Bath Spa University sponsored by Trevor Osbourne offers 15 students every year the opportunity to work collaboratively across creative practice disciplines to produce work for several major exhibitions. Students are selected from subjects including Fine Art, Performance, Music, Writing and Film Making. As a Fine Artist, I applied for the scholarship and was delighted to be accepted to take part in the week-long, fully funded residency with fifteen other creative students from Bath Spa. https://www.bathspa.ac.uk/students/student-finance/scholarships-and-funding/the-porthleven-prize

As prize winners we were asked to respond to the theme “Provenance” – the place or source of origin. (1860–65; French, derivative of provenant, present participle of provenir; Latin prōvenīre to come forth; pro-, convene, -ant) During the week we took part in a series of workshops focusing on different aspects of visual, written and physical or performed art practise. The aim of these workshops was to broaden our views of ‘art’ by introducing new ways of thinking such as looking at sound recording with Ben Ramsey and performance art in a ‘Making Scenes’ workshop with Robert Luzar. These workshops often took us away from our normal studio practises and tested new ways of producing art. I had never experimented or even seen much performance art prior to the Porthleven residency however having taken part in Robert’s workshop and making friends with Katie, a third year Fine Art student on the residency whose practise is wholly performance based I have become very interested in incorporating performance into my practise. I have also been inspired to begin to work with sound or the absence of it having worked with the musicians and the dancers on the residency.

‘Making Scenes’ – Robert Luzar’s workshop

Being at the beginning of understanding what my practise is and what things inspire me as well as what sort of medium I want to work in, I would like to furthur my understanding and broaden my interpretation of modern art practise not just in Fine Art but in other creative subjects on this residency I also hoped it would build my confidence in my own practise as well as developing it further. I really enjoyed all of the workshops and feel that I gained a lot from them especially confidence in myself and in my ideas. I also feel that the collaborative aspect of this residency was so important, I was able to work with students of different disciplines as well as those completing their masters and PHD’s, compared to me as a first year. 

Along side taking part in the workshops and working with collected materials from them I assisted other prize winners with filming and documenting works they were trying out. I worked mainly with Katie Sims (third year Fine Art) I enjoyed doing this as I was able to learn new skills with equipment as well as watch and learn from other more experienced students. I also started to think about how to inject my own practise into this new studio and environment, I became interested in the Geography and geology of the area in particular, looking at the rock formations as well as the naturally occuring lines which directly linked with my work back in Bath. Having spent such an intense week immersed in Porthleven it was exciting to return to Bath and be able to test ideas and work on pieces. I produced a series of prints in response to Porthleven as well as working collaboratively on a recorded, quasi choriographed, light, sound, interactive and visual piece with Katie.

 Collaborative work with Katie Sims- ‘Water Wall’ (still from video)

Once we had completed the week-long residency, we had to create a presentation reflecting on our time in Porthleven. I had to explain why I should be chosen for the second round of the Porthleven prize and indicate if I were to return what sort of work I would be interested in producing. Only seven out of the origional fifteen students would be chosen for the next round. The second funded visit for ten days, would involve responding to Porthleven in the ways we stated in our presentations either individually or collaboratively and by producing a series of responsive pieces. These works would then be exhibited at the Lifeboat Studio in Porthleven and at Sion Hill Gallery in November 2018.

I have been selected as one of seven students as a Porthleven Prize Winner, to take part in the ten-day fully funded residency which will commence on the 31st April – 11th May. This whole experience and for what is to come, has benefited me on a personal level, but also with the progression of my practice. It has enabled me to challenge what my practise has become and think about what it will be in the future. The Porthleven Prize could not have been at a better time and it was fantastic to be able to work and play differently in a fresh and inspiring location, with enthusiastic encouraging students and staff members. I could fully enjoy experimenting even in a sketchbook form. I aim to continue the original themes of my practice i.e the natural environment, but will also experiment with new forms of art which I have learnt whilst working during The Porthleven Prize.