I have just started researching for my next PhD assignment, which will look at the ways the media has reviewed exhibitions of outsider art over the past fifteen years. Whilst working my way through back catalogues of exhibition reviews, I came across Jonathan Jones’ review of the 2014 British Folk Art exhibition at Tate Britain … Continue reading The Importance of Folk Art
Welcome to the final installment of 'In Focus,' a series of blog posts featuring question and answer sessions between me and PhD student Marion Scherr. In this last post, we'll look at the term outsider art in an international context, and discuss the relationship between outsider art and the 'traditional, mainstream' art that is taught … Continue reading In Focus: the Context of Outsider Art
Here is the third installment of the 'In Focus' series, which sees regular question and answer sessions between me and PhD student Marion Scherr. This post looks at the increasing fascination with outsider art, and the lack of the artist's voice in exhibitions and publications. Marion Scherr (MS): Although ‘Outsider Art’ is still a niche … Continue reading In Focus: The Fascination with Outsider Art
Welcome to the second installment of 'In Focus,' a series of blog posts that see a question and answer session taking place between me and PhD student Marion Scherr. This post focuses on the implications of the term 'outsider art' for the artists it describes, and considerations when exhibiting works of outsider art. Marion Scherr … Continue reading In Focus: Exhibiting Outsider Art
In this post, writer Nick Moss reflects on the curatorial issues facing outsider art curators - and curators more widely. What follows are simply observations on issues arising from curation practices in relation to outsider art. They follow on from discussions with Kate Davey, further to my earlier reviews of the Ida Applebroog exhibition at … Continue reading Nick Moss: Curatorial Ethics and Outsider Art
My recent co-curation of Jazz Up Your Lizard, the exhibition of work by Steve Murison that celebrate five years' of the blog, got me thinking again about what it means to be a curator of outsider art. In previous posts, I have mentioned that the role of a curator is to display work that fits into the 'outsider' … Continue reading Place and space: exhibiting outsider art
On 31st May, I was very kindly invited to give a talk at the ‘Life is Your Very Own Canvas’ mid-exhibition event in Aberdeen by organiser of the show, Steve Murison. The exhibition showcased work by people who are part of the Penumbra Art Group in Aberdeen. I spoke briefly about outsider art and how … Continue reading A Note on Outsider Art
In the UK – despite much progress since the abolition of large psychiatric hospitals and a significant increase in care in the community – stigma surrounding mental health issues is still an incredibly prominent issue. The Mental Health Foundation notes that “people with mental health problems say that the social stigma attached to mental ill … Continue reading The ‘S’ Word: can the arts reduce mental health stigma?
Has the time finally come to erase the term outsider art? Its all-encompassing - and negatively perceived - character divides many people. I have personally been edging ever closer to this idea over the past few years. However, in perhaps a somewhat hesitant, cautious U-turn, I have been coming round to the idea of using the … Continue reading Reclaiming Outsider Art
Recently, I have been considering the importance of process and product with reference to art making. Is the process of making the art the most important thing for the artist, or is there something equally as important in having this work shown to the public – whether this is an exhibition, a performance or a … Continue reading Process Vs. Product in Creative Practice
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