Glasgow based contemporary artist
About
Biography
April, B.1998 is a Glasgow Based Contemporary Artist, graduating from the Glasgow School of Art. She studied a BA (Hons) in Sculpture & Environmental Art and a Master of Letters in Fine Art Practice. Recent solo exhibitions include the Briggait Glasgow & Gleneagles Hotel.
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Statement
My work explores the inherent agency of rural landscape, manifested through the transient nature of both its animals and materials. I live in a rural town placed between Glasgow and Edinburgh, which holds a rich industrial heritage, situated off of the River Clyde. My practice is rooted at the juncture of painting and sculpture, exploring these moments in nature of collapse, of renewal and regeneration, of land ownership & place making.
My love for colour is primary in my pursuit of art making and is something that I draw from landscape. As a characteristic of the lower forms of nature, colour is vastly mobile, an intangible sentiment which bleeds into the tactile values of art making. My process began and still does begin with a love for surface and space, it does so through a longstanding relationship with painting and drawing- Questioning notions of boundary, site specificity and materiality.
Quite often, I am masking off, I am painting and repainting areas of the canvas. The surface of the work is layered with a lot of information, finding this balance is something I am still very much exploring, as at one stage, the abundance of information can crumble into a sea of nothing. So there needs to be this blank space, which collapses and coexists with the other side. Quiet retellings of landscape exist within my work, small moments that perhaps would otherwise go unnoticed. The animal wool caught up in the barbed wire, the brightly coloured rope binding together specific objects. I am in awe at the vastness of nature, of class cultures and local stories, of which my ex mining, Scottish town resides. There is a question of agency and of materials in nature, stories of Post Industrial decline in an ever changing environment.
Education
2023-2024
(Pending) Glasgow School of Art, Master of Letters in Fine Art Practice.
2019- 2023
Glasgow School of Art, BA(Hons) Sculpture and Environmental Art. (First-Class)
2018- 2019
Tramway Visual Arts Studio, Foundation Art Course.
2016-2018
City of Glasgow College, Diploma in Contemporary Art Practice.
Awards
2024
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Wasps Studios: Most Original Artwork at 'Do you know who I am' Exhibition. Glasgow, UK.
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Selected Artist: Emerging Sculpture Award at Edinburgh Park, Edinburgh, UK.
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GSASA Student Initiated Funding Award.
2023
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The WASPS Award (Solo Show) Scottish Society of Artist's Show at the MacLaurin Gallery, Ayr, UK.
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Society of Scottish Artists, New Graduate Award (Highly Commended).
2022
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Barns-Graham Prize, Scottish Society of Artists at the Royal Scottish Academy, Edinburgh, UK.
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Duais a' chon mhoir prize, Big Arts Show, Paisley, UK.
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Midton acrylic's year long research collaboration, Glasgow School of Art, UK.
2021
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Cop 26, Golden Monkey Award.
2020
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SIE, Scottish Institute of Enterprise. SISA Level 2 Innovation Catalyst. Glasgow School of Art, UK.
Solo Exhibitions
Group Exhibitions
2024
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Echoes of Renewal in Rust, Gleneagles Hotel, UK.
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Beyond The Surface, The Briggait Front-Galleries, Glasgow, UK.
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Print! W2 Men's Store, West End, Glasgow, UK.
2024
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Salon Des Inclusions, Annex Gallery, The Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, UK.
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Do you know who I am? Wasps South Block Gallery, Glasgow, UK.
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Come for Supper, The Drawing Room, The Glasgow School of Art, UK.
2023
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Early Days, Barnes Garage Space, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, UK.
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Shoulder's of Giants, GSA Graduate Show, Glasgow Art Club, UK.
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Society of Scottish Artists Annual Exhibition, McLaurin Gallery, Ayr, UK.
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Big Arts Show, Paisley Art Department, Glasgow, UK.
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Undergraduate Degree Show, Stow Building, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, UK.
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WEST, Visual Arts Scotland, The Briggait, Glasgow, UK.
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Surplus, The Axiom Building, Glasgow, UK.
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Exhibit A, Govan Project Space, Glasgow, UK.
2022
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130 Years, Scottish Society of Artists, Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) Edinburgh, UK.
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Past-Present-Future, Sink Space, Stow College, Glasgow, UK.
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Material Matters-Remade, French Street Gallery, Glasgow, UK.
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Artefact, Sink Space, Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow, UK.
