BLOG

IGNITE + COLLABORATE the digital panel

29-05-2025 By Frankie Sinclair

Exploring the power of collaboration from digital, creative and business perspectives, the latest in the IGNITE event series, was held at The Guildhall in Salisbury on 4th April.

At IGNITE + COLLABORATE, there were four focus areas, each explored by an expert panel of presenters:

Collaborate Digital
Collaborate Creative
Collaborate Enterprise
Collaborate Community

This post offers a quick survey of highlights from the first panel of speakers.

Collaborate Digital

Rich Lloyd – Blueflame Digital
Jon Reece – Conficio Design
Lewis Plummer – Mostly Harmless
Eddie Deighton – Creative Director, An.X Agency

Rich Lloyd Highlight

“ Day to day, it’s just instant messaging… And then when you need to… you jump on a video call.

I think to be able to communicate like that and collaborate like that, you need trust, and respect of all your team members.

I think ultimately it doesn’t matter whether you’re digital or not digital you’ve got to trust your team.”

Jon Reece – Conficio Design

Jon has worked on some really exciting collaborative projects and this one sounded very intriguing:

“ Gravity Industries came to us a long time ago and said, we’ve got five jet suits, five jet engines. We want to make a jet suit.”

His key summing up point:

“Collaboration is nothing without an idea, it’s nothing without trust. The digital bit is just a bolt on, which is how the world works these days.”

Lewis Plummer – Mostly Harmless

Lewis illustrated 3 salient points, with numbers and graphics:

1+1=3

Collaboration with another person is always worth it because it adds a third dimension to the generation of ideas.

50/50

Be open and treat your collaborators as equals with a sharing interest.

Finally Lewis emphasised the phrase ‘Democratic Autocracy’: meaning, someone must ultimately commit to making a decision for a creative digital project to move forward.

Eddie Deighton – Creative Director, An.X Agency

Eddie captured everyone’s attention with his story of how he overcame obstacles and won the trust of World reknowned singer, Sinéad O’Connor, to design her album cover.

Book for our next quarterly IGNITE event led by Scrace Architects, and join a dynamic mix of decision makers and local business leaders, creative professionals and architects, to share ideas and network.

Or sign up below and select ‘Art’ as your interest.

IGNITE + CRAFT

20-02-2025 By Frankie Sinclair

On Friday 29 November we enjoyed an a busy afternoon crammed with 10 minute presentations, exploring various facets and definitions of craft. IGNITE CRAFT, a creative workshop, comprising talks from ten creatives about what craft means to them and sharing processes, kicked off the first of 3 tri-monthly conferences. Tim Scrace, the event founder of IGNITE noted that:

“Whether you’re wrestling with a tight budget, a turbulent world, or fears of an apocalypse, we believe it’s time to reclaim control and manifest our future. Creativity has always been our ally in bleak times, and now more than ever, it’s time for our community to come together and make real things happen.”

IGNITE + CRAFT, COLLABORATE and CREATE is a series set up with the purpose of sparking action through shared ideas, creativity, and collaboration.

CRAFT by Tim Scrace – 1 of 3: Craft, Collaborate and Create.Below is a quick summary or review of each presentation. Make sure to book in for our next one on 4th April, by booking here or by signing up to our mailing list.

What is craft?

Louise Tunnard and Tim Scrace introduced the event and began a discussion about the definition of craft, which touched upon Louise’s practice as an image maker who creates Chemigrams.

Artisan Baker – Paul Henderson

Paul Henderson’s T-shirt reads “flour, water, salt, time” – a phrase that sums up well, his daily working process. Paul works the early hours every day, crafting sourdough loaves of perfection for the citizens of Salisbury. In a hands-on approach, Paul brought along a rising mound of dough in a giant Tupperware style container and delighted in teaching us some insider tips on how to make it ‘billowy and pillowy’. His talk demonstrated the idea that craft involves well considered, thoughtful development of materials to hand, be those physical or nonmaterial.

