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The Hindu
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Artist Ravikumar Kashi's works bring a layered depth to paper
The fragility of paper, the endurance of a word, and the versatility of both. Bengaluru-based artist Ravikumar Kashi brings all of that together and then some, in his exhibition We Don't End At Our Edges. Currently on display at the Museum of Art and Photography, the exhibits are unlike any you may have encountered before. Delicate and lace-like, the works seem more crocheted together than crafted out of paper pulp. A discerning eye will catch letters of the Kannada alphabet peeking out from the tangled mass of squiggles. Long lasting fascination 'Ever since I was a student in art school, I have been interested in paper making,' says Ravikumar Kashi, adding that he honed his passion after winning a scholarship at the Glasgow School of Art in 2005. 'There, I was able to study the methodology of paper making in depth. My teacher, Jackie Parry,not only taught me about preparing the pulp, making a sheet and casting, but also the artistic exploration of this medium.' Ravikumar followed this up with a stint in South Korea in 2009. 'They make paper out of mulberry bark, which is quite different and rather strong.' Having worked with paper for over 25 years, Ravikumar says his aim was to master pulp painting. 'I spent around five to six years trying to perfect the consistency and viscosity of the medium, but it was quite challenging.' Then, in June 2023, while aiding a workshop participant, he stumbled on the right formula. While conventional paper making is dependent on a vat and screen, Ravikumar's idea allowed him to squeeze pulp from a piping bag of sorts. 'Consistency is of paramount importance. If it is too watery, you will be unable to lift it off the surface it is created on,' says the artist, whose earlier works were created on a pre-existing base. The works exhibited at We Don't End At Our Edges are free form and free flowing, taken off the worktable much like 'a dosa off a griddle.' Forging ahead Thrilled with the possibilities this media opened up, Ravikumar says he began experimenting and exploring with ways to create. 'With the practical aspects taken care of, content that mirrored my work started falling in place. In many of my earlier paintings, I would use text to support the image, sometimes adding layers to the piece. Since Kannada is my mother tongue, it occurred quite organically in my work,' he says. He recalls how a logo he had worked on — of a window made of alphabets — brought to mind the premise that language is a window through which one looks out at the world and observes it. Ravikumar began using the pulp to write. 'In my work, the paper or the container becomes the text and the content, shifting from its normal passive white surface,' he says. He adds that his method of paper making does not involve the use of chemicals, but natural plant or textile fibres which results in a sturdy, long-lasting medium. Less is more Elaborating on his work, Ravikumar says his works are not 'text heavy' in a manner of speaking. 'I want it to be seen as a visual aid, a metaphor, through which I can bring in other elements, such as the idea of porosity.' 'We use language to define ourselves; our mother tongue especially, becomes our identity and comfort zone. When somebody looks at these works, I want them to respond to the the delicate nature of paper, its fragility and ephemeral nature.' The idea, he says, is to bring material and content together, evoking a sensation of wonder in the viewer. 'Visual poetry comes from under definition of the content,' says Ravikumar. He adds, 'One will find references in my work, but they stop at the hint of a suggestion.' Show and tell The idea of titling the work We Don't End At Our Edges was to 'emphasise on the idea of porosity — in our bodies, our thoughts and emotions, language and so on, because we all give and take.' The fluidity of the pieces on display, is testament to Ravikumar's ideology. 'These pieces will look different each time they are put for display, their interpretation varying with the space it is displayed in, as well as the play of light and shadow. Much like in an oral tradition, there is a freedom to change — to add and detract. It is not constant.' The process of creating is quite slow, says the artist who adds acrylic colour to the pulp before he begins crafting his pieces. However, there are some, such as the showstopper at MAP titled Liminal Membrane made from the Daphne bush in Nepal, and another piece crafted out of cotton rag pulp, which are in their natural hues of beige or white. The rest of the piece on display at MAP are untitled and have been made with a combination of fibre pulp and pigments. 'In my earlier work, I would try to make the pulp stronger in competition with other material I would be using, but this show highlights the delicate nature of paper,' says the artist who plans to work with natural and organic colours in his upcoming creations. We Don't End At Our Edges will be on display at the Museum of Art and Photography till June 15.
