TALK
Grand Matter Turns 5!
This year marks an exciting milestone for us, as we celebrate 5 fantastic years in business working with our wonderful community of artists, clients and friends. In May we had the pleasure of bringing everyone together for an evening of talks, live art and merriment to mark the occasion (and not to mention a rare opportunity to be in the same room together after over 2 years of pandemic!).
Since our launch in 2017, we've been championing meaningful creativity and bringing together artists and clients to work on projects that matter. We pride ourselves on having built a multidiciplinary roster, each artist with their own unique voice and approach, but with a few things in common – a strong sense of creative curiorisity and shared values.
To celebrate this ethos, we heard from 4 of our artists about the work they create outside of their commercial assignments and the parts of their practice you wouldn't normally get to see; the work they create just for them, to explore and push their work further, and the creative journey that takes them on.
Read more below!
L: Lena Yokoyama's 'heta-uma' flowers, drawn live;
R: Tom Abbiss Smith's portfolio book
(Photos by Patrick Larder)
Alice Bowsher
Known for her fun characters (both animal and human) and work with brands around the world, Alice took us on a journey through her many sketchbooks and select obsessions and interests – in particular her love for cardboard boxes and collecting 'stuff', from ticket stubs to badges, and all else in between.
During the pandemic and especially lockdown life, Alice took to drawing anything and everything around her, from Love Island contestants to crisp packets, a series of feet, and frequently her partner Joe Gamble.
One of her biggest personal projects of 2022 was her wedding, where she created animal sculptures to adorn the tables and for each of the guests to take home with them.
Find out more about Alice here: grandmatter.com/alicebowsher
Thomas Hedger
It's fair to say that Thomas has many facets to his illustrative practice, forever evolving yet always unequivacoblay 'Thomas'. In his presentation he delved into this nature of his creative process, talking us through how his ideas are sparked and the creative journeys that await them – from observational abstract compositions to figurative illustrations and typographic promts.
We gained a sense of the intuitive framework the digital medium he uses presents, and the ways in which he experiments within this, and strays from it – including a personal collaboration with a textile weaver exploring the relationship between digital and analogue.
Find our more about Thomas here: grandmatter.com/thomashedger
L: Owen Gildersleeve;
R: Thomas Hedger
Photos by Patrick Larder
Lena Yokoyama
(Photo by Patrick Larder)
Lena Yokoyama
As well as spending the evening creating beautiful individually crafted flower ink paintings, live in front of the guests, Lena also gave a special presentation to the room about her self-initiated projects.
Having grown up with both Japanese and Austrian influences, and her father a professional translator, Lena talked us through her interest in communication and the power of visuals to do this between cultures.
We got an insight into a recent artist residency in Colombia where she spent a month in Sumapaz creating work within the local community there. And overall, paramount to her practice is her mission to use illustration to expore and connect, to get to know herself and others, and ultimately to celebrate community and variety in the world.
Find out more about Lena here: grandmatter.com/lenayokoyama
Owen Gildersleeve
Having worked with some of the biggest brands and organisations around the world, Owen's work as a paper artist and designer is well known in the creative industry.
In his presentation, Owen talked us through some of his collaborations and side projects – from 3D sets and installations working with photographers to exihibitions, as well as his work for his music project Modern Technology and Human Worth in collaboration with Chris Clarke.
Find our more about Owen here: grandmatter.com/owengildersleeve
Grand Matter co-founders Ciara Phelan & Dorcas Brown
(Photo by Patrick Larder)
Photos by Patrick Larder
About Alice Bowsher
Alice creates joyful illustrated characters and large scale murals, full of imagination and intrigue. She has illustrated and authored a number of children’s story books, and her clients include Bloomsbury Publishing, SoulCycle, ANNA Money and Boden.
About Lena Yokoyama
Lena is an illustrator and printmaker based in London. Her optimistic and playful illustrations feature characters of different shapes and sizes, with use of plentiful colour and texture. Her clients include The Tate, Community Bridges, Mondo Brewery, The Guardian and Red Bull to name but a few.
About Owen Gildersleeve
An expert in hand-crafted illustration and set design, Owen’s creations are carefully constructed from paper in a variety of scales. His bold and graphic works make use of light and shadow, and hand-rendered typography, for clients including Ninja Tunes, Vanity Fair and NASA.
About Thomas Hedger
Thomas mixes strong line work, geometric and fluid shapes, and bold colour to create punchy illustrations and 3D installations. He takes inspiration in particular from nature and architecture, exploring isometric dimensions and ambient spaces.
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