Discovery…

This weekend I went along to the Untitled Artists Fair at Chelsea old townhall.  It’s always inspiring to see work that other people are creating and it usually sparks new ideas of your own. One of the first displays that caught my attention was Urte Balcaite’s work.

I’m often drawn to work that inspires me because it has some cross-over with my own. Or is somehow the complete opposite to the way I normally work myself. My approach to printmaking can be somewhat chaotic and experimental. I love the excitement of the process. Urte’s work is small, finely detailed and so controlled and precise it demands close attention.

Her Animal Condition series of etchings are only 16 x 12cm but they display a skillful control of the etching process and the whole series is wellbalanced and varied in composition. I loved the contrast between the snowy fox and the townscape. But look closer and within each you will find a tiny animal hidden in the scene…

Intriguing and unusual they need to be seen to be appreciated. What I’ll take back to my own work I’m not sure yet, but that discovery made my afternoon.