Glasgow Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
Glasgow School of Art lecturer to launch book and exhibition
Fiona Robertson, a lecturer in the painting and printmaking department since the late 1990s, has encapsulated her experiences in a book of drawings titled INSIDE JOB: Memories of an Art School. Some of these drawings have been reworked for an exhibition at the Beacon Arts Centre in Greenock. (Image: Christopher Bowen) The book features 100 drawings that fictionalise her memories, describing her experience of teaching fine art and exploring the dual role of artist and teacher. It also reflects on life at the art school, the impact of the two devastating fires in 2014 and 2018, and the Covid pandemic of 2020. Ms Robertson said: "I have been at the Glasgow School of Art for 28 years. (Image: Christopher Bowen) "It is a fantastic privilege to teach there. It is an exciting place to learn and to meet people from all over the world. "The last 10 years have been difficult. The fires had a huge impact. "We perhaps didn't understand what we had in the Mac building until it was gone. 'It was an amazing building. It had a huge sense of tradition. Almost a presence in itself." (Image: Christopher Bowen) She will launch her book and give guests a walkthrough of her exhibition at a free event at the Beacon at 11am on Wednesday, May 28. Tickets for the talk and exhibition are free, but can be pre-booked here. Her show expands on the work in her book, using painting and printmaking to explore materiality and impressions of memories and dreams. Ms Robertson added: "It is exciting for me to have a show of painting. "Many of the works are reworkings of my drawings in the book, but translated into a different medium. "It is more expressive and colourful and imaginative, compared to the graphic and linear nature of the drawings." The Beacon, which was recently awarded multi-year funding from Creative Scotland to support its work, has an annual programme of visual arts exhibitions. The programme is overseen by guest curator Fraser Taylor, who is an honorary professor at the Glasgow School of Art and was previously visiting artist and adjunct professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Mr Taylor said: "We are delighted to bring Fiona's work to the Beacon. "Fiona's work promises to inspire and delight audiences – and we are all looking forward to hearing her take on life as a teacher and artist at the GSA."
Glasgow Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
Glasgow student's fashion showcased at Cannes Film Festival
Ella Sharp, a student at Hillhead High School, wowed international audiences with her design, The Joanie, showcased as part of the Junk Kouture initiative — a global youth fashion movement celebrating creativity and sustainability. Crafted from foil blankets and race numbers, Ella's eye-catching design stood out among the celebrity glitz of Cannes, demonstrating the power of fashion with a purpose. Read more: Glasgow School of Art lecturer turns 28 years of memories into bold new show (Image: Brian McEvoy) (Image: Brian McEvoy) Junk Kouture featured eight show-stopping designs on the red carpet, created by secondary school students from the UK, Ireland, Italy, and Monaco — each outfit built from repurposed waste materials. Discarded crisp packets were transformed into a piece called Silver Lining by Lara Keena and Hannah Martin from Westmeath, Ireland, while over 1,500 plastic milk bottle caps were used to construct End of an Era by Carys Clutterbuck, Hannah Pugh, and Chiedza Makuto from Stroud, UK. Other designs included Nespresso Yourself by Irish students Jamie O'Grady and Nichola Fitzpatrick, made from aluminium coffee pods and bags, and Marée Noire by Monaco students Daniela Pagotto and Nathanaël Sargenti, built from sea glass, plastic bottles, and buttons. The striking designs, paraded alongside film stars and influencers, underscored a vital message about sustainable living and circular fashion. Junk Kouture challenges students to rethink waste, transforming everyday discarded materials into innovative fashion. (Image: Brian McEvoy) (Image: Brian McEvoy) Read more: Glasgow event celebrates £2.9m investment in STEM education The initiative aims to not only foster creativity but to raises awareness of the environmental impact of fast fashion and promote alternatives where nothing is wasted, and everything is valued. For Ella and her fellow creators, walking the red carpet in Cannes marked a milestone moment — showcasing that bold ideas and responsible fashion can take centre stage on the world's most iconic platforms. To find out more about the movement, the Junk Kouture website or follow @junkkouture on social media.
