Residency artist – Sebastian Thomas
På måndag kommer konstnären Sebastian Thomas från Reading i Storbritannien, till Nordingrå Konstby för en arbetsvistelse i residenset. Här kan du läsa Sebastians artist statement där han bland annat berättar vad han planerar att göra under vistelsen och varför Nordingrå lockade (engelska).
My practice centres on the process of assemblage and encompasses sculpture, installation, painting and collage. I construct physical landscapes, populated with semi-fictional objects and characters as a means with which to explore the possibilities of transformation inherent in both material and the human body. Things, though they seem concrete, always have the potential to change. They can melt, be deconstructed, degrade, lose their functions or become imbued with a new significance through an altered context. To create my work, I use simple materials and found objects; the left-overs, off cuts and overlooked things. My recent sculptures explore this though the parallel transformative qualities of recycled metal and clay in processes of casting and modelling, in an attempt to capture both the physicality of the material and the labour of our bodies. A DYCP grant in 2021 helped me achieve a step change within my practice; by undertaking residencies to learn the basics of metal casting, ceramics and blacksmithing, and supporting me to build my own mini furnace from scratch. This has allowed me to develop unique casting processes as I can control and experiment with all aspects of casting metal from mould making to pouring and finishing.
I chose to do a residency at Nordingra Konstby as I’ve always wanted to experience the beauty of the Swedish coastline. I love the feeling of isolation that you get when you’re in the natural landscape. I find this way of being helps me focus on my practice by having time away form the noise and pressures of living in a city. I have an exhibition opening later this year at Quench Gallery in Margate, UK and I wanted to take some time out to focus on preparations for the show. The exhibition will consist of new paintings, collages and metal and ceramic sculptures,. I wanted to use my two weeks on the residency to focus solely on making the paintings for the show as well as some preparatory drawings for the sculptural elements. And because I love working in metal, if there was an opportunity to use the foundry at Nordingra I wouldn’t pass it up!
Recent exhibition highlights include Realm of Dusk, 571 Gallery, Reading, UK, 2024; A New Face in Hell, ESW, Edinburgh, UK, 2023; A Tally of Distempered Parts, ASC Gallery, London, UK, 2023; Golem, Lot Projects, London, UK, 2022; The Necker, APT Gallery, London, UK, 2021; MK Calling, MK Gallery, Milton Keynes, UK, 2020; The Weather Garden, The Towner Gallery, Eastbourne, UK, 2019; Wild Service, Kingsgate Project Space, London, UK, 2019 and Troglodyte Antiphon at Intercession Gallery, Northampton, UK, 2019; A Casual Texture, OUTSET Baker Street, London, UK, 2018.
In 2021 Thomas was a recipient of the Arts Council’s Develop Your Creative Practice Award which saw him undertake various residencies across Scotland including Cove Park, Scottish Sculpture Workshop and Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop and build a small foundry in Reading where he’s working collaboratively with other artists. He graduated with an MA from Camberwell College of Art in 2017.
Du hittar mer information om Sebastian Thomas här:
Hemsida: www.sebastianthomas.co.uk
Instagram: @sebastian_thomas_art
Foto: Sebastian Thomas