Introducing the Amazing– “Devon Art Pop!”

Sharing a delightful entry and wonderful artworks today from my writer friend Sylva Fae, which appeared on her blog Sylvanian Ramblings a few weeks ago. Sylva introduced me to an amazing group of talented artists who brought themselves together under the umbrella group name of Devon Art Pop.

There are many groups of artists about, but most frequently assembled by field of study– a watercolor artists group, woodcarvers group, pottery group, etc. What struck and impressed me most about the Devon Art Pop was their mix of talents, crossing discipline lines to include not only artists but a poet, leather worker and wood worker among others. I would love to be in such a marvelous group and to be a “Popper!”

I strongly encourage you to visit the Devon Art Pop page and artists thru the links provided. Residents of the UK can check their appearance schedules and meet them in person! Follow their work and activities on Twitter and Facebook. Here is more information, as presented by Sylva Fae and Chaz E Arnold from Devon Art Pop. Beautiful and amazing creative work all around. Enjoy!

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From Sylva- I was introduced to the Devon Art Pop group by my Twitter friend Alan Prince whose amazing sculptures are featured in an earlier guest blog. I was then introduced to their Paignton Poet, Chaz E Arnold, who very kindly helped gather information from the group. In its time, the diverse talents of 20 different artists have been represented, and this is a showcase of just some of those.

Thank you to both of you for your help.

Sylva Fae x

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Devon Art Pop

Devon Art Pop is simply a group of Devon based artists who share conversations via the social media of Twitter and work collaboratively to exhibit our work through pop-up galleries across Devon. The idea is the brainchild of genius watercolourist Jill Griffin. Since Jill’s eureka moment, the concept has grown from strength to strength with new artists joining the happy band all the time.

The aim is to enjoy collaborating and inspire one another and hopefully sell a work of art along the way. The poppers, as the members call themselves are painters, leather workers, sculptures, metal workers, wood turners and a poet. The media used couldn’t be more diverse and include watercolour, acrylic, oil and textile.

Devon Art Pop’s pop up exhibitions are held several times a year in venues as diverse as stately homes and town halls to art galleries and high street shops. Up and coming events and more about the group and its members can be found at their DevonArtPop website.

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Jill Griffin

aka PocketPop

A lifelong self taught watercolourist, influenced heavily by Mother Nature in all her guises. I love to paint a big variety of natural things and particularly I am influenced by the changing of the seasons. From bare trees in winter, to sea shells, from pebbles stacked precariously to fish swirling in a mass. I also like to work in a semi abstract and illustrative styles, where I can use my imagination and hide surprises in my work.
My favourite work had to be a Barn Owl portrait I made called Curious Charlie- I loved his character that came through and his deeply curious stare.

I am represented at Mayflower Arts, Gallery on the Hoe and Homeframe Gallery in Plymouth, and I sell work direct via Artfinder as well as popping up with DevonArtPop.

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Chaz E. Arnold

aka The Paignton Poet and Poet Pop

Chaz is a poet and author and has written many novels, most notably The Hope Saga, a science fiction adventure series set in the 1950’s. He is perhaps better known for his poetry and is inspired by virtually everything but most enjoys writing poetry to accompany artwork. Chaz’s work can be found on Amazon and his poetry pops up in art galleries across Devon and occasionally further afield. He enjoys tweeting spur of the moment verses on Twitter and Facebook where he has built up an appreciative following.

His scifi and poetry ebooks can be found on Amazon and he can also be found on Twitter @PaigntonPoet and Facebook ‘Chaz E. Arnold’

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Alan Prince

aka Made By a Prince and Pair of Pops

I’ve had a passion to create things for as long as can I remember, becoming an approved craftsman and learning many skills along the way, years of wood turning and furniture making followed. Time spent working alongside a model engineer challenged the approach I took to my craft and gave me the insight to see things in a different way. The more difficult the piece the more I was up for the challenge, always striving for that unattainable perfection. Having worked with different medias, I have found my passion in recreating the things that I see around me with “spent items”. My chief sculptures are made from recycled copper and brass, drawing on my experience with wood to make formers to help create these. Being mostly self taught has given a feeling of freedom about my creations and I have now arrived at a point I feel comfortable sharing my efforts.

My sculptures and jewellery are available to buy direct from the Made by a Prince website. My work can also be found at West Gallery (West Putford) and Mayflower Arts.

You can connect with Alan Prince on Twitter @madebyaprince.

