Picture Perfect

It's artist Ken White's birthday today. He's got a list of works and clients that you'd need the side of a house to write them all on. You can see many pictures of his Swindon mural works at the Swindon Local Flickr account here.

Here's some pictures of his canvas of Lydiard Park and House. Happy birthday Mr White.

There's Never Anything On The TV In Whitney Street

A new piece of street art in Swindon. It would appear that in Whitney Street, not every TV is a flat screen.

Alexandra Road Mural

This mural of Swindon Railway Station is just a few yards along Station Road.

Swindon's Regeneration : The Lost Treasures of Swindon

The science, mathematics and technology-themed artwork.

Sitting quietly amongst the wreckage of the old Swindon College, unnoticed, undamaged, were a few pieces of treasure. 

As briefly blogged about back in May, the stairwells of the main building had a piece of artwork on each half-landing. I don't know how long they'd been there, but I remember passing them on the stairs in 1999.

The music-based artwork can just be seen at the top of the stairs.

Sitting on pieces of plyboard, around 5 feet in height, the majority were in the main stairwell of the main block. A large landscape of Swindon was especially striking, with another being a collage of mathematic equations, chemistry symbols and scientific drawings.

Another was music-based, with musical notes on sheet music and portraits.

Does anyone remember the artwork?

I had intended to try and save them and possibly find a home for the pieces, but they were taken down in the stripping-out of the college.

However, all was not lost.

One piece, an abstract work created by a student was deemed good enough for a staff member to have it on the wall in an office on the 3rd floor. While on a site visit, I carefully carried it across the glass walkway between the main block and tower and edged down the crumbling stairs, passed the pieces that were not to be saved. In a large clip-frame, I carried it through town and took it home. 

It sits safe and saved. An often-asked question is, what would you save in a fire? What single, or handful of items would you drag out to safety. 

Maybe the question for some should be, what will you save from the regeneration? On demolition and construction sites workers often have the pick of items left behind or the few highlights poking from a skip due to go nowhere but landfill. 

The landscape artwork.

So amongst the faceless and everyday pieces of administration stuck behind empty filing cabinets and yellowing memos pined to noticeboards, the kings of these forgotten artefacts hung proudly on the walls, giving flashes of colour, creativity and the legacy of the college that will long outlive these pieces we lost in the rubble.

"Hang On A Minute Lads, I've Got A Great Idea"

With Ken White snapping a picture on the left and artwork designer Mike Pringle in the red, the assembled crowd of officer workers, Alexander House tenants and BMW staff look on.

I like to think that Mike Pringle, the designer of the artwork that now adorns the side of Alexander House, said the above phrase before sketching the plan for the design!

The much talked about artwork was unveiled by a couple of abseilers in appropriately windy conditions just after 11am this morning. It was heartening to be amongst a big crowd, with media, councillors, office workers, the Mayor and Mayoress, the designer Mike Pringle, Swindon legend Ken White (had a great chat with him whilst we waited), plus a lot of passing shoppers down below in John Street, along with a few Community Support Officers. Everyone was snapping pictures.

The second mini can be seen in it's blue cover on the roof.

The artwork is easily the biggest piece of installation artwork in Swindon and is instantly recognisable. 

The question now, is what will be the next piece of public art in Swindon, and which building will it go?

Swindon's Murals Make Right Royal Return

A new mural to Swindon's best-kept-art-secret collection has just appeared in the town centre! Above an office on the corner of Temple Street and Commercial Road, it's full of colour and has a royal theme.

In the sun, against a blue sky, the colours really stand out.

Swindon needs a new generation of murals, on houses, walls and offices. Who's with me?

Swings and Roundabouts

The artwork project for Alexander House has started!

Consisting of a couple of fibreglass minis and road-markings, the back of the town centre office building will become very eye-catching!

Come On Swindon!

A piece of artwork to showcase Swindon Town's appearance at Wembley on Sunday is being produced right now on Swindon's Whalebridge roundabout.

Mark Amis started off this morning drawing out from the plan produced by BBC Wiltshire after Graham Mack (the station's breakfast show presenter) wondered whether we should paint the town red for the big match.

Advertising Applications : Artsite Campaign

The dramatic lighting from the National Trust building does most of the work for us! Click on the image for a closer look. 

Art and access to art are not 'added extras' in life and should have the same importance placed upon them as essential services for a society.

So how do you change the perception of art as an 'added extra' and for a niche of people?

In a localised advertising campaign that uses the locations as much as the artwork themselves to challenge preconceptions and ask questions, that's how!

As part of the Advertising Applications unit fellow student Ed Howell and I took an advertising campaign for the Artsite Post Modern Gallery from conception through to execution, and all points in between.

The mixture of light and textures at Wharf Green suits The Green Man sculpture. Click on the image for a closer look.

Initial ideas highlighted the theme of hidden art in Swindon, that locally much goes on, but above the surface some people may struggle to realise the scale and depth of activities.

In short, we wanted to show how art in Swindon is on your doorstep - by putting it there.

For the full set of images from the campaign, click on the link to the right, or here..

Links

Artsite Post Modern Gallery : http://artsite.ltd.uk/

Ed Howell : http://edwardhowellphotography.wordpress.com/

Lights, Camera, Artwork!

The view from the corner of College Street and Regent Street.

The newest pieces of public sculpture in Swindon town centre since the fountain have been installed over the last few months and both are now illuminated.

Here's a quick impromptu picture of the College Street Gateway sculpture in all it's glory this evening, along with the pavement lighting which has recently been switched on.

Art often has to be bold and big to make an impact. Most people see the pieces during the day, but they come into their own during the evening when darkness falls.