Potter / Painter / Disruptor – Steve Neville

Partly in response to a gentle comment from galleries that his work may be ‘too quiet’, Steve’s work took a bolder turn. He took us through the evolution of his bold and simple painting process and how he integrates the painting with ceramics. Steve beautifully demonstrated, with a live painting performance and outlined his learning that development may occur over a period of many years, and the implementation may occur in a moment of brevity.

Beer Entrepreneur – Jacob Price

Jacob is a wizard with craft beer, as we saw when we headed to his bar after the Ignite event. Lurid cans lined the shelves, gleaming with cutting edge graphics, shoulder to glassy shoulder with cork topped beer bottles. His talk introduced us to the shrouded world of Trappist monks and their charitable beer making enterprises. A truly Trappist beer is blessed. We were captivated as Jacob opened various pages of the official craft beer spell book.

Weaver – Sharon Kearley

Sharon was hands-on in her presentation: a small loom arrived, along with an array of tactile, non-synthetic weaving materials, each with a ‘personality’. A key part of Sharon’s talk was her explanation of how deeply she has settled into the long tradition of her craft. She told us: “ I ended up doing costume, working in TV and film [I was a textile artist], and then went full circle and came back… Now I actually say I’m a weaver, because that’s what I do. And it feels quite proud to say that, because there’s a long lineage of weavers.”

Sculptor / Glass Ceramicist Rebecca Newnham

Rebecca took us on a tour of lakes, stately gardens and forest landscapes around the country, illustrating her response to the scale of the landscape. She worked with a structural engineer to extend the dimensions of her work in glass. One outstanding commission (photographed in situ, in the lake at the Himalayan Gardens in Yorkshire), traced loops of transcendental red glass across the water.

Steel Fabricator/Designer – Shaun Osmond

Shaun provided a long distance video of his steel fabrication business, which uses both traditional and cutting edge knowledge and equipment.

Potter – Mirka Golden-Hann

Mirka’s pottery / ceramic craft is rooted in her teenage enthusiasm and active voluntary work at archaeological excavation sites in the Summer holidays. At these she: “came in very close contact with the work of our ancestral potters” and this led to a deep feeling of affinity and connection when she was introduced to working with the raw material of clay at the age of 19. Mirka rounded off with discussion of the importance of collaboration, which segues nicely with the title of our next event, IGNITE COLLABORATE. Having worked with choreographers, filmmakers and animators, she was moved to say: “It got me to places I couldn’t have gone by myself”.

Master Builder – Bernard Franklin

Bernie, who describes himself as a “very straight and practical person” with a very “black and white background of science subjects at school” was initially surprised to be presenting alongside a group of artists and designers. Perhaps because his craft involves bricks and mortar holding up roofs, aspects of improvisation and surface aesthetics are of less immediate concern in his practice. Bernie specialises in conservation building, especially vernacular type buildings constructed using (literally down-to-earth) local materials. He explained that historically, it was possible to build locally using the sub soil with materials such as chalk, flint and lime. This type of building is called ‘cob’ and his craft expertise enable his business to repair and construct cob buildings.

Artist / Curator – Judith Rodgers

Judith read a short piece about crafts and activism, called the Craftivist Manifesto which begins: ”Connecting our hands, hearts and heads, we can truly make a difference. Number one is be the tortoise, breathe, take it slow. Craft is about taking a thoughtful approach to mindful activism.”

Game Developer / Educator – Jez Whitworth

Working in his converted World War II bunker, Jez designs animated computer games and has just released one for Gameboy. He shares his expertise through his schools programme. I loved his game concepts with titles like “Street Food Rivals” and “Little Friends” (a bizarre clown with fighting finger puppets). In a compact mini-teaching moment, Jez shared advice for games designers who aim to hone their craft. He recommends: Remove self-doubt completely, Don’t take yourself too seriously (have fun), Experiment with new ideas, Learn how to deal with failure, Get involved in a Game Jam.

