Ceinwen Birrell
Ananda Kuhn
Aaron Lock
Max Middlewood
Teresa Wells
Five artists examine what it means to be themselves, viewed from internal reflection and as perceived by others.
Perhaps the antithesis of how we often present ourselves on social media, the art in THE SELF is raw, authentic, created from the inside out. Unknowing of outcome and meaning, the artists typically have no preconceived notion of the end product. They activate a conduit between their inner thoughts and feelings and the physical representation.
In some cases, the meaning of the finished artwork becomes instantly apparent to the artist and viewer. It can also take further exploration before a connection is made. The artwork may be a conscious or subconscious response to personal experiences and expose a supressed mental or emotional state. Issues such as grief, identity and physical/mental illness are all represented.
To some people the visual imagery may be disturbing and difficult to look at. Others will see beauty in darkness. The artwork may also be seen as cathartic and even uplifting as we see resolution. In exploring difficult themes in others lives there is a likely personalisation that occurs from triggering our own memories or drawing out issues that are locked away. Maybe we can allow the art to help process some of our own issues or perhaps we simply enjoy playing the role of observer.
Ceinwen Birrell
“Our understanding of self is, in part, defined by the places, the people and the cultures that we are surrounded by and which in turn reflect back upon us, shaping our sense of identity.
My hopes and dreams and desires are inextricably tangled up amongst the places and people that have been beside me on my life’s journey and in fact are inseparable from the complex web of my ancestors and their communities’ lives and life choices. This body of work embodies my family, my community and my history, reimagined through my own lens- through my own unconscious filter.”
Ananda Kuhn
“As like as the universe, everything start from the chaos. In a chaotic system, small changes can cause large-scale effects, say the scientists. How do I play the imagination game? I steal myself, my dreams and memories are my sources on the searching-finding recognizable shapes game. Sharing dots without connecting them. There are shapes of things to come that have been gone. Mutations, imperfect copies from/for recollections. Creating new places, new landscapes. Time + space mental travels. Past, present and future associated by an amalgamation of gestures and synapsis.
What I respond to in my artwork is the struggle against my limitations. Its in the act of making things and doing my work that I figure out who I am.”
Aaron Lock
Aaron Lock is a contemporary fine artist who uses a wide range of media to create haunting portraits. Using paint, chalk, charcoal, collage and other tools, Aaron creates autobiographical representations that explore themes of identity, psychology, consciousness and the human condition. Aaron’s highly expressive portraits invite the viewer on a journey of introspection into the furthest reaches of the mind. An avid reader, Aaron takes inspiration and ideas from a wide range of literature in an attempt to make some sense of the world around us.
Born in Somerset, he studied art and photography in Weston-super-Mare before spending the next ten years playing in various underground bands. Taking the underground DIY ethics of the Bristol music scene and using it to promote his art, he has had exhibitions throughout the South West, provided artwork for releases by bands and indie record labels and sold work to collectors around the world.
When he’s not creating art, Aaron works in a charity that raises money to treat sick animals.
Max Middlewood
Max’s unique painting style creates its own mini universe, filled with emotion and intensity. There is often a mix of serious, thought provoking subject matter with humour and irony. His work is mainly created with oil paint but he also uses other medium, including fabric, acrylic, spray paint and the occasional piece his own hair.
Originally used as a way to cope with physical and mental illness, his work explores everything he experiences, incorporating figuration, symbolism, text and abstraction, all mashed together to form a sense of organised chaos.
“I started painting as a way to give myself a purpose during a time of chronic physical distress. It consumed me very easily and quickly became my one and only way of expressing my feelings and what I was experiencing. I now use my art process as a way to navigate the world around me and as a kind of self-therapy, like writing an ‘art diary’. Living with a personality disorder can often be hard to express with words, so my paintings are the best way I can communicate my internal turmoil. I use the canvas to bridge the gap between the chaotic mental landscape, the dreamscape and reality.”
Teresa Wells
Teresa Wells creates emotive figurative sculptures in bronze, that celebrate man’s physical and emotional survival over adversity. Inspired by the question “how do humans behave”, she draws inspiration from the contours of athletes and ballet dancers to emphasise a physical strength, placing them in precarious poses to stress fragility.
When combined with geometric architectural supports, in steel and stone, she shows a contemporary approach to bronze, lifting it off the plinth and making it appear less monumental and traditional.
“Every person seeks to present the very best of themselves. Hundreds of years ago it was in grand self-portraits and today it’s through carefully curated social media profiles. But this isn’t who we really are. When we’re alone and unsure of ourselves, that’s when our true humanity comes through. It’s our whole selves that make us beautiful - complete with frailties, emotions and imperfections. We don’t survive in spite of our flaws, but because of them. My work captures this duality of the inner and outer self that exists in all of us.”