The Herald Scotland
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Scots rep at the Beeb has horror of cannae Scots
An Observer article from 2001 describes her at that time as having bristling bleached hair, 'an inquisitive face and a mouthful of insults'. It added: 'Even her Scottish accent seemed bracingly unemollient.' Unemollient, aye. For long, she was a bit Channel 4. Now she's maybe more Radio 4, perhaps even Classic FM. Happens to us all. Muriel was once sceptical of the Glorious Union with England before voting for it in 2014. She was the first female Rector of Embra Yoonie and first female chair of the board of governors at Glasgow School of Art. First, though, she was born on 30 August 1958 in the international leisure resort of East Kilbride. In 1966, she presented The Wondering Jew, a Channel 4 documentary tracing Jewish roots on her mother's side to Moldova. After graduating from Glasgow School of Art, she worked as a professional illustrator and then assistant head of design in the National Museum of Antiquities. Heavily influenced by The Sound of Music, she joined psychedelic punk band The Family Von Trapp before becoming, in 1982, a presenter on the aforementioned Tube. Other gigs included ITV Border show Bliss, Frocks on the Box, The Media Show and The Munro Show, aboot big hills an' that. Yet more TV programmes included Ride On, a motoring magazine show for Channel 4, the BBC's Design Awards, and the Booker Prize awards for Channel 4. Art Is Dead – Long Live TV, supposedly covering the work of five artists, sparked controversy when it was revealed to be a spoof. ROYAL APPROVAL GRAY has written columns for Time Out, the Sunday Herald and The Guardian but became a proper writer and best-selling horror novelist with publication of The Trickster (1994). This was followed by Furnace (1996) and The Ancient (2000). Stephen King described the latter as 'scary and unputdownable'. The action takes place on a trash-transporting supertanker whose fetid holds contain a right bad monster. Oooh! But why horror, for pity's sake? She's not as ashamed of it as she should be: 'I know it's usually a male thing, but I've loved horror since I was nine or 10,' she told the Observer. Her horror is grounded in everyday life: 'There's nothing more frightening than your safe haven being threatened by something dark.' Terrible way to speak about Jehovah's Witnesses. Her non-fiction includes The First Fifty – Munro Bagging Without A Beard and a history of Glasgow's Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. She started her own production company in 1989, originally named Gallus Besom, becoming Ideal World in 1993, but merging in 2004 with Wark Clements to form IWC Media, which was then sold to RDF Media. Do keep up. In 2007, she caused a furore when, on becoming 'ambassador' for a Scottish tourist organisation, she claimed incredibly that Scotland is blighted by 'rowdy, horrible, frightening drunks', 'grumpy unhelpful service', graffiti and vandal-infested streets. Never heard the like. Except in my own mind. It was time, she said, for Scots to adopt a more enthusiastic, can-do attitude when it comes to welcoming visitors. Whae, us? The cannae Scots? Muriel's considered remarks prompted one tourism expert in Scotland to engage in whataboutery, averring that places like Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle and York were worse. Crivvens, we can't even come first at being obnoxious. READ MORE: Robert McNeil: I detest yon Romans but I dig excavating their wee fortlets RAB MCNEIL'S SCOTTISH ICONS: John Knox – the fiery preacher whose pal got burnt at the stake Rab McNeil: All this talk about celebs and their neuroses is getting on my nerves WORK OF ART IN 2018, she was made to become a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and, in 2021, stepped down as chair of the Glasgow School of Art after eight years, saying that it had been 'the greatest honour', yada-yada. During her time, the Rennie Macintosh-designed school was hit twice by major fires. After the second, the board faced criticism over its stewardship of the building, and Gray appeared before a Scottish parliamentary inquiry in 2018 to defend its role. In 2022, she was appointed to represent Scotland on the Board of the BBC. Respected former BBC journalist Kenneth Macdonald described the appointment as 'brave' and 'not one that is without risk'. It could 'blow up in the BBC's face', he added culture minister Angus Robertson criticised the UK Government for the usual lack of consultation and for not providing a 'clear rationale' for the appointment. However, Julia Lopez, UK Minister for Media, Data and Digital Doodahs, said Ms Gray had demonstrated energy, enthusiasm and 'clear passion for the BBC'. Just goes to show it takes all MacAskill, former SNP MP, now leader of Alba, said: 'The BBC's reputation for impartiality particularly on Scottish independence