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SHOPPING: Welcome to art for wall
by Sarah Warden15/ 9/2005
ART is a matter of taste and over the last few years it seems
our tastes have been improving, as more and more people replace
their patterned wallpaper with painted walls adorned with
fashionable works of art.
But many are left floundering in a sea of choice as more and more
"interiors" shops open, selling prints and paintings for all price
ranges.
For those who want to get away from the crowds and buy real,
original works of art, another type of scheme is flourishing. A
regeneration project has seen the top two stories of Vernon Mill in
Stockport transformed into artists' studios, where real artists can
work and sell their original works to an increasingly wide range of
people.
Some say the mill has helped enormously in opening up the world of
original art to those who might otherwise buy a framed print from a
high street store.
The workshops are filled with people creating everything from
sculptures to portraits in all types of media, and many of the
artists sell works at affordable prices.
Doug Lowe, a painter based at Vernon Mill, said: "You could buy an
original work for less than £100, if that was what you had to
spend, and some people don't realise that.
"As an artist, you can't always price work according to the time it
takes. There are people who have put a lot of time and effort into
their work and they don't really care if it sells at all, so they
can ask as much as they like.
"Things like Van Gogh are investment art for a lot of people who
are trying to save on tax. That's a totally different world from
the average working artist.
"Some artists will sell wall decorations for between £200 and £300
if they need to make a living out of it. They need to sell a
painting every week. For others, like me, it's a second career so I
don't have to sell as much."
He said that Vernon Mills helped him, as it gave him contact with
other artists.
"People know they can pop in and have a look round," he said. "I
sold a painting to a doctor who popped in on her lunch break. If we
hadn't been here she would probably have just gone to a high street
store and bought a print, but instead she has gone away with an
original work.
"We are much more accessible and the mill is advertised and we get
opportunities to exhibit our work.
"The trouble with a lot of original art in shops is that it's mass
produced in somewhere like Portugal or China and will be shipped
over on big canvas rolls to be stretched, framed and sold for
upwards of £100. You come here and you get a genuine original with
a certificate of authenticity."
Another artist based at the mill, John Booth, who works with
bitumen, sells his work for anything from a few hundred pounds up
to £1,000.
He said: "A lot of people are starting to realise that they can get
original works for a reasonable price. People could get something
here that was cheaper or more expensive than my work - it's horses
for courses.
"Art is much more accessible nowadays, especially here where
there's a big selection.
"If an ordinary person comes in to see me off the street and it's
someone who's worked hard to save some money to buy a painting I
don't want them to go away and then regret their decision in a few
months. That would be a horrible feeling.
"So I try to put people at ease and I'll encourage them to have a
look around, even at other workshops, because it's important they
get something that's what they really want."
Where to buy
THE Manchester Art Show, which will take place from October 27
to 30, has been billed as the ideal place to find out more about
buying art in relaxed surroundings.
The show, the biggest of its kind in the North of England, will be
held at the Manchester International Conference Centre. It will
feature work from hundreds of new and established artists and will
also have information stands from various groups to give details of
the latest news and events in the art world.
Last year's show attracted 7,500 visitors, more than double the
total from the previous year and organisers Engaging Arts have said
the show will feature works to suit every budget, with some
original pieces priced from £100.
Caroline Burnett, director of Engaging Arts, said: "We felt
strongly that the general public, art buyers and the business
community are encouraged to buy art if there is a laid-back
environment.
"Our tremendous success last year proves this in both numbers of
potential art buyers through the door and by the amount of sales
made over the four days.
"The show continues to promote art to a wider audience and provide
artists with a unique opportunity for greater exposure around
Manchester and the North West."
CV: Artist John Booth
JOHN Booth sums up his career as a metamorphosis, and it
certainly is a major transformation from a roofer to a successful
artist. But his two careers have one thing in common -
bitumen.
John, born in Glasgow in 1942, moved to Stockport as a young man
and worked as a roofer, using hot bitumen.
And when age meant he could no longer work on the rooftops, he
enrolled at Stockport College of Arts and received a distinction in
his foundation diploma.
He still works with molten bitumen, but uses it to create
distinctive images on canvas which have attracted critical
acclaim.
John said: "I love doing what I do and I loved being a roofer, but
I got too old and became unemployable. I was fortunate to be able
to come and do this and to work here with lots of different
artists. I'm a working class guy and I had never done a painting in
my life while I was working as a roofer. I felt an affinity for it.
I had always loved classical music and now I have it on all the
time. I'm very lucky."
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