Amanda Farrar

Amanda Farrar

Posted on June 10, 2015 Updated on June 10, 2015

I am a Manchester based artist whose practice is based on the architecture in Manchester. Architecture is significant as it surrounds us in one way or another, therefore undoubtedly has an impact on the general public. I am interested in exploring Manchester and the different incidents that happen every day, from road works to buildings becoming derelict, focusing on shapes, signs and vistas that symbolise the unpredictability of the environment surrounding us. My work aims to depict the changeability of the city I live in. My limited palette of blues, greys and purples reflect the inclement weather conditions of Manchester, and the shadows and reflections of its architecture.

Exploring Manchester has led me to research Psychogeography, experiencing familiar surroundings, delving into a spontaneous journey through a landscape within which the surrounding architecture and geography direct the traveller, with the ultimate goal of encountering a new experience.

I have been inspired by the different buildings in Manchester from The Town Hall and Manchester Cathedrals to overlooked, abandoned and derelict industrial sites. I am intrigued by the shapes from different buildings, such as the elaborate archway doors, the triangular roof tops and the overlapping silhouettes, skylines and interrupted panorama of the city. These fragments of the city and its architecture have been synthesised onto various scrap materials that I have found around Manchester, such as wood, cardboard and aluminium. They have been displayed at different levels to interpret my experience of encountering the city; disorientation, decline, dirt, unpredictability, chaos. Throughout my practice, I question the shapes and forms within both architecture and Manchester, resulting in a playful element to my works.