MUSIC – DIZZY BY KATIE NICHOLAS , ALBUM REVIEW
PAINTING - LIFE GOES ON
Life Goes On , was the very first time Collette Collinge painted the Liverpool Ferries .
Imagine a bright sunny , summers day , the green trees still against the bluest sky . Young couples in love , strolling hand in hand through the park and you will have imagined the scene that is in my head when I listen to the album Dizzy by Katie Nicholas .
I only heard Katie for the first time a few weeks ago and what I heard really impressed me . It was a track off the album called Chemistry . I was completely taken by the clever lyrics , clear diction and country-esque vocal . The song is essentially a love song with a young girl describing how her and her loved one fit together . ‘ Love is like a calculation , funny little combinations ’, Katie even gets a cheeky reference to Issac Newton in there ! Great stuff . Other stand out tracks include Boots , which explores the reasoning behind being dumped . Katie writes about walking in her ex ’ s boots for a day so she can understand what happened . Again , clever little pop song with an upbeat melody . Sweet Talk is another favourite . I like this formulaic writing method with its clever references to the subject put to a , dare I say , sweet melody . The title is quite ironic here though as the intent is quite bitter . All in all , the album cover sums the content up very well . A young girl writing of her first encounters with relationships and love . Trying to make sense of it all . Trying to understand why someone who promises ‘ forever ’ doesn ’ t mean it . I think this is a taste of a very clever writer , an accomplished musician and a superb vocalist . Katie is one to watch as her creativity evolves . facebook . com / katienicholas10
ART - UNTETHERED ONLINE
Home is where the Art is , at least that ’ s the case for this group of BA Fine Art students from Wirral Metropolitan College . who have come together while remaining apart to bring their online UNTETHERED exhibition .
Untethered features eight artists with an experimental mixture of contemporary practices featuring ; painting , sculpture , drawing , video , and installation . It is a showcase of versatility and up-andcoming talent . All the work on display has been produced while working away from college , giving viewers an insight into what it ’ s like to be an artist practising in these disconnected days . The exhibition aims to introduce new ways of seeing by taking on subjects of escaping patterns , tranquil seascapes , coloured sound , memories of urban destruction , and the human condition . BA ( Hons ) Fine Art Degree Course Leader Michelle Rowley said of the exhibition , “ Like many art school students our level 5 group have endured the difficulties of making creative work at home without the usual college resources , and yet they have risen to the challenge in producing their first public exhibition . We hope you will celebrate their achievement and resilience in these uncertain times ." Featured artists ; Belinda Wong , Judith Welham , Kara Dobbs , Jack Boutet , Tracey Dean , Les Weston , Matthew Brown , Stuart Noble and the work of the late Geoff Woods ( TBC ). untetheredexhibition . com - 19th March – 23rd May 2021
“ I wanted to capture the vigour and memories of my youth , my life and quintessentially what Liverpool means to people world-wide .” The paintings clearly resonate , and prints sell well world-wide . Since its inception Collette has painted a further seven in the series , each featuring their own stories . “ I ’ ve dedicated three to Gerry Marsden , all of which are now in the ownership of his family , quite an honour to know Gerry had them hanging in his den along with his Gold Discs !” The last in the series is on the easel now , nearing completion and already sold . The title will be You ’ ll Never Walk Alone and is a monotone study , greys , blacks and whites with a pop of red on the ensign . A permanent art instillation featuring all the Ferries alongside John Lennon re-imagined can be viewed in the upper dining area of Woodside Ferry Village . Signed , limited edition prints , and ferry mugs can be found for sale in The Blue Moon Gallery , Telegraph Road , Heswall and Merseymade , Liverpool 1 . www . collettecollingeart . com
POTTERY - WONDERFULLY WONKY !
Clare Watson loves working in clay and is the creator of ‘ Wonderfully Wonky ’ stoneware items . A degree in Applied Art & Design at Glyndwr University in Wrexham , North Wales where she specialised in Ceramics and her Level 5 diploma in Learning and Education stood her in good stead to teach pottery . Clare teaches a pottery class at the Wirral Society for the Blind and Partially Sighted in Birkenhead and on a Saturday morning at Newsham Adult Learning Centre in Liverpool . You can find ‘ Wonderful Wonkies ’ at several outlets across Wirral including The Barn in Heswall , Chemist & Co in Hoylake , Once Upon a Tide in West Kirby / New Brighton and Amorini Antiques Centre in Birkenhead . Also , several craft fairs across the area . www . facebook . com / CDWCeramics /
CERAMICS - ORGANIC , NATURALLY !
Jude Gill creates intricate decorative porcelain pieces inspired by the natural world . My practice stems from a desire to explore the detail of organic objects and the patterns they follow . Most recent work has been inspired by the Wirral shoreline . I work directly with the plants , shells and curious forms I find on the beaches , examining them under a microscope and getting to know the intricacies of their form . By archiving , drawing and building in porcelain clay I can explore the fascinating details that nature provides . I curate the most interesting fragments to display as collections and standalone works . Facebook : Judegill Ceramics wirrallife . com 67