About It's Art Call 2017 |
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Less than two weeks ago, art lovers and enthusiasts headed to the private viewing of the much-anticipated It’s Art Call exhibition for a captivating show.
Back for a second edition, The Cult House and D Contemporary gallery joined forces in an open call in which artists competed for the unique opportunity to showcase their artwork at the prestigious Mayfair gallery.
This year’s selection provided an eclectic range of styles from abstract paintings, 3D collage, sculptures, photography and more.
"It is a great pleasure to see the new group of talented artists of It's Art Call 2017, and the progression the artists from the first edition have made. I am very proud of this project in collaboration with D Contemporary Gallery.” Says J.A Neto, founder and curator of The Cult House.
A fabulous night it was, and yet as D Contemporary curator Mara Alvez explains, it isn’t as easy as it may seem to put together:
“The month of August is a tricky one, because many people are on vacation. But we had 200 people at the reception with a very reserved guest list policy. What can I say! We are very happy to have achieved such numbers! When we finished setting up the exhibition, I couldn’t help but feel very proud of the high quality of artists selected for this show.”
As a spectator, it was an amazing experience to stand in front of one piece, enter the artist’s universe and then move on to the next to experience something completely different. Almost like finding yourself lost in a galaxy, taking a journey from one planet to another, never knowing what wonders you might discover along the way…
Having a chat with some of the artists helped take me a step further into their world. Like my discussion with artist Rebecca Stevenson about her sculptures Coralline and Dark matters:
"I was really interested in making a sculpture that you would respond to with your eyes but also with your other senses - almost that you would want to eat. You can see on the white piece for instance, it has this kind of sugary surface. The works have a sort of ambiguous quality that in some ways they’re like sculptures, which could be marble or bronze but could also be sugar or chocolate or marzipan or some kind of food.
Not only was it an occasion to meet artists and talk about their work, it was also a great opportunity for them to exchange between themselves as Bella Vernon confirmed:
“I spent the whole evening having lovely conversations, and in a way kind of inspiring creative chance, which is really nice because you never know what you’re going to get do you?
I was also lucky to catch up with Kirsten Baskett. If you were there for It’s Art Call 2016, you will most certainly remember her famous paper sculptures that earned her the solo exhibition last year!
“Through winning the solo show, I have made some excellent contacts and met some amazing people […] This year it has been really interesting to be invited on the judging panel and be on the other side, as it were. It was incredible to see the vast number of artists’ work and to be exposed to the whole selection process. […] It has been one of the most valuable holistic experiences for me […] and I am extremely grateful to both D Contemporary Gallery and The Cult House for the opportunity to be involved in the complete process.”
Speaking of winners, a great big and well-deserved ‘congratulations!’ to this year’s winner Ian Rayer-Smith. Look out for his solo exhibition - running from 30 August to 9 September – Don’t miss it!
As Francis Bacon once said: ‘The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery.’
I’ve always believed there is nothing more inspiring than heading into the unknown. And that is exactly what I loved about tonight; I stepped in not knowing where I was going, and headed home with the certainty that the evening has opened doors to worlds of my own imagination.
Back for a second edition, The Cult House and D Contemporary gallery joined forces in an open call in which artists competed for the unique opportunity to showcase their artwork at the prestigious Mayfair gallery.
This year’s selection provided an eclectic range of styles from abstract paintings, 3D collage, sculptures, photography and more.
"It is a great pleasure to see the new group of talented artists of It's Art Call 2017, and the progression the artists from the first edition have made. I am very proud of this project in collaboration with D Contemporary Gallery.” Says J.A Neto, founder and curator of The Cult House.
A fabulous night it was, and yet as D Contemporary curator Mara Alvez explains, it isn’t as easy as it may seem to put together:
“The month of August is a tricky one, because many people are on vacation. But we had 200 people at the reception with a very reserved guest list policy. What can I say! We are very happy to have achieved such numbers! When we finished setting up the exhibition, I couldn’t help but feel very proud of the high quality of artists selected for this show.”
As a spectator, it was an amazing experience to stand in front of one piece, enter the artist’s universe and then move on to the next to experience something completely different. Almost like finding yourself lost in a galaxy, taking a journey from one planet to another, never knowing what wonders you might discover along the way…
Having a chat with some of the artists helped take me a step further into their world. Like my discussion with artist Rebecca Stevenson about her sculptures Coralline and Dark matters:
"I was really interested in making a sculpture that you would respond to with your eyes but also with your other senses - almost that you would want to eat. You can see on the white piece for instance, it has this kind of sugary surface. The works have a sort of ambiguous quality that in some ways they’re like sculptures, which could be marble or bronze but could also be sugar or chocolate or marzipan or some kind of food.
Not only was it an occasion to meet artists and talk about their work, it was also a great opportunity for them to exchange between themselves as Bella Vernon confirmed:
“I spent the whole evening having lovely conversations, and in a way kind of inspiring creative chance, which is really nice because you never know what you’re going to get do you?
I was also lucky to catch up with Kirsten Baskett. If you were there for It’s Art Call 2016, you will most certainly remember her famous paper sculptures that earned her the solo exhibition last year!
“Through winning the solo show, I have made some excellent contacts and met some amazing people […] This year it has been really interesting to be invited on the judging panel and be on the other side, as it were. It was incredible to see the vast number of artists’ work and to be exposed to the whole selection process. […] It has been one of the most valuable holistic experiences for me […] and I am extremely grateful to both D Contemporary Gallery and The Cult House for the opportunity to be involved in the complete process.”
Speaking of winners, a great big and well-deserved ‘congratulations!’ to this year’s winner Ian Rayer-Smith. Look out for his solo exhibition - running from 30 August to 9 September – Don’t miss it!
As Francis Bacon once said: ‘The job of the artist is always to deepen the mystery.’
I’ve always believed there is nothing more inspiring than heading into the unknown. And that is exactly what I loved about tonight; I stepped in not knowing where I was going, and headed home with the certainty that the evening has opened doors to worlds of my own imagination.
Article & Illustration by: Dominique Marchi