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Amanda Farrar
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.
Gallery
“Architecture” ‘Series 1’ – Screen prints on MDF board and architectural shaped laser cut wood, displayed on 4ft shelf – February 2015
“Architecture” ‘Series 2’ – Acrylic paint on wood, displayed on a shelf – May 2015
“Architecture” ‘Series 3’ – Acrylic paint on wood, displayed on a shelf – May 2015
“Architecture” ‘ Series 4 – Acrylic paint on wood, displayed on a pew, September 2015
“To be looked at” ‘Series 1’ – Acrylic paint on scrap materials – May 2014
“To be looked at” ‘Series 2’ – Acrylic paint on scrap materials – April 2015
“Painting the Town” – Screen prints on architectural shaped laser cut wood displayed on a shelf and acrylic paint on scrap materials found in Manchester – February 2015
“Stacked against Manchester” – Acrylic paint on scrap materials, stacked against a brick wall in Manchester – February 2015
“Untitled” – Acrylic paint on laser cut wood with screen print on top – January 2015
“Arches among us” – Acrylic paint on architectural shaped laser cut wood – January 2015
“Untitled” – Acrylic paint on architectural shaped laser cut wood and paper – January 2015
“Architecture Shelved” – Acrylic paint on architectural shaped laser cut wood, displayed on an 8ft shelf – January 2015
“Untitled” – Screen print on MDF board, January 2015
“Untitled” – Screen print on grey mount board – November 2014
“Architecture at Dusk” – Oil paint on watercolour paper – October 2014
“Segments of Manchester” – Acrylic paint on wood, October 2014,
CV
Education:
BA(HONS) Fine Art – Manchester School of Art – Manchester Metropolitan University – 2012-2015
Exhibitions:
“Architecture takes over” – Solo exhibition – William Temple Church – September 2015
Degree Show – Manchester School of Art – June 2015
“Repeat, Repeat, Repeat” – Link Gallery – Manchester School of Art – May 2015
“A Winters Art Crawl” – The Holden Cafe Gallery – Manchester School of Art – December 2013
“Somewhere” – A collaborative exhibition – Piccadilly Place Manchester – May 2013
Events:
Fine Art Auction – The Holden Gallery – Manchester School of Art – March 2015
Designed the front cover of a pack of postcards in celebration of the John Ruskin exhibition ‘My Dear Mr Ruskin…”Friendship, Inspiration and Scandal, The Elizabeth Gaskell House – TLC Art Project, 2019
Art Hole Magazine, Featured Artist, June edition 2020
The Memory Book, A Year in Lockdown, Featured Artist – An anthology of stories, poems, essays, paintings, drawings and photographs created by members of TLC Arts during the COVID-19 lockdown 2020-2021
Hobbies & Interests:
Painting, Architecture, Photography
Art Group – Every Thursday 1pm – 2:30pm at Chorlton Good Neighbours 
Contact Details:
Email – amandacity93@hotmail.com
Achievements
In 2019 as part of the celebrations of the bicentenary of John Ruskin’s birth, TLC Art Project ran a series of photography and drawing workshops at the Elizabeth Gaskell House as part of their exhibition “My Dear Mr Ruskin….” Friendship, Inspiration and Scandal, John Ruskin and the Gaskell family.
We explored the Elizabeth Gaskell House and Gardens and Swinton Grove Park, drawing, documenting our findings, taking photographs, and capturing the beautiful surroundings. Ruskin believed all beauty comes from nature, highlighting his theory that nature and art can enrich people spiritually and lift us out of the mundane worries and stresses happening in our lives.
To celebrate the bicentenary of Ruskin’s birth we created a pack of postcards documenting our sketches from inside the Elizabeth Gaskell House, the Gardens and Swinton Grove Park. My drawing of the Elizabeth Gaskell House is used as the front cover of the postcards, it captures the beautiful greenery of the garden, focusing on the details in the pillars and the windows.
The postcards created by the participants
Amanda Farrar 