FRANKIE CURTIS
APRIL - JUNE 2024

In the studio from 8th April to 23rd June 2024, Frankie will transform the space into her very own ‘doodle room’ - an exhibition that takes the viewer on a chaotic voyage through the corridors of her childhood memories and passion for cartoons. Inspired by the vibrant street art scene, Frankie’s hope is for the viewer to step into her imagination and become a part of the art itself. From walls to furniture, and floors to ceilings, every surface in the artist studio will act as a canvas for intricate doodles that bring characters, stories and daydream to life.

Influenced by countless hours spent engrossed in cartoons and video games, Frankie’s doodles carry the whimsical spirit of those formative years and utilise playful lines to beckon the viewer to explore the extraordinary landscapes of her mind. Drawing from these origins, whilst in residency Frankie will continue to channel her enthusiasm into her work and embrace the experimentation with diverse ideas and materials.

KASIA SIFANTUS
JANUARY - APRIL 2024

In the studio from 16th January to 5th April 2024, Kasia will explore the themes of meditation and mindfulness within her artistic process. Inviting local community members and hotel visitors to the studio, Kasia to share the meditative practices she utlises whilst creating her signature artworks.

Intending to expand the boundaries of her creative practice, Kasia hopes to gain inspiration from the beautiful and unique architecture of the Bankside Hotel and the surrounding Southbank area. During her time in the studio, Kasia will build upon her ‘Dreams’ and ‘Planets’ series, which portray the power of energy and evoke a sense of mystery and spirituality. To expand upon her practice further, Kasia will experiment with different finishes and larger canvas sizes.

KATE MATSEVYCH
OCTOBER - JANUARY 2023/2024

In the studio from 2nd October 2023 to 12th January 2024, Kate will explore the different patterns found within Bankside Hotel to serve as inspiration for a series of paintings that celebrate women and femininity. This new series of paintings will be inspired specifically by patterns found in the hotel’s interior, furniture and dishes, using fabric adorned with the collected patterns to capture the visual richness of the Bankside Hotel.

Expanding on her use of texture, Kate plans to work on linen canvas and experiment with clay to add a distinct visual and tactical quality to her paintings. Whilst in the studio, Kate plans to experiment with working on larger canvases to push the boundaries of her artistic practice and create impactful, large-scale pieces that evoke a sense of awe and immersion. Kate will also incorporate a digital component to her artwork through augmented reality, where she will capture images of the hotel’s rooms and use them as backgrounds in an augmented reality layer of the paintings. Through the use of a special filter, viewers will be able to see the hotel’s spaces come to life within her artwork.

LANA MATSUYAMA
JUNE - SEPTEMBER 2023

In the studio from 20th June - 15th September, Lana will focus on her signature ‘Of Katatchi’ series, exploring the themes of work and play.

Inspired by the relationship between work and play, Lana will examine how our everyday lives have become a delicate balance and conversation between contrasting concepts and how these ideas influence her artworks. Focusing specifically on the Bankside Hotel and its surrounding area, Lana will explore how the hotel functions as a place for both exploration and collaboration, both in work in play, ultimately articulating this through her artwork, the residency space, and various projects and events that she plans to host. Continuing her exploration of the interaction of shapes, forms, textures and colors through painting, Lana will expand on this process by taking all of her inspiration from the architecture and interiors of the Bankside Hotel, as well as the surrounding urban area of Southwark and Southbank.

SAMUEL RYDE
APRIL - JUNE 2023

In the studio from the start of April to mid June, Samuel will begin a brand new series. ‘The Fifteen Minute Series’ to directly reflect the area the Bankside Hotel is located in. In addition to creating new works, throughout his residency Samuel will explore and exhibit ongoing projects in fresh hangs, bringing a new energy and content to the studio.

Influenced by the themes of observation and exploration and the urge to notice new things, Samuel’s new series will examine the overlooked but often maligned accidental remnants of modern life and the things we leave behind. Looking at Bankside’s surrounding area of Southwark which has become one of the fastest-chaging and most diverse areas in London, Samuel will walk fifteen minutes due south, due east, due west and due north of the hotel. Spending a week on each route, Sam aims to capture and present the various histories and characteristics of each route, the stories involved, and the evolution of the buildings roadways and people.

LUKE M WALKER
FEBRUARY - APRIL 2023

We are thrilled to welcome back Luke M Walker to the Art Yard Studio, for his second residency in the space. Celebrating the four-year anniversary of the hotel’s first ever residency featuring Luke, he will return to the studio from 30th January - 2nd April 2023 to focus on the changing landscape of London and the Thames.

Based on the original 14 foot long panorama of the Thames created in 1843 by engraver Henry Vixetelly, which was made made from looking from the South Bank towards the North stretching from The Palace of Westminster to Wapping, Luke will revisit this concept and create an updated ‘Grand Panorama of the Thames’, covering the landscapes from Milbank to Towerbridge. Drawing upon his interest in panoramic views of London and his recent series of ‘London Converstions’ on display at Bankside, Luke plans to utlise his recently acquired technique of charcoal on canvas to create this large artwork that will span across 5-6 long landscape canvases. In addition to the large Panorama, Luke will carry iout detailed studies and tests prior to his commencement of the project.

