CLAN collective
About CLAN
CLAN is a new artist collective that brings together four multidisciplinary practitioners who met whilst studying different disciplines across University of the Arts London.
Recognising the overlap in their work aesthetically and conceptually, they formed CLAN.
Creating across a range of practices, the four artists show sculpture, ceramics, film, textiles, drawing and artists' books. They examine issues of loss, both personal and environmental, that are balanced by ideas of hope and regeneration. Their approach to the everyday, the overlooked and the unremarkable prompts recognition in the viewer as well as inviting conversation and discussion.
CLAN Collective's first exhibition 'The Shape of Things' will be in the domestic setting of Gallery 3 - an atmospheric Georgian building in Old Town, Margate.
Caroline Penn, Liz Lowe, Ashley Goldman, Nicky O'Donnell
Caroline Penn
Caroline is an artist using photography, drawing and text, in films and books to explore themes of memory, absence and loss within the home.
She focuses on domestic objects, using them to reveal the hidden complexities of familial relationships. Layering analogue and digital imagery with text drawn from everyday conversations as well as technical reports – she builds up a narrative, revealing the emotions and stories behind these everyday objects.
Her recent work has explored the cupboard. Both the container and the contents. Both real and imagined. In this exhibition, she examines what has been left behind in those cupboards after parental loss.
Caroline graduated with an MA in Book Arts from Camberwell ,UAL and works from a studio in Hackney, London.
Instagram: @penn.caroline
Website: www.carolinepenn.com
Liz Lowe
Liz Lowe observes the natural world with a light touch. Her drawing practice is usually sculptural. Endeavouring to capture a fleeting moment she uses cast imprints, light photography, printmaking and found materials to present “real” nature rather than to represent it. She sees her work as contemplative rather than decorative.
She has recently installed two large commissions at Kings College Hospital, Denmark Hill, London. She says: It was a privilege to gild casts of plants and flowers from nearby Ruskin Park in works to provide solace to patients and relatives in the new Critical Care Unit.
Liz Lowe is a University of the Arts London Drawing Graduate who works from her own studio and Thames Side Print Studio which overlook the Thames in Woolwich. She continues to exhibit works, most recently in Edinburgh's Custom House Gallery and is currently developing a Dye Garden to further progress her interests in colour and fibre.
Instagram: Lizloweartist
Ashley Goldman
Ashley’s practice involves looking at the everyday, the unseen or unnoticed. Research within museums and scientific institutions, travel and being connected to nature all influence her thought processes and creative ideas. Working with a wide range of media, in both two and three-dimensional planes, Ashley selects the best process to reflect the subject and emotions she is striving to represent.
In light of the ever-present environmental issues that threaten our planet, she works to continually assess her own personal footprint as an artist, focusing on work that is sustainable or environmentally sound. Ashley creates art pieces that can be planted, reused and
repurposed, or by using materials that would have generally been discarded. Her works cause the viewer to interact and question what they see, or feel, giving them pause for thought.
Ashley graduated with first class honours in BA (Hons) Fine Art Drawing from Camberwell College of Art, London.
Website: www.ashleygoldman.co.uk
Nicky O'Donnell
Working primarily in ceramics and print, Nicky uses materials as expressive tools to communicate ideas - whether it be printing on tiles or a more meditative and abstract use of clay in moving image.
Her conceptual output asks the viewer to look up close and appreciate detail when addressing issues concerned with our environment, both urban and natural. Recent work examines Plant Blindness - a phenomena which demonstrates that humans don't acknowledge plants in the same way the recognise animals, leading to a widespread lack of awareness that globally 2/5ths of plant species are endangered and plant conservation is drastically under-funded.
Grass is a metaphor for Plant Blindness as it is often ignored, flooded with weed killer or ripped up and replaced by man-made imitations - its importance and beauty unacknowledged.
Having recently graduated from Central Saint Martins with first class honours in BA (Hons) Ceramics, Nicky is looking to broaden her practice, develop collaborative projects whilst continuing studio research.
Website: www.nickyodonnell.co.uk
Instagram: odonnell.nicky