Amanda Dixon

monoprint, acrylic and ink on raw cotton canvas
120cm x 90cm
Title Beyond Home

Andreas Eriksson recomposes his reality, in the process abstracting and adding to it something other than meets the eye. This echoes Philip Guston (2022): “What you want is … something. This enigma is what you want, this mystery.”

While working on thoughts on place/displacement, I rediscovered Philip Larkin’s poem "Here", about Spurn Point near my hometown. In this work I explore place and the “alchemy” of processes and materials that resist control.

With monotype, I enjoy the surprise of separating plate and print and of working with an unexpected outcome. Using raw, unstretched cotton changes how the media behaves as they touch the surface, as they dry, and as the canvas is stretched. The process felt like a journey and seemed to reinforce a sense of distance and a meeting of figurative and abstract.

“Through OFCAD I hoped to untie – or at least explore – the “knot” that stopped me working in anything other than a superficial, unstructured and uninspired way. Several experiences and revelations during the year informed my efforts…especially the Module 8 tutorials and the motivation and support of an inspiring OFCAD cohort – have gone some way to untying the knot and helping me find focus and direction. My next steps are to continue working along the same lines as the personal project outcome while learning and building skills in portrait and colour for a developing practice.”

STUDENT SHOWS

Amanda Dixon