Inscription on antique spirit level: WHP for Wilfred Harold Pickin

Architect / Artist – Tim Scrace

With a handy scroll of thinking paper to hand, Tim asserted that: “One of the things that we lose touch with… is the process of thinking”. Tim expounds a method of charting creative thoughts by free sketching on layers of drawing paper. Other props to Tim’s talk on craft, included a large, antique spirit level once owned by his Granddad, Wilfred Harold Pickin, chief engineer… (wait for it) of the sewers in London. After he’d conducted a brief ripple of laughter with this revelation, Tim warmed up to an interesting point about inherited craft. Knowledge and skills passed down through the generations can feel like second nature to those who grew up with them – to the extent that they become overly modest about the skill level. It’s just always been there. But Tim emphasised the need to acknowledge and cherish the skill level of not-yet-lost heritage crafts.

REMEMBER TO BOOK HERE for 4th April, by booking here or by signing up to our mailing list.

Join us for IGNITE COLLABORATE

Craft by Tim Scrace part of a series of 3: Craft, Collaborate and Create.

IGNITE + NATURE

24-05-2024 By Frankie Sinclair

With over 60 attendees, the IGNITE IN NATURE proved to be a great success. Attendees enjoyed insightful talks from talented business owners, creatives, and artists, exploring the importance of connecting with nature and addressing environmental challenges. The fully planted and choreographed installation provided a sun-soaked backdrop, that coupled with cocktails, meant this was the best IGNITE yet. Thanks again to the University of Winchester for their support of the event.

Dr. Olivia Chapple – Horatio’s Garden

Kicking off with the amazing Olivia Chapple the day was filled with interesting, exciting and emotional takeaways. Olivia introduced us to the purpose of Horatio’s Garden, which is to nurture the wellbeing of people after spinal injury through inspirational gardens. Positioned in the centre of NHS spinal injury centres, the gardens are an oasis of peace and tranquillity where volunteers and creatives come to together and care for people and plants. In her newly appointed role as High Sheriff of Wiltshire she is keen to champion the emotional and physical benefits of connecting with nature.

Francesca Tyer – Writing Workshop

Francesca’s novel, The Firestone was published shortly after she graduated in 2020 and since then, has been followed up with several new books and a poetry collection. As well as reading from some of her recent works inspired by nature, Francesca enabled all of the Ignite participants to release their inner writer using some of her tips and techniques.

Tim Scrace – Greenwash

In his talk, Tim scrubbed at the layers of greenwash painted over the truth about global warming and emissions. He encouraged us to not only challenge ourselves, but recognise that tools such as “carbon footprint” were devices generated by those in power causing the most damage. Rather than dealing with issues individually, we should be focusing again on the impact of the big guns, the companies greenwashing us into thinking they are environmentally friendly. Individually we can act through consumer choices and by interrogating claims and our investments, collectively, in taking action in this way, by holding and highlighting instances of “greenwashing” and holding big business and decision makers to account we can make a bigger difference.

Watch out for Tim’s latest exhibition more in our next blog post, details below.

Salisbury Chamber of Commerce

Thanks to the Chamber of Commerce for sponsoring the event with a choice of two refreshing cocktails with mocktails on the side as an alcohol-free option. These were served in paper cups, recycled in a later part of the workshop which involved seed packs and soil.

Rebecca Twigg – Kingdom of Sticks

The catchy and memorable business name, Kingdom of Sticks, can be found on the doorpost of multiple community gardens around Salisbury and the South West. Rebecca is an expert on Social and Therapeutic Horticulture programmes (STH for short) and let us know – in laymen’s terms – what this means and the positive impact it can have on people’s mental health.

Richard Connell – New Enclosure

Richard – a Landscape Architect, worked with Tim to transform the courtyard and archway entrance of The Enterprise Network on Salt Lane into a wonderful temporary garden and installation. Playing off the reflections of This Too Will Pass, coupled with other artwork and collaborative elements the space really came alive. Additionally, he presented a fascinating talk on solutions to landscape challenges and more sustainable approaches to design, delivered by his company New Enclosure.

