‘Be kind. Be resilient. Remember that mistakes are part of the process.’ – ArtAttack Interviews SOLO Award winner, Victoria Lucas

After following the progression of this year’s SOLO Award since the competition was first announced, we are so thrilled to share that a winner has been selected!

Hopefully, you had a chance to view the incredible shortlisted artists’ works on our ArtAttack App, which we were honoured to exclusively showcase on the ‘Curated Art’ page. Well, one of these talented creatives is now the big winner! We are thrilled to introduce Victoria Lucas!

Victoria Lucas, ‘Lay of the land (and other such myths,’ Detail of installation, Dimensions variable, 2016.

Victoria is a Sheffield-based artist represented by Mark Devereaux Projects. She received her BA (hons) in Fine Art (Sculpture) from Norwich School of Art and Design in 2004, followed by her MFA Fine Arts from the University of Leeds in 2007. Currently, she is a Fine Art Lecturer at the University of Central Lancashire, Preston.

Victoria’s artworks are often initiated by a physical encounter with a place, site or landscape. By concentrating on these contexts and their current or former inhabitants, she develops conceptual narratives that subvert and categorise events and myths using a site’s materiality as a catalyst.

We had the chance to speak with Victoria about her SOLO Award victory and greater artistic practice.

Advertisement

The MASK Prize. Creativity Competition with Prizes for Young People and Schools in Africa

 

ArtAttack continuously follows current Creative Art Competitions within the Global Art Industry. Our most recent attraction is to The Annual National Creativity Competition in Africa for schools and young people under the age of 25, which is the renowned ‘MASK Prize‘, endorsed by Kenya Ministry Of Education.

The 2016 Mask Prize is an initiative of the Mobile Art School in Kenya that seeks to promote creativity and innovation among the young generation. This is another chance for young artists from Kenya, Africa and its diaspora to show the world what they’ve got. Currently in its 4th year, the MASK Art Prize has been able to award and mentor a myriad of Kenyan and African artists through its competitions and expose them to the global art world. Next year, The MASK Prize will collaborate with Turner Contemporary, which will be very exciting!

This year’s theme is “Young People-The Creative Nation”.

Artworks are submitted online in a variety of media and reflect innovative ideas. All entries were in one of the following forms:

• Paintings, Drawings, Collages, Sculpture, Installations and Prints.
• Graffiti Art.
• Digital/Computer Art.
• Photographs and Photojournalism.
• Singing, Dancing, Performing Arts and Playing Musical Instruments.
• Entrepreneurial/Business Ideas.

Part of why ArtAttack is introducing you to The MASK Prize is due to the 2016 Award Ceremony that takes place this week on the 23^rd of June at the Michael Joseph Art Centre in Nairobi and some selected works will be exhibited in the UK at the Saatchi Gallery, University for the Creative Arts and Turner Contemporary.

For further information and interest in the juding panal, click these links: http://mobileartschoolinkenya.org/mask-prize/index.html http://mobileartschoolinkenya.org/mask-prize/how-to-enter/judges.html

ArtAttack are thrilled to show you the incredibly creative works of the 2016 Winners and Commended Artists.

2016 Mask Prize Winners –

 

1. Churchill Ongere, 23 years old, Untitled

2. Gitahi Kariouki, 21 years old, Embrace

3. Louis Nderi, 25 years old, Family Tree

4. Sidney Wanjiku, 23 years old, Women Power

5. Edwin Lyra, 19 years old, Chorwa

6. John Njeru, 21 years old, Abstract Love

7. Onesmus Omakar, 21 years old, Untitled

8. Edwin Wainanina, 19 years old, From The East Heavens

9. June Wambua, 22 years old, Black Leaf

10. Peteros Wasinde, 19 years old, Heart And Brain

11) Kennedy Kimani , 24 years old, Market and Beyond

12) Claire Njeri Kuria, 15 years old, Karen

2016 Mask Prize Commended –

1. Alan Madegwa, 19 years old, Thoughts

2. Lee Wanjiru, 19 years old, Untitled

3. Steve Wanjau, 22 years old, Untitled

4. Caitano Mbati, 21 years old, El Doret

5. Sam Mulwa, 19 years old, Mother Earth

6. Isaac Muraya, 23 years old, Nairobian Girl

7. Samson Lerosion, 20 years old, Leafy Samburu 

 