JOSHUA DONKOR
OCTOBER - JANUARY 2022/23

Ghanaian-British painter Joshua Donkor will expand upon his signature artistic process of visual narration in which he looks at people and stories as the main inspiration for his work. Whilst in the studio, Joshua will continue to develop his new body of work, ‘I Have More Souls Than One', which seeks to explore transcultural and African Diasporic experiences in the Western world and how this is felt through the different generations of family.

With the goals of sharing and talking about the different ways people have navigated these spaces, Joshua hopes to continue having these conversations with people he meets whilst in residency and create a series of portraits mapping individuals’ experiences spanning across the diaspora, time periods and generations within families. Taking a collaborative approach, Joshua plans to engage with hotel guests and staff, as well as the general public, to facilitate an open and inclusive conversation. Further expanding on this, Joshua plans to collaborate with local artists in the area in the creation of new works.

CORINNE NATEL
SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2022

Specialising in abstract mixed media and painting, wiwth a focus on the investigation of form space, and texture, Corinne’s theme whilst in residency will be ‘Now Everything’s Vivid’. During her time in the studio, Corinne will create a series of abstract paintings further investigating the relationship between colour and form, specifically examining the relationship with negative space in a painting and how colours work with one another to create a sense of energy and language in themselves.

Over the course of her residency, Corinne’s work will aim to create a sense of energy by creating in a vivid space with the city surroundings in London. With the influences of the surrounding Bankside area, Corinne hopes to capture the energy and creativity of London in her colourful paintings.

IMOGEN MORRIS
JULY - SEPTEMBER 2022

With the goal of developing her work into more of a 3D space, Imogen plans to create 14 portraiture works of subjects who are guests, visitors and local community members of the hotel that will create a sense of movement and pace in each portrait. Throughout this process, Imogen will approach, engage with, and photograph subjects to obtain a series of photographed portraits that will be used as a base for her original, nail and thread artworks.

Portraying the sense of energy and movement, Imogen will explore a variety of new techniques including layering up thread and utilising different lengths of nails to create multiple images of each subject in a slightly different position, using coloured thread to create light and shadow, and cutting out/fragmenting certain areas of the face to create a sense of stillness and movement in the subjects’ features. By creating different layers of images, Imogen hopes to bring her portraits further out into the 3D space and in turn push the boundaries of what she can achieve in her work.

LUCY STEVENS
MAY - JUNE 2022

The residency will present a rare opportunity for Lucy to focus on an area in London where birdlife is under threat when it should be flourishing by the river and surrounding areas. With this concept in mind, will develop relationships with local members and volunteers of birding societies in London and the London Wildlife Trust.

As part of her residency, visitors can expect to see the development of a variety of works on paper and canvas to include photography of bird skins from the natural science collection at the Leicester Museum. Lucy will also gather field recordings at dawn in various locations by the river and underwater recordings using specialist microphones to visualise the sound and incorporate it into her drawings and paintings using mixed media.

KELLY JENKINS
APRIL - MAY 2022

Whilst in the studio, Kelly’s aim is to push her embroidery skills, techies and ideas even further, through design development, scale and incorporating new digital embroidery aesthetics and terminology. Producing a range of plein air sketches of the surrounding area on the Southbank, Kelly aims to develop these sketches into embroidered paintings, as well as create 2 free-hand machine embroidered data portraits, employing the personal data usage to translate and create an interpretation of their online existing. Additionally, Kelly plans to develop and scale up 3 plein air paintings onto canvas and use online data to create 3 free-hand machine embroidered datascapes.

We are thrilled to announce that Kelly will be sponsored by the No.1 sewing machine manufacturer in the world, JANOME UK. Through this partnership, JANOME will be lending Kelly the MC550E and CM7P sewing machines for the residency, allowing her to create a series of digital datascapes visualisations based on daily data. These works will be embroidered directly into mini plein air paintings and will reflect data collected around the Southbank area. These pieces will be created alongside Kelly’s free hand embroidery pieces and will be made as limited-edition digital embroideries.

SAM WAGNER
JANUARY - MARCH 2022

Examining the influences of a post-pandemic world on anxiety and germaphobia, Sam’s residency will touch upon his coping mechanisms to ease tension in the new world we live in which affect our daily lives and change how we perceive each other in an undefined future. Whilst showcasing the dichotomy of the struggle with control during these unprecedented times, Sam’s goal is to create a new series of works that provide an even deeper look into the mind of a person suffering from OCD and Germaphobia.

Whilst in the studio, Sam will expand on his artistic skill set whilst also drawing upon the techniques he thoroughly developed over the past years. All artworks produced during the residency will be on sale through DegreeArt.com, including original paintings and limited edition prints.