Anselm Audley

Anselm has a background in Ancient and Modern History which he studied at St John’s College, Oxford. He has also published the Aquasilva Trilogy of three historical novels. Anselm took us on an eloquent journey around the river banks of world cities, from Rome to York. York with its sloping green, wood lined river banks compared favourably to the arid and little used landscape around the river waters of Rome.

Charlotte Moreton – Chase and Chalke

Charlotte introduced us to an amazing project designed to connect people to a National Landscape and designated Area of Natural Beauty in Wiltshire. With ½ million people within thirty minutes drive of the protected land Chase and Chalke project endeavoured to make the space relevant and accessible to them. Writing, painting with pigments generated from the landscape and a cookbook for foraged foods are some of the creative projects delivered recently. After listening to presentations about connecting with nature, it was fun to grab a sketchbook in the sunny tranquillity of our temporary garden.

Vickie Wood – Plantlife

As it happens, Plantlife.org.uk, which takes a lead globally on action for the conservation of wild plants and fungi, has its headquarters in Salisbury. From here, they tackle the climate, biodiversity and societal challenge we face across this – our only – planet. Vickie talked us through their pioneering campaign “No Mow May” which is delivering on a shift in thinking.

Roger Tyrell – Take Back Our Land

Roger, a leader and mentor talked us through opportunities to take on redundant, abandoned or unloved land by forming local community groups. Sharing his experiences of enabling spaces, communities and obstacles one can face in taking back control of empty, unloved spaces. Beyond the space, discussions extended into taking back control of systems and society. A good summing up of conversations through the day, that focused on being stronger together.

________________________________________

UPCOMING EVENTS

Tim Scrace #greenwash

As Tim searches for ways of reconnecting with nature, and encouraging action. Make sure to visit his latest exhibition ‘Greenwash’ which reflects on the climate crisis and its human impact. He is showing with Nick Andrews and Sarah Hobley in the entrance hall of The Guildhall, on the Market Place SP1 1HJ, VENUE 10 of the Salisbury Art Trail. The exhibition is open Tuesday 28 May to Friday 1 June and Monday 3 June to Friday 7 June. Keep an eye out for more info in social media @timscrace.

Salisbury Art Trail 2024 – City Centre Venues

Frankie Sinclair – Figurative Patterns

Take a moment to also visit Frankie , a member of the Scrace Architects team is also exhibiting in the Art Trail, with a range of bold work blending design and figuration. Visit VENUE 7 from Wednesday 5 June – Sunday 9 June on the top floor of Sonder Coffee on Salisbury High Street.

Don’t forget to sign up and subscribe below to stay in the loop with quarterly updates on our journey, thoughts and latest events.

IGNITE + DISRUPT

08-04-2024 By Frankie Sinclair

Before we move on to our upcoming Ignite (IGNITE IN NATURE), we wanted to update you and round up on our IGNITE DISRUPT event back in December. A variety of exciting and engaging speakers prepared poems, workshops and presentations in response to the theme of disruption, of challenging the norm, and together we enjoyed a stimulating afternoon of conversations followed by drinks and more animated discussions about how to change the world. Make sure not to miss the next one! Below are a few extracts and key moments from the session…

The Line Up

The Art of Disruption – David Christie – The Vanner Gallery

David beamed in by video link to talk about his successful ventures in disrupting established traditions of engaging with art, making contemporary art and gallery experience of art more accessible.

Putting dance back in the Colosseum – Victoria Charlton

Victoria quoted Oscar Wilde from his 1891 essay, “The Soul of Man Under Socialism.”

“Disobedience, in the eyes of anyone who has read history, is man’s original virtue, it is through disobedience that progress has been made, through disobedience and through rebellion.”

Victoria had many vibrant stories to share about breaking past obstacles in both Russian and American bureaucratic systems. For example, she brought 162 dancers from Russia’s Bolshoi Ballet company to the football World Cup in Rome and tackled local bureaucracy to have them perform at the Coloseum.

