The ‘What Is Drawing?’ exhibition held at The Customs House Gallery in South Shields ran from 21/09/2013 until 17/11/2013. It showed the works by artists from the North East, Cumbria, Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Manchester and London. The exhibition was curated by Esen Kaya and Dr. Mike Collier, Reader, University of Sunderland.
The exhibition expressed what drawing is to each individual artist and how the use of drawing is the fundamental basis of all art practice, even for contemporary artists. In recent years, drawing has expanded dramatically to encompass all manner of media whilst its role as a way of experimenting with, and challenging, ideas has also changed.
This exhibition marks the beginning of a longer term project where the Customs House Gallery aims to host A Year of Drawing in 2015, inviting artists from across the region, as well as those based nationally and internationally, to focus on this important, yet often hidden, discipline.
I think the exhibition has a very intriguing way of showing what many artists think about the meaning of what ‘drawing’ is. It is an excellent example of how broad any piece of art can be according to the individual artist, including the media and ideas they use.
The exhibition holds an interesting and varied range of ‘drawings’ and I most enjoyed the work of artist Jane Lee McCracken. Her art is inspired by memories, fairy tales, Russia and Eastern Europe, forests, animals and her continuing interest in war and loss. In the ‘What Is Drawing?’ gallery was a series of eight luxury dinner plates made from bone china called ‘In Homage to the Last Great Carnivores of Eurasia’. It connects to me on a personal level about the conflict of animal protection and the effects of hunting and poaching by humans illegally. Her work also shows the majestic and beautiful side of these astonishing animals; Wolves, Amur Leopards, Siberian Tigers and Brown Bears that were originally produced as black Biro drawings.
McCracken’s artwork is really quite unique and being produced on ceramics adds to that effect and steps outside the boundaries of regular ‘drawings’. The eight plates are lined up horizontally, creating a broad focal point and therefore each piece becomes equally as important where the impact of the sum is greater than the parts. The images are kept in black and white which allows the viewer to concentrate wholly on the image and meaning behind each drawing. The texture of the ceramics would be smooth and delicate; fragile, just like all endangered animal species.
McCracken wants you to feel empathy for animals and question the conflict of endangered animals in today’s society, while experiencing a hope for the future.
I believe that the ‘What Is Drawing?’ exhibition is definitely a brilliant way to show the modern ideas of the art world and the new conceptual basis of what the term ‘drawing’ actually means according to present day artists. The exhibition inspires new artists to experiment with the choice of media, ideas and the way they are represented.
Suzanne's Art 