Fantastic play

As a repetitive process producing multiples, print has long formed an integral element of many artists’ work.

There have been Andy Warhol’s silk screens and Tracy Emin’s popular lithographs, for example, and according to Julia Alvarez, director of the Bearspace gallery, which specialises in emerging artists, interest in print is growing again in contemporary art. Both the Zoo Art Fair and the Frieze Art Fair had a great variety of interesting prints, which sparked the idea of Print Now, an exhibition of more than 100 works by artists responding to ‘the print’, selected by connoisseurs including Alvarez and Kay Saatchi. On show at the London Art Fair and organised by Bearspace with Arts Council England’s Own Art scheme and Culture Label, Print Now explores print as a repetitive process and how this has developed within contemporary art. The exhibition includes sculpture, painting, print and installation. There are some interesting pieces with cut-outs from card and text pieces. ‘Look for work by Thomas Helyar-Cardwell and Graham Hughes. There are some fantastic innovative artists working with print techniques emerging from the Royal College of Art at present,’ says Alvarez. Joerg Obergfell’s work is particularly striking. His Fearless Luxury is a miniature sculpture of a tree, with a city nestled in its branches made from recycled cards and fliers. Sally Spinks is exhibiting a digitally knitted collage, and guest artists include Billy Childish and David Shrigley. The new work is ‘exciting, different and unique’, Alvarez concludes.

Print Now is on at the London Art Fair, Business Design Centre Islington, London N1 from 13-17 January 2010

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