How to spot a Disruptor – Lewis Plummer – Mostly Harmless Agency

Lewis captured our interest by opening his talk with the statement:

“I’ve built an entire career around disrupting. It’s also the reason I’m un-employable”.

Millie Woodrow – poet

Millie word associated to consider the word ‘rupture’:

“rupture and the idea of tearing a gap in the world as you see it and having to face that rupture.”

Disrupting Education – Chris McShane – Learning 3D – If you want to get there, don’t start here.

Chris opened with a story of his early experience of being disruptive in school and how this was handled by the teachers at the time. “Excuse me Sir. The Virgin Mary – how did they know she was a virgin?” The teacher priest’s furiously negative response, ended his relationship with the Catholic Church and started his ambition to disrupt the limitations of traditional education systems. He illustrated with a workshop, how he has been working to prove an alternative education model.

The Architecture of Disruption – Tim Scrace – Space to create

Tim looked back to a pivotal week when, putting all other priorities aside, he booked a studio purely to paint for a week. From that time on, he has literally ‘painted to see space differently’ – not only painting to produce a picture but to change his thinking.

Jamie Lingham AKA @caddiejay – Poet

Jamie asserted that “Being disruptive is influencing people’s decisions”. He read us a poem about his influence on his young nephew which included this vivid phrase at the start:

“A phonecall won’t resonate through the concrete helmet that surrounds my mind.”

________________________________________

Join us at the next Ignite for more creative networking, workshops and inspiration.

The Graduate Art Show

29-01-2024 By Tim Scrace

In this episode of the “Architecture Made Simple” podcast Tim and Andy talk to David Christie and Victoria Charlton about The Graduate Art Show, a competition set up to showcase emerging contemporary artists and help establish careers for talented new graduates.

Listen in as both judges and artists alike urge others to pursue their creative dreams. Gain a deeper understanding of the judging process from panel members, including David, Tim and Victoria and learn about their thoughts about breaking down barriers to art appreciation.

Discover inspiring stories of young artists overcoming challenges to find success. Talking to graduates the episode explores the challenges faced by artists through the lens of students as they embark on their careers.

Centring in on the exhibition now showing at The Vanner Gallery conversations expand into societal perceptions, the role of art education, and common obstacles encountered on the path to creative passion.

Subscribe, share, and join the conversation on social media.

#TheGraduateArtShow #ArchitectureMadeSimple #ArchitecturePodcast #artandarchitecture #architecturemadesimple #seespacedifferently

Background

The Graduate Art Show

12 January – 16 February at The Vanner Gallery, 45 High Street, Salisbury, Tuesdays – Saturdays, 10am – 5pm.

The Graduate Art Show at The Vanner Gallery showcases the work of some of the country’s most talented up-and-coming artists. The exhibition featuring work by 20 recent graduates from some of the UK’s top art schools, launched at the Woolff Gallery and The William Gallery in London, is now showing in Salisbury. On display until Friday, 16th February, the show features a range of art, with paintings, sculptures, prints, and ceramics selected from hundreds of submissions from 38 participating universities.

David Christie – The Vanner Gallery

David is the Director of The Vanner Gallery. In a short space of time, the gallery has become one the most innovative regionally, exhibiting national and international artists of genuine renown. Highlights of the two years since the gallery opened in September 2021 include the major British painter John Blackburn (in association with leading London gallery Osborne Samuel); the international street artists David Shillinglaw and Lily Mixe, and an exhibition showcasing graduates from the leading art universities in the country.

Victoria Charlton – The Graduate Art Show

Victoria as well as being founder of Graduate Art Show has an exceptional track record in producing live performances in diverse venues in the UK, US and Russia. She has many stories to tell. Victoria also worked with Northampton Council as Chair of the Theatre to take the Derngate Theatre from Council run to Charitable and enterprise status.

