Artist Statements and Details

Helen Stokes (b. 1986, lives and works in Sheffield)

Helen is interested in the idea of ‘lyrical figuration’. She hopes that the ways in which her paintings deviate from realism can be described as ‘lyrical’ - she believes in those lies which are more true than literal truth (Van Gogh’s idea). "Such lies are ‘lyrical’ lies, lies which make things make sense in paint." Work from Helen's ‘Allotments’ series was shown and highly commended at the Harley Open in 2013, and in January 2015 she was part of an Arts Council funded group show entitled ‘Stillness’ at Bloc Projects. Helen was recently selected to exhibit in The Haworth Prize show, as part of the New English Art Club annual show at the Mall Galleries. Helen has been a studio holder at BLOC Studios, Sheffield, since April 2011."

e: helen.stokes@cantab.net
w: www.stokesfreelance.co.uk

-----------------------------------------

Andy Cropper (b. 1971, lives and works in Sheffield)
 
Andy is a realist painter concerned with issues relating to the ordinary, everyday and unremarkable. He captures glimpses, ephemeral moments usually unseen or missed. His paintings are beautifully observed, kaleidoscopic and multifaceted. "I'm a painter responding to the world around me and using what is in front of me as source. I'm not a painter of dreams, desires, distractions or romances." He was recently selected for the Harley Open, and has recently been involved in "Stillness", an Arts Council-funded exhibition, at Bloc Studios, Sheffield, and the recently finished "Overlooked" the inaugural show within the "The Scottish Queen" gallery situated in the Sheffield landmark Park Hill.

e: andy@artbyandyonline.com
w: www.artbyandyonline.com
t: www.twitter.com/Andy_Cropper
fb: www.facebook.com/artbyandyonline
tel: 0114 255 2037

-----------------------------------------

Sean Williams (b. 1966, lives and works in Sheffield)

Sean's paintings are views of the fringes of suburbia, places that feel as though they are familiar, but then escape our conditioned response. The scene switches between mundane and suggesting something may be about to happen. Recent group exhibitions include ‘Contemporary British Painting’ at Huddersfield Art Gallery; ‘@PaintBritain’ at Ipswich Art School; and ‘Picturing Sheffield’ at the Millennium Galleries. His most recent solo exhibition was ‘This Could Be The Right Place’ at Watford Museum. He has also been shortlisted for the 2014 John Ruskin Prize, the 2013 Neo:Art Prize and the 2010 Marmite Prize for Painting.

e: swseanwilliams@gmail.com
w: www.swseanwilliams.wordpress.com
t: www.twitter.com/SeanWilliams23
tel: 0771 136 5221

-----------------------------------------

Victoria Lucas (b. 1982, lives and works in Sheffield)

Victoria is a British artist based in Sheffield, UK. She uses media including video, sculpture, photography, audio and installation to produce work for both gallery and site-responsive, public realm locations. Victoria holds a BA Fine Art (sculpture) from the Norwich University of the Arts and an MFA in Fine Art from University of Leeds. Recent commissions have included projects for National Portrait Gallery, London; Bloc Projects, Sheffield; and Conjunction Biennial, Stoke. Her work has been shown in group exhibitions in Casa Maauad, Mexico City; Vapaan Taiteen Tila, Helsinki; and Bolsky Gallery, Los Angeles. Solo shows include 'Interruptions' at Grizzly Grizzly in Philadelphia, USA and Untitled Gallery in Manchester, UK. She is currently a Fine Art lecturer at the University of Central Lancashire.

e: victoria_lucas@me.com
w: www.victorialucas.co.uk
w: www.axisweb.org/artist/victorialucas
t: www.twitter.com/Victoria_Lucas_
fb: www.facebook.com/v.a.lucas
tel: 0794 749 9411

-----------------------------------------

Ric Stott (b. 1975, lives and works in Sheffield)

Ric works mostly in oils and is interested in the relationship between creativity and deepening spirituality. His work primarily explores the body, mystical experience and sexuality. Being located in the heart of the City Ric is beginning to explore what it means to find sacred space in the midst of urban busyness. He runs a community artspace in Sheffield city centre at 35 Chapel Walk where he has his studio. Ric's work has been shown across the country including Leeds, Sheffield, Winchester, LLandudno and London. Recently his paintings toured with Poet and Children's Laureate for Wales Martin Daws.

e: rjstott@hotmail.co.uk
w: www.iaskforwonder.com
t: www.twitter.com/ricstott
tel: 0779 569 4611

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Iris Harris (b. 1948, lives and works in Sheffield)

Iris works with text, stitch paint and newspaper. She is interested in the relationship between our internal personal feelings and contemporary external issues.  Iris has been a studio holder at Bloc for 4 years. At the beginning of 2015 Iris was involved in the Arts Council funded group show "Stillness" in Sheffield's BLOC Projects gallery.

 
e: irispharris@gmail.com
tel: 0114 258 9214

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Janie Moore (b. 1976, lives and works in Sheffield)

Janie is an artist located at Bloc Studios in Sheffield. She holds a BA in Fine Art (painting and printmaking) from Sheffield Hallam University. Her work is multidisciplinary and she utilises whichever media the idea needs, although she considers it all to be drawing. A point of view which liberates mark-making from the page, to be composed of interactions between many surfaces. And as such, is an embodiment of what she describes as the discursive space - the desire to connect through the provenance of shared experience, that state of coming from and returning to which inheres to an object.

Janie has shown work in Berlin, Leeds and most recently in the Arts Council funded group show Stillness at Sheffield's Bloc Projects Gallery earlier this year.

e: janie_moore@icloud.com
w: www.janiemoore.co.uk
fb: www.facebook.com/janiemoore.artwork
tel: 0756 385 3324

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------