williams, Lisa Hudson and Lindsey Colbourne and they are now working on a series of five exhibitions for 2019. One question they are considering is 'How are our aesthetics, identity and connection to place, culture and language are mediated by the quarries?' I intend to carry out a field trip to the quarry at Llanfaifechan with Jwls Williams (artist and member of Merched Chawrel project (see above Objective 5 and attachment project document)). Williams is familiar with the quarry through family history and has made 2D and video works from the Quarry. This research will be carried forward as source material for work at Sauerbier House AiR.

Artist Jwls Williams at Chawrel llanfairfechan Quarry 17.9.18

I have previously briefly visited South Eastern Australia in 2009 as part of the Le Chiele Irish - Welsh printmaking exchange that toured the State under the curation of Veronica Calarco (now at Stiwdio Maelor). Stiwdio Maelor in Corris was created by Calarco and is an established Residency program for international and regional artists and writers.

I have just returmed form Garbatka Letnisko Plenar in Poland (see previous post) where I was the Wales based representative (as defined in the catalogue). The role as ambassador for Wales seems to have become a feature of international projects that I have been involved with and one that I am comfortable with. Effective communication and follow up is evidenced by Residencies that further Wales based artists have attended subsequent to initial engagement.

As a member of the group ICAW I have developed and attended many projects in Europe and beyond, most recently in Poland July 2018. Sauerbier House AiR will provide a valuable opportunity to further the creative links between Wales and Australia, at least in providing opportunity for further Wales based artists to participate in future AiR and to encourage Australian artist to participate in Wales based international events and residencies for example Siwdio Maelor for visual artists and writers. (see letter of support ICAW).

ACTIVITY
The residency is for 12 weeks and during this time I will make a portfolio of visual art for exhibition by week 11 of the residency. I have been allocated the Lounge Gallery in Sauerbier House. The exhibition is from 15.12.18 to 26.1.19.

Preliminary Study acrylic on paper August 2018

Initially in the first two weeks, I will work with drawing materials, pencils, charcoal and chalks in sketchbooks and on paper to research initial visual ideas found whilst exploring the area. Initial studies will be from the Ngangkiparri (Onkaparinga) river and tracing it back to Mount Torrens in the Adelaide hills. The visual dynamic of the shape of the river will form the drawn element of the initial studies. Also using lens based media, the research will then be used in the studio to create a series of acrylic paintings reflecting on the visual identity of the place, facets transformed into pictorial compositions of colour, the aesthetics of ‘scape’. At times, recognisable aspects of the location, townscape, estuary and landscape will be evident. Through location and studio practice I will attempt to create an impression of place, seen and recalled.

Preliminary Studies Moreia Studio August 2018

I will be staying for one week 29.10.18 to 5.11.18 at Lot 50-Kanyanyapilla, Mclaren Vale. Gavin Malone, artist and cultural geographer, acquired Lot 50 in February 2015 for a bi-cultural ecological and cultural regeneration project, along with some agricultural production. The land is 40 acres in size with the majority of it being a registered Aboriginal heritage site under the South Australian Aboriginal Heritage Act. The Lot 50 plan adopts a bi-cultural, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal approach to land management. The video work of my time at Mclaren Vale and the wider Noarlunga area will form a creative documentary exploring place and 'scape'.

Preliminary Study acrylic on paper August 2018

The work planned in the residency is over and above my usual practice. The subjective connections with Wales are to the fore of the enquiry here with the contexts of Llanfairefchen, slate and history of Sauerbier House providing scope for multiple methodologies to develop my portfolio with a high level of original location based exploratory practice.

Supported by an International Opportunities Fund Grant from Wales Arts International