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John Fells

aka Woodpop

Working with wood is my passion. I’m predominately a woodturner using UK grown timber and some reclaimed exotics to produce a wide range of products and forms. I can’t help but aim for a fine finish on all my work to reveal the timbers beauty and I enjoy the finer details.

My favorite type of piece is a natural edge form where I start from a log and the bark plays a part in the final shape. (Although spinning tops may overtake soon as playing with physics turns out to be quite a curious activity, both on and off the lathe!)

My main permanent display is in Charlestown, Cornwall where I have a range of work. I also supply 2 galleries in Devon with some pieces; West Gallery (West Putford) and Artisan Homes (Modbury, home of the Devon Moths).
You can also follow my current work on Facebook (John Fells wood) and Twitter (@johnfellswood) and find other details on my website www.johnfells.co.uk.

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James Peter Millward

I am a Plymouth based painter. My love of the natural world is my driving artistic force – having grown up in the beautiful unspoilt valleys of the Howgill fells in Cumbria I was surrounded by nature. In many of my paintings I zoom in on the macroscopic scenes in order to try and capture that intimacy and energy of that moment when a person may stop what they are doing to admire “let’s say!” a ladybird descend a grass shoot, or the immaculate design of a flower. I believe all living things have a consciousness which we can connect with if we empty our heads of the meaningless trash of our consumer driven lives and take notice of this miracle around us, and it is that intimate connection between all living things which I dearly hope to capture in my paintings, macroscopic or standard landscapes, riverscapes and seascapes.

My preferred medium is golden open acrylics, slow drying pigment which act much like oils and whilst the process takes longer than normal acrylics the pigment quality and vibrancy is in my opinion unmatched. I paint in thin layers and build the painting slowly up to a crescendo of colour and detail, I love painting detail on top of diffuse dreamy backgrounds because when our eyes give full attention to a particular subject the world around it defocuses into energy and that is the “moment of attention” which I am trying to capture and isolate in my work. Though I seek accuracy in my work, real-feelism is my goal, not photorealism.

A favourite piece of my own is “Henry the darling bug of May”. I was sat in the heathlands of the beautiful National Trust Saltram Estate enjoying the peace and quiet when I was visited by Henry when he landed on a grass shoot in front of me and began to descend it. I was amazed how his little insect legs supported his big shiny ruby red body and carried him seamlessly down the shoot and away on his journey. Ladybirds are supposed to bring luck and we can all do with a bit of that can’t we? Ladybirds are joyful creatures painted with some of nature’s finest pigments and designs and it was a joy for me to paint “The darling bug of May”

My art can be seen primarily in Mayflower Arts 12 Southside Street, Barbican, Plymouth, where I am the artist in residence. My works are also exhibiting in “The gallery on the hoe” here in Plymouth. I also have my own website with all my works, paintings and abstract sculptures here at www.jimsculpture.co.uk.

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Emma Higgins

aka Lino Pop

I make lino prints from my little cottage studio. Most of my prints are inspired by the South Devon coast and so have a seaside theme. My style is quite simple and many prints feature blues and greys which are colours I am always drawn to using.

‘Coastline’ is my favourite piece at the moment. It is of Blackpool Sands in the South Hams.

Where to find my work:
From time to time I exhibit locally but my prints can always be found online at https://folksy.com/shops/BilletDoux

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Jackie Gale

aka StitchPop

Jackie is a contemporary textile artist who works from her studio in the South Hams. She produces quirky naive artworks using a wide array of recycled materials including anything from wood veneers to rusty nails, merino felt to window film. Along with strong use of colour she uses texture to capture the essence of a place or theme and tell its story. The fine detail in her work as well as the quirky features make it not only uplifting but truly engaging. Each piece can take up to 2 weeks to produce. She likes to research extensively about a place or theme she is portraying and customise her materials accordingly. Jackie draws inspiration from her beautiful surroundings as well as her passion for naive art. She feels she finds something new to capture in textile every time she steps outside her front door.

Since turning professional in 2012, her work has attracted both national and international interest and she was recently awarded ‘Up & Coming Artist 2015′ by the Fine Art Trade Guild. [Congratulations Jackie! Sylva x]

You can connect with Jackie on Twitter (@jackiegaleart) or at her web site http://jackiegaletextileart.com/.

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Theresa Shaw

aka ShawAboutArt, FlowerPop

Inspired by nature, in particular flowers are a constant source of inspiration that help me create bold, contemporary florals and landscapes in acrylic ink for vibrancy and energy. I occasionally use Hammerite and gold and silver leaf for that additional wow and my aim is to achieve multi-layered pieces that are never boring.