The artist Name Surname at the RCA Show 2019
Visiting the RCA Show 2019 and talking with some of the newly graduated artists. It’s been hard work but they seem to have a lot of fun along the way.
Head scratching at Contemporary Art in the RCA Show 2019
The photographer Emma Angold
I love your body by photographer Rosie Harriet Ellis
Photobook and prints by photographer Ieva Austinskaité
RCA Show 2019
Huge variety of photography: prints, projected film, video. Straight images to installations. All sizes. Persuasive portraits and single dominant images, multiple small images. Just the one non lens-based image that I noticed. But it’s the opportunity to talk with the newly-graduated artists that I really enjoyed, it is far more rewarding than viewing their work only.
Much advanced photography... which makes the fewer simple but strong images stand out whether by abstraction and reduction to components or minimalism. Many artists statements: brevity is easier when you’ve not used to viewing a large exhibition. No obvious distinctions between originating on film and digital.
Over in the Contemporary Art part of the Show, extravagant art and detailed paintings are as glorious as ever. Extreme originality is the norm, along with seemingly technical perfection although causing head-scratching and other puzzled poses amongst the visitors.
Also in Contemporary Art I finally found an artist just being the artwork. Name - that’s his name - is simply being the artist so he is the exhibit, along with his degree certificate, photo and his newspaper cuttings. There’s a sound theoretical basis for what he’s doing, and he’s very right that what he is doing is challenging directly the common ideas of self-identity. The RCA have awarded his degree to him in his assumed name, which the bank recognises, the bills come through to his new name also, but Facebook and the Passport Office can’t cope. Far more extreme than me as John HikerBiker but great to have a chat with someone who has really thought this identity stuff through.
The people I spoke with will be moving on now they have graduated, they all said they thoroughly enjoyed their time at the college.