Flexible office space: the long lease is dead

07-11-2023 By Tim Scrace

For small to medium business, the age of the long lease is dead.

Tim recently met with George Scott-Welsh, CEO of The IncuHive Space to chat through the latest trends in commercial office space for SMEs. George highlighted a seismic change in the industry: the inflexible, long lease (with a distinct lack of customer service) is being replaced by a flexible, short lease model with a highly responsive style of customer service.

<span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="display: inline-block; width: 0px; overflow: hidden; line-height: 0;" class="mce_SELRES_start lazyload"></span>
Tim Scrace and George Scott-Welsh discuss changes in the workspace

Covid catalyst

Embedded business culture is notoriously difficult to change quickly. Despite common use of light-weight laptops and the availability of company secure, virtual private networks (VPNs) businesses still had something of a ‘clock-in, clock-out’ mentality before the Covid pandemic hit. Post Covid things are radically different.

*Working from home has become a reality*

You’ve set your laptop out on your garden table, you’ve enjoyed a suffusion of vitamin D enriched sun rays as you tap away on the keyboard, you’ve picked up your child from school and walked the dog and had a quick chat with your neighbour on the way… and crucially – you’ve also met all your work deadlines and ticked off your priority list for the day. You want more, and less commuting!

This is the quality-time, personal scenario – previously an aching dream of many commuting business owners and employees, that was enabled and expedited by the necessities of the Covid pandemic lockdown.

Restrictive and long lease structures

George and Frankie get ready to talk office space

Lockdown exposed the rigid structure of commercial leases. Business owners were on the edge and looking for fast solutions. Combing through the tangle of conditions in a lease, there seemed to be no flexibility – only restrictions such as a ‘fixed break’ option only available after a number of complete years; service of notice set at 6 months; exit only when all outstanding rent was paid up, to name a few examples. A long lease (minimum 5 years) that you could not exit easily was the norm across the industry pre-covid.

George Scott-Welsh:

“One of my acquaintances… he was talking about cutting his teeth selling office space in London in the ‘80s and he’d sell a 100 square foot office, like the one we’re in now, on a 25 year lease… and that was the only option.”

Zoom Forward: Home, Hybrid and Office

“Fast forward 43 years and we are in a market where the tenants are no longer accepting long leases, because they don’t need to, because the flex-letting market has become more popular and stronger.”

Tim Scrace and George Scott-Welsh stand inside a partitioned flexible office space with a window and exposed brick walls. — ***Office Space at IncuHive Wilton***

There are now 3 commonly accepted styles of work: at home, at the office and a hybrid version of the two. Working in the office offers relief from the solitary confinement of a home work station, opportunity to chat informally with colleagues and peers ‘at the water cooler’ and the most human form of communication: face-to-face. Hybrid is, of course, the best of both worlds.

Looking to a flexible future

Office rental companies now compete by offering flexible and customer-centric solutions with short terms leases. This allows people to enjoy all three styles of working when they choose. It also allows companies to respond fast to growth or downsizing.

At Scrace Architects we consult regularly with business leaders, entrepreneurs and our peers to keep a finger on the pulse and ‘see space differently’. Visit Flexible Office Space to find out more about how we are adapting spaces to accommodate a hybrid model and visit some of our residential projects to see some examples of how we are helping our clients work from home.

Working flexibly: Scrace Architects

We are ready to solve the architectural problems around your flexible space. Contact us today to discuss your space with potential. To arrange an appointment today, call us on: 01722 658048, email us on info@scracearchitects.co.uk or use the ‘contact us’ button.

A Straight Line

15-08-2023 By Tim Scrace

SUMMER EXHIBITION

The Vanner Gallery, High Street, Salisbury is open Tuesday – Saturday 10am – 5pm.

Tim is set to reveal his latest artwork The Impudence of a Straight Line. The work will go on show at The Vanner Gallery in Salisbury, as part of their Summer Invitation Exhibition, which opens this Friday, 18^th August. His emotive artwork, a fusion of acrylic, gesso, poetry, projection on reclaimed plywood, is inspired by a deep rooted desire to draw attention environmental issues and to encourage consideration and action.

