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University artists contributing to major visual arts festival

Fine art Masters graduates Laura Ellis, Cassandra Thompson and Mark Excell, creative collaborations student, Lorenzo Madge, former fine art undergraduate Chie Hosaka, and head of visual arts, Professor Terry Shave, are all contributing to the SYNAPSE Festival 2010.

The festival - which is taking place in some of the most prominent exhibition spaces across Nottingham, Derby and Leicester until June - features the work of 20 of the host cities' most exciting artists. Work ranges from painting, photography and print to video and sculptural pieces, with the event working as an exploration of the many approaches artists have in producing their work and an endorsement for the exchange of ideas. As well as many traditionally presented exhibitions, there will be one-off projects and collaborations.

Demonstrating the social diversity within the East Midlands and the richness of its artistic scene, the festival is a cross-cultural event, with regionally-based young artists from Japan, Canada, Cyprus and Italy exhibiting alongside those originating from the UK.

Explored through film, installation and interactivity, Laura Ellis' observations, participation and documentation respond to the positions she adopts within the different social realms in which she routinely operates. Cassandra Thompson's paper sculptures, paintings and print work, meanwhile, develop themes which have emerged from an ongoing fascination with the human body and its capacity for change, adaption and renewal.

The main theme running through Mark Excell's photography is the fallibility of human vision, with his work exploring the gaps and holes in vision to make people question their visual experience of the world. Current postgraduate student, Lorenzo Madge, examines the notion of memory and what happens when images, taken from memory, are projected into new places.

Work by fine art graduate Chie Hosaka is also featured along with paintings by Professor Terry Shave, which explore socio-political and historical interpretations of various sites.

As well as exhibiting in established venues such as Déda and the New Art Exchange, SYNAPSE Festival events will inhabit unusual, unfamiliar spaces. From unused shop spaces and cafes, to Derby's BBC Big Screen and the Royal Derby Hospital, the East Midlands will play host to all manner of exhibitions, performances, screenings, talks, tours and workshops. These will include a Postgraduate Symposium, designed to motivate the region's young artists to make ambitious leaps forward in their own careers.

The SYNAPSE Festival is being supported by the National Lottery, through Arts Council England, with additional support from Nottingham Trent University and other academic institutions from across the region, Derby City Council and Derby Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Professor Shave, who is based in Nottingham Trent University's School of Art and Design, said: "The East Midlands is fast becoming the hub of innovative visual arts projects in the UK. The SYNAPSE Festival is making a significant contribution to that critical and cultural environment."

Saira Lloyd, the SYNAPSE Festival curator, said: "It has been a pleasure to work with the Nottingham Trent University students on the SYNAPSE festival. Their unique insight and critical engagement has added poignancy to the festival and has contributed to the ongoing creative dialogue in the region."

Source:www.ntu.ac.uk|

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