is at an all-time low.' "ANTI-ENGLISH RACISM" GRAY notably opposed indie during the 2014 referendum. She'd come a long way constitutionally. In 1989, while rector at Edinburgh, she was accused of 'anti-English racism' by the Sun, a sensitive and delicate newspaper. "How could I hate people I love and work with?" she asked, adding that there was nothing racist about saying England was 'occupying and dominating' Scotland politically and economically. In 2021, responding to a tweet calling her 'pro-Union', Gray said she was 'pro anything that improves lives', adding: 'I'm just, like a lot of people, a bit lost.' Hey, turns out we're members of the same a long time, she 'didn't have the heart' for anger any more. Previously, she'd been confrontational 'just to see what happened', and enjoyed starting fights, 'particularly in print'. Bad idea. Lot of nutters out there. However, certainly 20-odd years ago, she would still get 'flamingly angry', her targets including the Catholic Church and fox-mangling, the peculiar 'sport' in which unhappy-looking hounds tear heavily outnumbered animals apart for the pleasure of aristocrats and social climbers on horseback. She'll still get involved if she sees someone in the street or supermarket behaving badly or abusively. It's called being a good citizen. Maybe X is the place for that now. In a recent post, after walking beside the Kelvin river, she noted 90% of walkers, cyclists and runners wearing headphones. What were they listening to? 'Who are these artists who out-sing hedgerow birds?' Good doesn't believe in yonder God and is disturbed by 'the dark clouds of religious fervour that are closing in again''. She has defined happiness as 'the successful fulfilment of duty' to husband, children, friends, family, while admitting this sounds 'hopelessly old-fashioned'. As do most good things.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Breast pumps, babygrows and unfinished drinks: the stunning parenting paintings every mother should see
Ten years ago, when the Scottish painter Caroline Walker was in her early30s, she noticed something happening to her artist friends who were having babies. 'They were suddenly taken less seriously,' she says. At the time, she didn't have children of her own, and she was sure that if she ever did, her life as a parent would remain separate from her art. 'It still felt hard enough to be taken seriously as a woman artist,' she says, 'without adding in this other thing, let alone making it the subject of your work.' She smiles wryly and raises her eyebrows. We're speaking ahead of her largest museum show to date – an exhibition at the Hepworth Wakefield titled Mothering. Now 43, Walker has built a dazzlingly successful career as a figurative painter, and is the mother of two small children. Ever since she was a student, first at Glasgow School of Art, then at the Royal College of Art in London, from where she graduated in 2009, she's been closely observing women. Rendered on intimate panels and breathtakingly big cinematic canvases, her subjects have ranged from bakers and beauticians to tailors and housekeepers – and, lately, the constellation of mostly female workers providing support during childbirth and early-years care. Walker began painting all-things parenthood when she became a mother for the first time in 2019. She was already in touch with London's University College Hospital about the prospect of doing a residency before she got pregnant, and during her appointments there she decided to focus on the maternity wing. The paintings in the Birth Reflections series are awash with cobalt blue – medical scrubs, disposable gloves and hairnets – yet within the coolly sterile setting is a warm sense of dedication. It's there on a sonographer's face, strained as she picks out details from a grainy black-and-white image on a screen, and in a midwife's fingertips, softly pressing a stethoscope to a tiny baby's chest. It's there in the anxious glance across the operating theatre of a mother newly stitched up after a caesarean section, and in the concentrated poses of the eight uniformed strangers attending to her and her baby. I didn't anticipate that I would be repeatedly mining my children for subject matter 'I was still slightly reticent about how it was going to be received,' Walker says of this newfound interest. 