Scuola di Grafica Residency Venice

Scuola di Grafica Residency Venice

Myth, Ritual and Theatre

In July 2017 I was invited to take part in the Academic Residency Programme at Scuola Internazionale di Grafica in Venice, Italy. I spent a month in the city absorbing the sights, sounds and smells, eventually creating a series of prints at the Scuola.

Around Venice there are lots of posters pasted up advertising concerts, theatre and art exhibitions. After awhile, due to the summer humidity, they start to peel off the walls, revealing layers and layers of older posters. Inspired by this, I de-bossed the torn shape of one of the posters and used some wooden type to print the words ‘Mito, Rito E Teatro’ or Myth, Ritual and Theatre, which was a tagline for a play about Dionysus that was being advertised in a Venetian newspaper.

The idea of Myth, Ritual and Theatre seemed to link not only with Venice but also with my current research into boxing. Whilst at the school I learnt how to etch from other resident artists and I began to create a series of small hard ground etchings of my great uncles, the battlin’ Marchants.

I also created a small etching of a broom. I was inspired by the old-fashioned twig brooms that Venetian street cleaners use to sweep the city with. One of these prints is now in the Scuola’s print collection.

 Some prints I made on the residency are still available to purchase. Please contact me for more details.