Random Paths and Sales

'Sale Fun,' acrylic on canvas, 92 x 92cm (36 x 36ins)

Yesterday my large painting, 'Sale Fun,' was installed in the windows of Hoopers department store, here in Tunbridge Wells, along with 9 other paintings. The brief we were given a month ago was to interpret SALE, and I had a lot of fun doing this! I started my painting with one idea and it ended up going in a completely different direction. The large, simple areas of colour and carefully placed figures represent a different approach for me, which is always good. The paintings are being sold to help the charity CHYPS (Hospice care for children and young people). I think that as we stood outside the windows yesterday to watch the 'live body sculpture' being performed in the windows, (which attracted much attention from passers-by), two paintings had already sold. No one knew which paintings but it is expected that many of the paintings will sell.

The night before the paintings were unveiled, I noticed that many shops had Sale signs in their windows, and yesterday most of the Sales began.

Unfortunately, my painting did not photograph well. I had to photograph it in a hurry as I was rushing to deliver it on Wednesday morning, and had just adjusted the colour of the vase near the top right side (it is a pale lilac, not white, as in the photo).  Luckily acrylic dries really fast. So I took the photograph of the canvas up against a wall, resulting in wonky edges. I could not crop them too much without losing important elements of the painting. The colours are also not very accurate: there is a deep turqoise blue in several places, and cobalt blues, and a lovely rich jade green. But the picture gives an idea of how I interpreted SALE.

After I delivered my painting, I had to dash up to London. My friend Gill Brown had work in the Society of Women Artists exhibition at the Mall Galleries and had given me a ticket to the Private View. When I arrived, she had just been given an award: The President and Vice President of the SWA Choice Award. It was much deserved as her sculptures are very beautiful and unusual. It made me reflect on the sometimes random nature of an art career. Last year I met Gill as I collected my paintings that had been rejected from the Discerning Eye exhibition. She was also in the tiny collection room, not far from the Mall galleries, and said to me, 'Not so discerning, are they?' It made me laugh and it was the beginning of our friendship. It shows how you can get rejected one year and win an award the next! I have had this experience too - I was 'culled' from the Axis artists' database in January 2012 (for not being 'contemporary,' I believe) only to go on to be one of 15 artists selected in June for an international painting residency at the Mark Rothko Centre in Daugavpils, Latvia. It was fully funded and one of the best experiences of my life, and my work is now part of the permanent collection at the Mark Rothko Centre, and not far from the original Rothko paintings. So for any artists reading this who are feeling discouraged, don't be - things can swing around the other way!

The window of Hoopers - promoting our paintings and Chyps charity

Axis update: public stand

Axis's new policy has resulted in a number of artists voicing their grievances after being refused membership renewal. As I said earlier, I have been with them since 1999. My complaints to the Charity Commission and a Trustee led to another letter from the Chief Executive at Axis, which said exactly what I expected, and of course justified their review of artists. What unsettled me was the implication that I was one of a few artists to be turned away, but in an article in the Guardian today it is clear that one third of artists were rejected, which is no small number.

I doubt that there will be any changes to the review. One of my grievances is that the criteria changed in 2005, yet it is only now that they decided to do a cull. I believe that art cannot be judged in this way, it can not be labelled and defined as a handful of this or that, like a box of pick and mix sweets.

The article should be in today's Guardian. It is can also be read at the Guardian online, at www.theguardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2012/feb/20/axis-art-database-culls-members?

(painting: 'Entrance.' Oil and acrylic on wood, 61cm x 41cm, 2012)

Axis artists database

If you Google Axis, you will find this description: 'Axis is at the forefront of presenting artists' practice on the web and connects with other organisations to run events, exhibitions and initiatives that benefit artists...'

I joined Axis in 1999. At the time it was neutral and the criteria were that you needed a formal art qualification and a CV showing exhibition history. I have been a member all these years. My subscription was due to expire on 31st January so I went to my account pages to renew it, and to my disbelief there was a message saying that I had been declined as a member as I had failed the new review process.

After clicking on the link to their revised list of criteria, I realised I had failed on the last of five - namely that I fitted the term 'modern' but not the term 'contemporary.' They made it clear that they had decided to review all artists who joined before 2005 (when certain extra criteria were introduced). Their new remit implied that they would still accept certain traditional or figurative based works. So where, in the end, was the dividing line? It seemed, in my opinion, that the organisation was no longer a neutral showcase for a diverse range of art, but had become a reflection of the selectors' tastes or ideas of what art should be. I had noticed that increasingly it showcased digital/photographic or video based media.

I put out a message on Facebook, and have had a large number of responses from other artists, and I am now pursuing the matter with letters to various art magazines. My complaint to Axis brought no positive result, so now I am fighting for the right of all kinds of art to be reinstated on this website that was started with public funding and still gets public funds. It is a fight for the individual's voice rather than collective opinion, and for the rights of the website's visitors to find a cross-section of art rather than a reflection of market place values or trends.

http://www.axisweb.org/

('Afiromeni.' oil and acrylic on board, 61cm x 31cm, 2012)