Helen Scalway, artist in residence 2010

Some symbolic ornament from St George’s.

St George’s Arts is based in an ancient, beautiful and curious church in Esher. It offers a residency inviting artists to respond to the building, its locality or history. I applied early this year and wrote in my proposal:

‘I am interested in making multiple drawings specific to place, seeking to work outside the frame, inviting the viewer in, sometimes to participate. I explore the way patterns in a place can overlie and interact with each other, suggesting movement between different layers of time, interlacing rhythms, memories, meanings. Drawing is a way of thinking and responding, so exploring through sketch books is important to me.’

In the week before the launch of the residency I spent time just being in the site, before beginning to draw anything. I also took numerous photos as these often yield up different and surprising treasure. Creating an initial display from the images to try and communicate my visual concerns to the visitors who attended the launch event has been a very good way of getting into the residency. The warm welcome and interest of the many people associated with St George’s Arts has also helped greatly. Jane Ponsford, the Arts Co-ordinator for the venue has been particularly helpful and, as an artist herself, very insightful.

On Wednesday next week (24 March between 4.30 and 6.30 pm) there is a low key launch event at St George’s to introduce Helen to some of the people who have supported the project; trustees, funders and councillors and some of the Friends Group who look after the building itself. After that we are officially embarked on this year’s residency.

If anyone is in our neck of the woods at tea-time next Wednesday do pop in for a cuppa or a glass of wine and meet Helen.

St George’s Arts, St George’s Church, Esher Park Avenue, Esher, Surrey KT10 9RQ

We are pleased to announce that Helen Scalway has been selected as our artist in residence for 2010. She will be based at the studio at St George’s Church in Esher working on her project until the autumn. More information about her work can be found on: http://www.vam.ac.uk/vastatic/microsites/1750_scalway/blog/

We are really please to welcome her and think her interest in making connections and finding links to things through drawing will be a very good thing for St George’s Arts which is itself going through a period of making connections and adjusting to change. We have worked with Helen to alter the conditions of the residency for the better, redressing the balance a little more in favour of the artist and we are looking forward to what the residency brings.