The Impudence of a Straight Line speaks in hushed tones and subtle brushwork, coaxing viewers into taking a moment to contemplate nature and in pausing the complexities of our day-to-day world. Through delicate yet deliberate strokes, the painting depicts the beauty of a stretch of the River Avon and contrasts them with a straight line and projection struck across the canvas. Flower pressing a memory with his daughter and preserving it through his own poetry, Scrace ponders the loss of the natural environment, and the resulting legacy for future generations.

“This piece captures a moment earlier this year when I sat with my feet in a river. As I sat, I reflected on how poorly we treat our world and environment. I wondered if it was okay to put my feet in potentially dirty waters. Were they safe? Could my daughter do the same? If not, why not? Why should she lose out on this timeless rite of passage? What kind of world are we leaving for our kids?”

Layers of paint, poetry and projection encourage interaction through shared experience, provoke introspection, and invites dialogue. The straight line, realised in the forming of the river bank, represents mankind’s ongoing desire to make a mark and stamp control on the world. Tim notes, “The Impudence of a Straight Line” is a retrospective on our impact on the river and our environment. Of our society on nature. We insist that everything needs to be straight. I want people to ask, does it need to be?”

Tim Scrace’s diverse background in art, architecture, and community engagement puts him in a good place to challenge boundaries and to talk about the environment. His ethos of “seeing space differently” forms the cornerstone of his practice and is carried across discipline. His adeptness at engaging participation is showcased in his earlier work, “This Too Will Pass,” where interactivity spurred conversations and resonated with a wide audience. To see more of his work visit his website here… www.timscrace.com

Tim believes in creating art that raises awareness and acts as a catalyst for change. Forming part of his “Greenwash” series this artwork showcases an evolving environmentally conscious perspective, adding another dimension to a growing body of insightful works. Scrace is currently investigating chalk stream pollution and exploring concerns related to privilege.

The Impudence of a Straight Line

Tim Scrace at The Vanner Gallery’s Summer Invitation Exhibition

The Summer Invitation Exhibition opens at The Vanner Gallery runs until Saturday 16 September. It will feature the work of nineteen invited artists, and include paintings, drawings, sculpture, ceramics, and photography. Find out more about the exhibition here… www.vannergallery.com

IGNITE 2035

13-06-2023 By Frankie Sinclair

Our latest IGNITE workshop prompted a buzz of interest in the future, challenging freelancers and creatives to envision the dizzying changes our ways of life might undergo in the next twelve years. The responses of eight talented speakers ranged from discussions about AI generated solutions to a dazzling makeover of the image of our city. Thank you to everyone who contributed to IGNITE – 2035. Sign up to be kept posted on latest exhibitions, workshops and news at bottom of this post.

WORK George Scott-Welsh – IncuHive
ARCHITECTURE Tim Scrace – Scrace Architects
CULTURE Mat Freer – The Culture Experiment
DRAMA Nina Westbury – Nina Westbury Makeup Ltd
EDUCATION Edward Scott – Contemporary Artist
INNOVATION Jon Reece – Conficio Product Design
ENVIRONMENT Chris Bottle – Indigo Landscape Architects
ART David Christie – The Vanner Gallery

Special Guest – Eva McHugh – Salisbury Transition City

Keep an eye out for our next workshop scheduled for this autumn… IGNITE DISRUPT.

TALKS

GEORGE SCOTT-WELSH – IncuHive

In his talk exploring future styles of work, George emphasised the benefits of flexible working for employees and employers. He had an array of facts and stats throughout the speech to backup his vision. The twist in the plot line was his reveal in the final moments, in that he had utilised AI to write his script. This invited a flurry of questions as we pondered the impact of AI. We wondered what this moment in history will look like from 2035?