'That it would be seen as less interesting or a bit of a cliche: 'Oh, she had a baby and now she's going to make a load of paintings about that.' But I tried not to limit myself, just to let things develop, and now it seems very understandable to me that artists would respond to this life event through their work because it's such a big shift in identity and daily life.' Birth Reflections is one of four series included in the show. Another, Lisa , explores what happens when a new mother brings a baby home. Following her sister-in-law over four months, starting when she's heavily pregnant, these knowing paintings show what Walker describes as 'a more subjective view on the transition into motherhood and the domestic space in which so much of this time is spent'. Padding around in pyjamas; groggily breastfeeding in bed in the middle of the night; lounging on the sofa while the baby sleeps on you, vacantly watching television in the middle of the day. Meanwhile, Walker's work has become more autobiographical. The earliest painting on display features her daughter, Daphne, as a toddler, glimpsed through the window of the family's old flat in London in 2021. 'It was the first time I'd painted her, and the first time I'd used my own life as a direct subject. It was supposed to be for sale, but I felt I had to hang on to it.' She laughs. 'I didn't anticipate then that I would be repeatedly mining my children for subject matter.' Daphne, who's now five and apparently delights in seeing herself in paint, appears throughout the exhibition. We see her bobbing about in a swimming lesson with yellow armbands and froggy legs, and sitting at the kitchen table with Walker's mother, Janet, and a cuddly hermit crab. And playing around at nursery, initially in London and more recently in Scotland, where Walker and her family have been living since summer 2022. The title of the show is borrowed from something a member of staff at Little Bugs, an outdoor nursery, said about 'mothering' being part of their training. 'A lot of the time, I've been looking in on a subject as an outsider,' says Walker, who begins by spending time with women and photographing their days. Being behind the camera at her daughter's nursery was different: 'I was paying for another woman to look after my child, so that I could make my work, which in this case was portraying that woman looking after my child. There was a complicated relationship of financial exchange going on that made me think about how we value different forms of labour.' Throughout her career, Walker has taken small acts of unseen and under-appreciated work – plumping pillowcases, scrubbing sinks, buffing and shaping nails – and depicted them in oil paint on an epic scale traditionally reserved for history paintings. She does so by paying attention to paraphernalia as much as people. In this show's case, sterilised plastic bottles and breast pumps, half-finished drinks collecting on a table, fresh flowers still in their paper packaging, babygrows sprouting from a wardrobe like weeds. Modern motherhood with its all-consuming clutter. 'When I was at home with Daphne, I remember looking around the house and finding it really claustrophobic, just the stuff everywhere,' she says. 'There was condensation continuously running down the walls from all these things drying because we suddenly had so much washing.' She decided that this was what being a new mother looked like, and that she wanted to make paintings of it. 'Because it is a mess, but it's also visually interesting. It tells a story, and it's very specific to that moment.' A rare self-portrait shows Walker with her then six-week-old son, Laurie. She was about to put him down in his cot when she paused in front of a mirror and asked her husband to take a photograph of the two of them. Walker's reflection meets us with an exhausted gaze. 'I was so tired, and not having the best time, and it felt interminable.' She drifts off and smiles. 'Now every time I look at that painting it takes me back to what it felt like to hold this tiny little body and have these tiny little hands on my shoulder.' Walker and her family live in a converted farmstead on the fringes of Dunfermline, half an hour from Edinburgh, surrounded by fields of bleating lambs. Her parents are a 10-minute drive away, in the house where she grew up; she doesn't come from an artistic family, but she liked to draw from an early age, mostly women and the world around them. She has a small studio at home, and a larger one is in the works. 'It's a different setup to living in London, of course, but actually workwise it's pretty good,' she says. 'The way I work is different now. It's bitty, but there are lots of bits, and overall I probably end up with the same amount of time I had before, or I use my time better.' Will mothering still be her subject in a decade's time? 'I suppose these early years are so intense that it's natural they would bubble up into the work, but my relationship with my children and the intensity of my involvement will obviously change,' she says. For now, though, being a mother and an artist are one and the same. 'My work and my life have become completely entwined.' • Caroline Walker: Mothering is at Hepworth Wakefield from 17 May to 27 October, and at Pallant House Gallery in Chichester from 22 November to 10 May 2026. The exhibition is accompanied by an illustrated monograph of the same title, to be published by Lund Humphries in September.
