Making Dry Stone Walling for Hendon & Holborn

For my penultimate MA exhibition, I decided to return to dry stone walling and revisit and refine 'A World We Share?', a piece first presented in December at 'Up in the Air'.

'A World We Share?', 2022, by Carolyn Murphy

This work is fundamentally a large repeat pattern etching, which is embossed and hand-embellished. It's a time-consuming process because of the size of the metal etching plate, which takes time to ink up, wipe and then add a roll-over layer. It is embossed while the paper is still wet. This stage takes about an hour to complete.

Adding the roll-over

Printing

The embellishment process involves watercolour painting, ink rubs, pencil and Indian ink - all designed to emphasise texture and depth.

Adding watercolour

Embossed and embellished surface close-up

Because this is a repeat pattern it will create infinite dry stone walling and the design will match up. When I first presented the work in December 2022 it had straight edges and consisted of 3 x 4 panels, hung from an overhead support.

I was fairly happy with the piece at the time but felt it had more potential, so I decided to make one and a half times the amount - another 18 etchings. This gave me a total of over 7 square metres to play with for a new installation. At home in Manchester I experimented with the layout, finding the kitchen floor too small.

Kitchen floor checks

Testing going round corners

I also experimented with going around corners with tests in my studio space.

I particularly wanted to make more of the edges and organic form, so cut and reassembled the sections in Hendon in the BA studios where 'Present Continuous' our exhibition was taking place in September 2023.

Emphasising the edges

The result was a radical shift and the artwork was attached directly to the wall with Velcro and extended
around two corners in the space. It had the feel of a spreading organism. Cutting the work up was a leap of faith, as I had to then reassemble, using the cut piece elsewhere, like a huge jigsaw.

'A World We Share?' September 2023, Hendon

In October 2023, 'A Space We Share?' was shown as part of my first solo exhibition 'Reclaiming' at Holborn Library along with two other installation works. Here it was mounted high on a flat wall, backed by panels to aid the installation. It fitted the space well and seemed to grow out of the Library wall, fitting well with the Festival them of 'Grow'.

'A World We Share?' October 2023, Holborn Library

Becoming a Middlesex University MA student

As of January 2022, I'm a student again! I hadn't really expected that, at this stage in my life, but it feels just right and I am absolutely loving it! To be precise, I'm a part-time student on the Middlesex University MA Fine Art Printmaking programme, which runs from January 2022 until December 2023. He's a picture of me at the Hendon campus, on my 'first day', when I went to pick up my student ID and look around.

Carolyn on campus at Hendon

Every Fine Art and Fine Art Printmaking student gets a space in the MA studio in the Grove building, nearby. Although I'm splitting my time between Manchester and London, I was keen to 'move in', so took a number of new monotypes down to Hendon for the studio wall. 

I'm planning to add more work bit by bit. In the last month, I've printed at the printmaking workshop on campus, as well as at home and at Hot Bed Press in Salford. The train journeys mean transporting work is a little tricky, but I now have a plan chest drawer in Hendon, so that's a start!

We have a great group of students on the programme and our first exhibition is coming up fast - opening on 14 April. Details are on my website news page about the (re)FLEX exhibition in Hoxton.

Grayson Perry's Art Club exhibition

Grayson Perry's Art Club exhibition eventually opened, after various lockdown delays, at Manchester Art Gallery - and it was great to get along last weekend. 

The exhibition runs until 31 October 2021. It was far larger than I'd anticipated, so I'd like to return to spend more time taking it all in, especially as the individual stories were beautifully captured alongside each work. I found it moving to read about so many artists' experiences during the pandemic and it really captured the power of art to heal and help, as well as to capture ideas and moments.

Here are a few photos - the quality is not great, but they will act as a good reminder of some of my favourite works, well the ones I was able to capture anyway!

Paul Green's small wire sculptures 'Lockdown Birds' 

Alex Robinson's clay figurines 'ComputerWorld'

Singh Twins' 'NHS v Covid-19: Fighting on Two Fronts'

Raqib Shaw's birchwood panel 'Ode to the country without a post office'

Grayson Perry's 'Tea Towel'

My Fifth Year in the Twitter Art Exhibition -

Twitter Art Exhibit asks artists worldwide to donate postcard-sized handmade original artwork so that "through art, we can change the world". It's a fantastic idea and has caught the imagination of many artists. Each year funds from the charity sale go to support a great cause. This year it's The Leukaemia and Intensive Chemotherapy fund and the sale is on Saturday July 3rd 2021 at Cheltenham race course. This is my fifth year, but the Twitter Art Exhibition has been going longer. 

#TAE21 linocut 'Hebden'

I haven't yet go to the opening night charity sale - but may do this year! They've been held in Stratford-on Avon, Canberra, Edinburgh, Myrtle Beach in previous years, so this one is not too far away, if we are allowed to travel! After the first night sale, in previous years, work has been sold at the exhibition and then online.

Why do I take part each year? I think it's a mix of things. Firstly, I love the concept - making a difference through art. So far the website notes that TAE has raised $104,000 for 10 great charities.

My first submission in 2017 'Sticky Feet'

Secondly, it's the sense of community. Around a thousand artists from all over the world contribute work and come together on Twitter to support each other too. 