Find out more about George here https://incuhive.co.uk/
Follow @the_incuhive_space

TIM SCRACE – Scrace Architects

As well as hosting, Tim offered a presentation which included an invitation to choose and draw your favourite city. There were some lovely, impromptu sketches drawn from memory and some unselfconscious doodles! Allowing all to explore what inspired us. Considering what elements combine to make a true city, Tim contributed some futuristic, architectural anticipations of Salisbury circa 2035, including a 3D fly-through of a sunken city with skyscrapers and skydecks. Before ultimately concluding that …

“Architecture is nothing with community and a city is nothing without its people.”

Find out more about Tim here ABOUT
Follow @timscrace @scrace_architects

MAT FREER – The Culture Experiment

Armed with small bars of confectionery, coloured markers and bazooka-level energy, Mat unsettled the whole room in the best possible way – he began by literally asking everyone to move seats. His approach to fostering change is to dynamically show (not tell). It’s effective! People were soon energised and actively engaged in creating their own personal culture of creativity.

“It’s about building cultures of creativity, innovation, collaboration.”

Find out more about Mat here https://thecultureexperiment.com/
Follow @cultureexperiment

NINA WESTBURY – Nina Westbury Makeup Ltd

Nina didn’t pull her punches with her expose of the face of Salisbury present. But she truly wowed us with her novel ideas for Salisbury 2035. Drawing on her 25 years’ experience as a make-up artist in TV, Film and luxury retail, she transformed dull facades into glamourous icons for the city. Innocently boring bunting was replaced with a carnival of school child designed banners and skulking bins were customised with glitterball mirror vinyl.

“Let’s disco into 2035!”

Find out more about Nina here https://www.ninawestbury.com/
Follow @ninawestbury_makeup

EDWARD SCOTT – Contemporary Artist

Dressed in practical dungarees, artist Ed may have flowed directly from the studio, into the Ignite sphere. He brought us all a chance to tap into the flow of our subconscious creative minds with his ‘don’t think’ mantra and tips and techniques to bypass the logical mind.

“Don’t think.”

Find out more about Ed here https://edward-scott.co.uk/
Follow @edwardscottartist

JON REECE – Conficio Product Design

Jon turned our attention to sustainability and explored how this could be achieved for Salisbury in 2035, using the will of the community, combined with technology and innovation. Using local produce, crop rotation, reuse before recycling, shared transport, reduced insecticide, waste management systems. Jon gave us hope and vision for how technology could help us.

“Invest – massively – in green technologies.”

Find out more about Jon here https://conficio.design/
Follow @conficio_design

CHRIS BOTTLE – Indigo Landscape Architects

in conversation with Eva McHugh – Salisbury Transition City

Chris gave us a landscape architect’s view of Salisbury from above. We could see treeless grey concrete areas contrast starkly with tree lined gardens and woodlands. Having been tasked by Tim to plant 1,000 trees Chris shared expert knowledge on success criteria for tree growth in our future and present City. In conclusion…

“We must plant more and well!”

Find out more about Indigo Landscape Architects here https://indigolandscape.co.uk/
Find out more about Salisbury Transition City here https://www.transitionsalisbury.org/
Follow @indigolandscape.co.uk @salisburytransitioncity

DAVID CHRISTIE – The Vanner Gallery

David is inspired and motivated to create an egalitarian art gallery with no barriers to entry. He aims to achieve this goal well before 2035 and has already made great progress. He recently had a squeal of school children filling the gallery and busily exploring every inch of the contemporary art work on display. He didn’t mind in the least, touching up the walls afterwards with some gallery white paint.

“Am I allowed to come in here? Yes!”

Find out more about The Vanner Gallery here https://www.vannergallery.com/
Follow @thevannergallery

HIGHLIGHTS

SALISBURY 2035

SCRACE ARCHITECTS are looking forward to an exciting 2023 with new workshops, exhibitions and events.

Please email to sign up and stay informed on the latest.

Call SCRACE ARCHITECTS on 01722 658048 or email info@scracearchitects.co.uk for more details.