Megan Hoyle

It’s sunny, the rock I’m sat on is warm and I can see pretty far. It’s a view point so there are a few people milling around. The rock is just off the path and huge, wide and flat it slopes into an abyss of cliff and trees. I can hear the seals baying on the rocks at the bottom, it’s too steep and wooded to see them. I can see the rocky peninsula petering out into the sea, but the seals are must be closer to the land. Most of the view is sea, it’s glittering as the sun hits it, breezy. I can see the mainland in front and to the right, quite close, it’s wooded I think, I can see where the coastal road cuts through, but what sticks out most are the houses. They’re scattered and few; painted blue, pink, yellow and white. Vey Irish (can’t see the fuchsia hedges but I know they’re there). I am consciously committing the whole place to memory, staring and digesting the view. I want to be able to remember it.

I was in a show called EX at Leeds College of Art in September/October. There were around 10 artists, all of whom completed their foundation course at Leeds College of Art. The selectors selected eligible students based on their degree shows. This meant most (if not all) of us showed work which was in our degree shows.

There was some really exciting work. Ash Harris and Emily Illet showed a video of a performance. The artists were on separate screens in profile, facing each other. Both had their eyes closed and were moving as if bowing to each other, leaning forward and back. The seemed to be sensing each others’ movements and responding, very compelling. Romany Dear showed a work in which the audience were the performers. She asked us, for 8 minutes, to embrace absolutely everything. You took a tape player off the wall, put headphones in, pressed play, and followed instructions. Though it wasn’t like following instructions. The voice was whispering in your ear, egging you on, making you laugh and encouraging to explore the exhibition, the work, the space, the rules and expected behaviour.

As I had already re-shown my degree show pieces at Seventy Feet. I was pretty bored of the work I was showing. However the space I had to show in was such an unusual spot it allowed me to have some fun placing it and let a little of my boredom and frustration come across in the installation.

The work ended up awkwardly shoved into the bars of the staircase, it was leaning against the radiator and hovering just off the pillar. The extra canvas is hung over the banister and the medium dipped lattice is crumbling, dripping and giving up, falling off the frame and onto the pillar and floor.

SO.. Degree Show finished last Thursday. It was fun and there was a buzz and lots of good feedback flying around.

As the first time I’ve been able to create an installation of more than one piece of work it was a really exciting experience. In addition the work I showed only really was finished when it was installed. Combined this meant the curating and installing felt as exciting as physically making the work. It had the same feelings of playing and testing with the pieces then happening and forming themselves in the end.

The (in my head) main piece I showed was ‘Canvas Unpicked and Dipped III’ alongside ‘Canvas Unpicked and Dipped IV’ and a digital photograph entitled ‘Medium Behaviour (2)’

Have a look at the website/blog for more info/images.

I am currently preparing for degree show and assessment. Its getting exciting but terrifying and time is short!

Im attempting to finish two works, both of which explore the essential materials of painting. I have stretched a canvas, pulled the canvas off the frame and am unpicking the canvas thread by thread. When the threads are unpicked they are soaked in oil medium before being laid back over the stretcher. It’s very laborious but satisfying! Both works are the same process, one is a 120 x 200cm stretcher, the other 50 x 35cm.

All is coming together but installation on thursday will be a little nerve racking as I haven’t settled on a way of showing the works yet. Excited to get playing with them in the space though!