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Simon Hartles

St Just in Penwith
Artist and Art Lecturer, based in West Cornwall

Having originally trained to work with blown glass and ceramic processes, blurred recollections of the heat and flow of molten glass and the alchemy involved in ceramic firings hold an enduring influence upon my current practice which inhabits a space somewhere between painting and sculpture. The work reflects an instinctive curiosity in method and materials, as well as in the rugged post-industrial West Cornwall landscape where I am currently based. Social, political, environmental and industrial legacies become referenced through the use of materials and implied analogy. These forms albeit abstracted through memory and process are recurrently apparent throughout my work.

 

Colour, texture and surface treatments are intensely important aspects. The works are composed using a wide range of media, from inks and varnishes, oils and emulsions to ash, cement, earth and clays, creating sculptural surfaces of structure and form. Each painted layer develops the history of the surface. Materials accumulate and influence as they build towards a rich and engaging visual abstraction, a narrative account, a recollection of place, a reverberation of colour and form.

 

Simon Hartles

b.1974, Manchester, UK, Lives and works in West Cornwall, UK.

Email – simonhartles@icloud.com

https://www.instagram.com/simon_hartles/

https://www.simonhartles.com/

 

 

Education:

2004/5 University of Greenwich – PGCE Post Compulsory Cert Ed (Art & Design)

1996/9 University of Central England, Birmingham Institute of Art & Design

BA (Hons) 3D Design (Ceramics & Glass)

1995/6 Mid Glamorgan Centre of Art & Design – BTEC Art and Design Foundation Diploma

 

Exhibitions:

June 2019 Refresh Art Award 2019, group exhibition at 5th Base Galley, Brick Lane, London

May 2019 Joint Exhibition – Theatre of Landscape, PZ Gallery, Penzance

2018 Group Exhibition, GalleryDu808, Bristol

2018 represented by M.A.P Gallery at Arte Vicenza, Arte Fiera Dolomiti, Fiera Di Forli Vernice and Arte Genova, Italy

2016 Group Exhibition, Caution Wet Paint, Lander Gallery, Truro

2011 Group Exhibition, PZ Gallery, Penzance

2010 Live painting performance with Jazz Musicians Martin Bowie and John Thompson, PZ Gallery, Penzance

2004 & 2005 Brixton Urban Art Fair, London

2003 & 2004 Solo Exhibitions, The Gowlet Arms, East Dulwich

2001 Solo Exhibition, Thyme restaurant, Blackheath, London

 

Awards:

June 2019 shortlisted for Refresh Art Award 2019

 

Publications:

June 2019 Review of Refresh Art Award 2019 exhibition at 5th Base Gallery, London

https://theprickle.org/portfolio/refresh-art-award-london-5th-base-gallery/

May 2019 Interview with curator of Refresh Art Award 2019

https://www.refreshartaward.com/post/simon-hartless-painting-environment-arts-education-funding-and-the-western-most-town-in-britain

December 2018 Murze Arts magazine, circular art section

https://www.murze.org/store/Murze-Issue-Two-and-Three-2017-2018-p142330013

 

Commissions:

2003 - 2018 Commissioned wall hangings, prints, paintings and ceramic sculptural works for London, Cardiff and Cornwall based architects and luxury property developers

1999 – 2018 Painting commissions for private clients.

 

Teaching:

2013 - 2019 Program leader HND Contemporary Art Practice, Penzance School of Art (part of Truro & Penwith College) Cornwall, UK

2010 – 2019 Course Leader, Vocational Art and Design, Truro & Penwith College, Penzance Campus, Cornwall, UK

2004 – 2010 Fine Art Lecturer, John Ruskin College, London, UK

2001/2 Arts Development Youth Worker for Activate Plus LTD community arts group (London/Nationwide UK)

 

Residencies:

2001/2 Greenwich, South London, Local Education Authority, Voluntary Artist in Residence at various inner city schools

2000 Carlton Television Junior Theatre Workshop – The Custard Factory Birmingham.

Set design and production for theatrical performances.

1997/99 Birmingham Local Education Authority, Voluntary Artist in Residence at various inner city schools.

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