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Infinite Worlds, Saltspace Gallery, High St, Glasgow, UK.
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Autumn Exhibition, Six Foot Gallery, Glasgow, UK.
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Argyll Art Map, Midton Open Event, Lochgilphead, UK.
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Big Art Show, Outspoken Arts Scotland, Department A, Paisley, UK.
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Annuale 2022, Embassy Gallery, Edinburgh, UK.
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Reconfiguration, Saltspace Gallery, Glasgow, UK.
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Spring Exhibition, Six Foot Gallery, Glasgow, UK.
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Shedded Wheat, House for an Art Lover, Glasgow, UK.
2021
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Maximum Tilt, Saltspace Members Exhibition. Saltspace Gallery, High St, Glasgow, UK.
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Art of the Possible, Glasgow Art Club, Bath St, Glasgow, UK.
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The Walking Forest, Strathclyde University Gardens, Glasgow, UK.
2020
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Emergence showcase, McLellan Galleries, Glasgow School of Art, UK.
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Meet the Members Exhibition, Scottish Society of Artists online exhibition, UK.
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Conscious Subconscious, McLellan Galleries, McLellan works, Glasgow, UK.
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Representing Reality, McLellan Galleries, McLellan Works, Glasgow, UK.
2019
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Visual Arts Studio, End of Year Showcase. Tramway, Albert Drive, Glasgow, UK.
2018
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Contemporary Art Practice Showcase, Ralph Cowan Gallery, City of Glasgow College, UK.
Professional Experience
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The Glasgow School of Art, Learning & Technology, User Support Assistant, Library Services. January 2024-Present.
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The University of Glasgow, Widening Participation Postgraduate Tutor. October 2023- Present
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Glasgow School of Art, UK. September 2022-Present
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Art Tutor, Studio Glasgow, UK. July - Oct 2023
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Midton Acrylics 2021-2022
Publications
/Articles
2024
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'Beyond the Surface' By April - Exhibition at The Briggait in Glasgow (artrabbit.com)
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Scotsman: Emerging Sculpture Award, (January 2024) Emerging Scottish sculptors get the chance to create work for new Edinburgh ‘culture quarter’ (scotsman.com)
2023
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Glasgow School of Art Website, (December 2023) The Glasgow School of Art (gsa.ac.uk)
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Paisley Art Review; The Scotsman (July 2023). Art review: The Big Art Show, The Art Department, Paisley (scotsman.com)
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GSA Degree Show Review; The Scotsman (June 2023) Art reviews: Glasgow School of Art Degree Show 2023 | Glasgow School of Art MFA Degree Show 2023 | The Scotsman
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Glasgow School of Art Digital Showcase (July 2023) April – GSA Showcase 2023
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Glasgow School of Art, Degree Show Catalogue, Good Press Glasgow.
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Living Landscape, Undergraduate Degree Show work, Self Publication.
2022
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SSA 130 Years | Annual Exhibition Awards – Society of Scottish Artists (s-s-a.org)
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Materials Matter Research Publication, Goodpress Glasgow, UK. Project funded by The Glasgow School of Art.
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Award Winners, Paisley Art, July 2022. Prizewinners 2022 – OUTSPOKEN ARTS SCOTLAND
2021
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A year lost at SEA, Goodpress Glasgow, UK. Year 2 Sculpture and Environmental Art publication by the Glasgow School of Art.
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Exhibition Catalogue. 'Art of the Possible' - Exhibiting Artists - Glasgow Art Club Close of Play: Art of the Possible (gsa.ac.uk)
2020
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Glasgow University Magazine (GUM) Facebook
Talks /Interviews
2023
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Artists Talk, Surplus Exhibition, Saltspace Gallery, March 2023.
2022
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Presentation of practice, Glasgow School of Art virtual Undergraduate Open event. September 2022.
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Materials Matter (2022) Documentary By Jen Martin. Materials Matter - Remade - YouTube
2021
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Colab 1, 'Being Human' Glasgow School of Art documentary. (1570) FYE Co Lab 1: Being Human - YouTube
Memberships
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Scottish Artist's Union.
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Visual Arts Scotland List of Artists - Visual Arts Scotland
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SSA, Scottish Society of Artists. April Anne – Society of Scottish Artists (s-s-a.org)
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Transmission Gallery Glasgow.
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GSASA, Glasgow School of Art Students Society.
Residencies
2019
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Hospitalfield House, Arbroath. Group Residency with City of Glasgow College.