Finally, I love to see all the amazing work that is shared - and enjoy seeing my own work on this online stage. It's become part of the pattern of my year and I often use it to experiment and play. My 2019 postcard was selected as a Board's Choice, which was wonderful.

 

I'm proud that all my postcards have sold for a great cause. It would be lovely to know where in the world they are now! Other postcards below. Do get in touch if you have one on your wall!

To learn more about my work, please check out my website www.carolynmurphy.co.uk where you'll find my gallery, online shop and links to my social media.

20:20 Print Exchange 2020

I love taking part in the 20:20 Print Exchange! It's that sense of community amongst printmakers in the UK and, increasingly, around the world. And the random nature of the selection you will receive - all sorts of techniques and images, some you love, some less so. And the exhibition goes on tour - for ages.

Of course, this year has been more challenging, so well done to Hot Bed Press for even managing to do the sort! I'm looking forward to receiving my box, in exchange for the edition of 25 'Towneley Hall' linocut prints I submitted. I decided on a new colour way of my 2-plate 'That Window' linocut - this time in copper and blue, specially for this year's print exchange. 

'Towneley Hall', my 20:20 linocut for 2020

Preparing the edition - colour 1

To learn more about my work, please check out my website www.carolynmurphy.co.uk where you'll find my gallery, online shop and links to my social media.

'That Window' at Towneley Hall

Printmakers from Alan Birch's Prospect Studio workshops were asked to create new work inspired by Towneley Hall in Burnley an exhibition called 'Impressions: A Printmaking Response to Towneley'.

The exhibition was due to open in April 2020, however the opening was delayed, like so many things in 2020, owing to the coronavirus pandemic.

The journey began for me in January 2020, when I visited Towneley Hall for the first time. It's set in stunning parklands and, even on a bitterly cold January day, the gardens were busy with local families out for a stroll. This window, in particular, caused much amusement with local children - and caught my interest as a result.

Towneley Hall in Burnley

The window - from inside

The window from outside at Towneley

Back at Prospect Studio, I worked up the image into a 2 plate linocut, which after a number of trials, I decided to print in gold and green.

This became my 'cheeky' submission to the 'Impressions' exhibition. 

'That Window' an original linocut by Carolyn Murphy

I visited the exhibition in September 2020 and loved the quality and quirkiness of the work from all the Prospect Printmakers who took part. I had the chance to view the exhibition in the next gallery, which included local watercolours by Turner. It was a fantastic day out, between phases of Covid-19 lockdown - and fantastic to see the exhibition and Hall so well supported by the whole community.

To learn more about my work, please check out my website www.carolynmurphy.co.uk where you'll find my gallery, online shop and links to my social media.

Cutting Edge Linocuts

It's a rare treat to see so many Grosvenor School prints in one place, so I visited Dulwich Picture Gallery in London to see 'Cutting Edge - Modernist British Printmaking' exhibition this month. The Grosvenor School of Modern Art was a private art school in London founded in 1925. 

I am a big fan of the Grosvenor School printmakers and I was not disappointed! The exhibition was large and I bought the book, to take away and study more at my leisure.

Claude Flight taught at the Grosvenor School and he pioneered, popularised and promoted linocut printmaking, bringing affordable art to the masses and showed the versatility of this 'new' linoleum material. Students included Sybil Andrews, Cyril Power, Lill Tschudi and Ethel Spowers. 

'Speed', linocut by Claude Flight 

Here are just a few more images to act as a reminder for me - and to share with you. They show the wonderful movement, excitement and vibrant colours, typical of these modern printmakers. 

'The Merry-Go-Round', linocut by Cyril Power

'Concert Hall', linocut by Sybil Andrews

'The Eight', linocut by Cyril Power

'In Full Cry', linocut by Sybil Andrews

'Wet Afternoon', linocut by Ethel Spowers

It was an inspiring visit to a lovely gallery. I could have stayed for several weeks!

Behind the Scenes on my Twitter Art Exhibition Postcard 2019

2019 was my third year of contributing art to support the Twitter Art Exhibition and its chosen charities.

Here I'll show you more about the development of this year's work, 'Above Ullswater' - an original one-off piece of work, from a one plate linocut, printed onto a monoprint background. 

Let's start with the location itself. It's high on the fells in an exposed spot. We visited friends nearby and walked up right from their door. 

Ullswater in the distance

I decided to explore this image and the composition initially in a drypoint 'sketch', before going on to cut the lino plate itself and play with mono-printing backgrounds.

Exploring the subject in drypoint

Testing out ways to mono print backgrounds

These were some I felt worked best for starters

In the studio I tried a range of mono printed backgrounds, drawing on the colours of the landscape, some redder, some darker. I then selected one image for my Twitter Art Exhibition 2019 submission - and posted it off.

Exploring backgrounds

A range from which to select the one

My #TAE19 donation 'Above Ullswater'

I was very excited to find out later that my work featured as a Board's Choice in the exhibition catalogue and that David Sandum, the founder of the Twitter Art Exhibition, had selected it and explained why. What an honour!

'Above Ullswater' in the 2019 #TAE19 catalogue

The full page with Board's Choice text

If you would like a very quick flick into the catalogue, to see some other favourites, you can see a bit more in this short video:

To learn more about my work, please check out my website www.carolynmurphy.co.uk where you'll find my gallery, online shop and links to my social media.