8) Bilha Simwenyi, 23 years old, Kakamega

9) Selina Onyando, 19 years old, Chai

 

10) Victor Mutua, 21 years old, Strength of an Eagle

 

11) Alvin Njuguna, 17 years old, Beginning of April

12) Ron Lukes, 21 years old, Devine

13) Joseph Makau, 20 years old, Swampy

14) Kibet Kirui, 22 years old, Ride and Die

15) Viva Mugambi, 20 years old, Old love

Jolyon Fenwick Commemorates the Battle of the Somme

The first day of the battle of the Somme (1 July 1916) was the costliest in British military history. To commemorate the centenary of this tragic battle, writer and photographer, Jolyon Fenwick has created a series of photographic panoramas taken at the exact position (and time of year and day) from which 14 battalions attacked in the first wave at 7.30am BST (ZERO HOUR) that fateful morning.

Gommecourt

Annotated by hand in the manner of the battle eld panoramas of the time with the points of tactical significance as they existed immediately before the battle, they powerfully juxtapose the hellish reality of the nation’s bloodiest battle with the pastoral peace of these ‘forever English’ fields today.’

ArtAttack had the pleasure to speak with Jolyon about his upcoming exhibition.

ARTIST OF THE WEEK: CYRUS MAHBOUBIAN

ArtAttack is proud to present our latest ‘Artist of the Week’,  Cyrus Mahboubian. Artists of the week are selected by the ArtAttack team from the diverse and eclectic group of artist users on our app.

After the great success of BeyondBorders charity auction held at BlainSouthern on behalf of UNCIEF, we caught up with one of the events star artists – Cyrus Mahboubian. Many of you will have already discovered the powerful beauty of his work, his has been a great hit on the app.

How did you get into photography?

I was drawn to photography from a young age. I remember asking my parents for a camera when I was 9 or 10. Then in 2006, when I was 20, my father gave me a beautiful old camera. I loved the object and resolved to learn how to use it properly; it’s fully manual so you have to understand how to balance light correctly. A few months later I bought a polaroid camera and became obsessed with making polaroids. The excitement I felt making those first instant photos has never gone away. I started exhibiting in 2010 and since then it has been a steady process of making work, exhibiting and building connections. I don’t think photography is something you can you can rush; you need time for your work to develop.

What draws you to your subjects?

My process is intentionally slow, which is a reaction to how busy and connected we are today, so in general I’m drawn to quiet places. Often this takes me away from the city where the pace is slower and you can lose track of time. I want to evoke a timeless feeling in my work. I like photographing certain people I know rather than professional models because you build up a kind of intimacy over time and the photos are more honest. Last year I made a series of photographs in L.A. that I called ‘Mulholland’ because the work centred around one house on Mulholland Drive and the woman living there. Mulholland Drive runs for miles along the top of a mountain and I was struck by its very particular atmosphere. Those images were about capturing the mysterious aura of the place.

You were recently part of the Beyond Borders charity auction held at BlainSouthern. Can you tell us a bit about that?

‘Beyond Borders’ was an exhibition and auction in aid of UNICEF’s “Children of Syria” emergency appeal. We got donations from 20 contemporary artists including big names like Diana Al-Hadid, YZ Kami, Moshekwa Langa and Ali Banisadr. Sotheby’s UK chairman Harry Dalmeny conducted the auction. All 20 artworks sold and we raised over £70,000. Since everything was donated, 100% of proceeds will be passed on to UNICEF, who are on the ground in Syria distributing emergency supplies to vulnerable children. I was proud to be part of it.

Which photographers and artists working today most interest you? 

To me, photography doesn’t get better than the work Sally Mann made in the ’80s and early ’90s, which was published in the book ‘Immediate Family’. I love her dedication to the subject, her technique and the extremely intimate feeling present in the images. I was impressed by Richard Mosse’s ‘The Enclave’ when I saw it at Venice Biennale in 2013, and by Nick Brandt’s new series ‘Inherit the Dust’, which I saw a few weeks ago at Photo London. It’s really moving. 

What are you working on now? What is next?

I had a solo show in Paris last month and I currently have an exhibition at the 11th Fotografia Europea in Reggio Emilia; it’s called ‘Wanderlust’ and is part of the official circuit of the festival. As for what’s next, I am showing at the ArtAttack launch exhibition and I want to begin making my second moving-image work over the summer.

-Alex Lebus

---

To see more of Cyrus’s work, visit his profile on ArtAttack App as well his exclusive Curated Collection on the ‘Curated Art’ page! GB link below or just search ‘ArtAttack – Share Sell Network’ on App Store:

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/artattack-share-sell-network/id1051315058?mt=8

For more information on the artist:

http://www.mahboubian.com/

If you would like to be considered for ArtAttack’s ‘Artist of the Week,’ please email info@artattackapp.com to find out more about the submission process.

‘I love simple, I love direct, I love energy, I love moving, I love speed, I love passion.’ – ArtAttack Interviews Cody Choi.

Following on from our Orson Kartt interview, the next exciting introduction ArtAttack made at The Other Art Fair was with professional dance photographer, Cody Choi. We were blown away by his unique approach to this genre of imagery. 

Not only does Cody focus on dance portraiture and theatre photography, he is currently the Creative Director of ‘Cody’s Moving Group’ where he takes the lead in movement exploration and choreography for all their productions.

ArtAttack is pleased to share with you an inspiring interview with the artist expanding our view into the collaborative worlds of dance and art.

Ashley Bonser – ArtAttack Artist of The Week

ArtAttack is proud to present our latest ‘Artist of the Week’, Ashley Bonser. Artists of the week are selected by the ArtAttack team from the diverse and eclectic group of artist users on our app.

‘Convoluted II’, 30cm x 36cm, Collage, 2015, Convoluted series

Ashley Bonser is a visual artist who currently lives and works in Western Australia. She is a multidisciplinary artist, creating works with illustration, collage and print media. Her practise focuses on creating collage works that showcase the human body, demonstrating the connectivity human beings have with one another.  Her work aims to present her subjects as intertwined, to show our ability to empathise and connect with each other. Using found imagery from magazines, she interprets images of people into a singular form.

I had the chance to talk to Ashley about her career so far, and find out more about her artistic practise.

Beyond TOWIE: Focal Point Gallery presents Radical Essex & ‘The Peculiar People’

To launch Focal Point Gallery‘s upcoming series of events and exhibitions, Radical Essex, a project that will re-examine the history of Essex in relation to radicalism in thought, lifestyle, politics and architecture, the gallery presents ‘The Peculiar People.’

The show, which traces the history of ideological and social-political communal living experiments throughout the 20th Century to the present day, opens today, 19th April and features an extensive archival display speculating on alternative living experiments from the late 1800s to the 1980s, alongside visual art, architecture, design and literature that relate to these counter-cultural histories.

To get an inside look into the exhibition, as well as the greater Radical Essex project, ArtAttack spoke with Focal Point Gallery director, Joe Hill.

Silver End bus. Courtesy Braintree District Museum

‘A big goal would to be able to create a change in the diversity and representations of race in fashion imagery.’ – ArtAttack meets Jazz Rakkar.

ArtAttack have had the privilege of recently meeting Nottingham Trent arts graduate, Jazz Rakkar. This young photographer specialises in fashion, beauty and commercial imagery. Jazz’s approach to photography commonly has themes surrounding form, the pose and classic photography styles. During his time at university, he also explored and researched themes regarding race and identity in fashion. Having studied with Jazz myself, I have had first hand experience watching his passion and talent develop.

I have had the chance to ask Jazz some personal questions about his photography for everyone to gain an insight into his process.

The Broad Museum Announces Its First Special Exhibition: ‘Cindy Sherman: Imitation of Life’

Nine months after Los Angeles’ newest contemporary art museum opened to overwhelming crowds, The Broad’s first special exhibition will debut in June with a comprehensive survey of the work of artist Cindy Sherman.

Cindy Sherman, Untitled #92, 1981

Cindy Sherman: Imitation of Life is the first major museum show of Sherman’s work in Los Angeles in nearly 20 years, and the exhibition will fill The Broad’s first-floor galleries with close to 120 works drawn primarily from the Broad collection.