THE WINTER SHOWCASE
DECEMBER 2021 - JANUARY 2022

Bankside Hotel x Contemporary Collective are thrilled to announce their first annual Christmas Showcase which will take place in the Artist Studio at the Bankside Hotel from 10th December 2021 - 7th January 2022. This physical pop up will feature a selection of specially curated handmade sculptures and decorative pieces from our Artisanal Homeware collection, along with our favorite selection of paintings and wall works created. 

Over the duration of the showcase, passersby will have the chance to visit the studio, view and purchase the artworks, and learn more about the various artists' practices. The showcase will be open daily and features artists including Lana Matsuyama, Charlie Lang, Charlie Macpherson, Jessica Slack, Ottelien Huckin, The Ceramicists, Michael Slusakowicz, Diana Baur, Alexandra Gallagher and more. 

GEORGINA HARRIS
SEPTEMBER - DECEMBER 2021

Georgina will be painting the ‘lived experience’ of being in London, by taking her painting outside to create a series of ‘plein air’ abstract paintings. The artist also welcomes you to visit her in the studio, to share the green spots you cherish in the city. She will use these conversations and her own experience to paint alternate maps of the city, with the aim of celebrating the connection between people and place.

Operating with an open-door policy to encourage visitors to engage directly with the art, and will host a range of events including a cocktail tasting course inspired by the artist’s practice, and two workshops surrounding abstract map making as means of understanding the spaces around us.

LAUREN GOLDIE
AUGUST 2021

Lauren will explore Astronomy as a main theme and inspiration for a series of artwork examining the fragilities of our planet, hypothetical narratives from outer space and the imagined landscapes that could become home.

Operating with an open-door policy to encourage visitors to engage directly with the art, Lauren will divide the studio space into a traditional gallery and workspace. Within the gallery section of the studio, there will be an interactive sculpture requiring audience participation to provoke collaboration and conversation. Additional works within the space will include a series of sculptural and 2-dimensional work inspired by tracking spatial objects. Throughout the residency, Lauren plans to work towards expanding this collection throughout the entirety of the gallery space.

JULIE BENNETT
JUNE - JULY 2021

Exploring and expanding different areas of her practice, With the goal of capturing the energy of her mark-making and experimenting with her process and use of materials Julie plans to paint directly onto canvas illuminating the process of sketching in pencil or charcoal beforehand.

Creating a series of portrait paintings inspired by art icons who have influenced or inspired the artist’s life and practice, Julie’s #BanksideArtIcons series will include a combination of both historical and contemporary art icons, in addition to a photoshop composite of the collection of art icons produced throughout the residency as a limited edition print available through DegreeArt. Overall, Julie aims to introduce viewers to the unknown faces of so many well known names of so many iconic artists.

GUGLIELMO ALFARONE
APRIL - MAY - JUNE 2021

During his residency, Guglielmo will create a large size composition to emphasise a collective consciousness through portraits. Through this exploration, the artist will attempt to portray the relationship between each subject’s individual story and their collective experience during this challenging and monumental time in history.

Utilising the studio’s large walls, Guglielmo’s goal is to create a large scale artwork on paper, either as a single piece or multiple pieces combined together, building a unique representation of the collective community. In line with the artists’ figurative style and process, Guglielmo plans to draw several portraits on a textured surface using a contrast of light and shadow to create a flow that binds all the subjects together.

JOHANNES NIELSEN
MARCH 2021 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

As a westerner and artist living in the East (Beijing), Johannes is greatly influenced by the location, people and culture which surrounds him, most specifically, the Songzhuang Art District. Having recently launched a brand new collection of artworks available on DegreeArt, Johannes will provide insight into the background of these works as well as how his artistic process has recently transformed.

To provide further background, Johannes will divide his virtual residency into 4 chapters, focusing on one of the following themes each week: horse sculpture, drawing with ink, human sculpture, and an audience voted/requested theme.

ANIKA MANUEL
FEBRUARY 2021 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Anika Manuel is a portrait and figurative painter from Cornwall. Her passion is for the flat, found image and its subsequent translation into painting. Having had an interest in drawing faces from an early age, she continues to capture realistic depictions of the human figure; most recently her focus has shifted towards the stylized and the celebrity.

The theme of Anika's residency is "Musicians in Isolation", inspired by iconic musicians who have addressed feelings of loneliness and isolation within their work. From 8th February to 12th March, Anika will document the creation of a brand new series inspired by this theme, sharing her process through a virtual lens. With an aim of painting up to 10 acrylic portraits to create a collection of 'lonely' musicians, Anika plans to incorporate daily updates on the series, an interview, studio & time-lapse videos, and a competition giveaway of a David Bowie print.

MICHAEL SLUSAKOWICZ
DECEMBER 2020 - JANUARY 2021

The theme of this residency is expansion, presented through an exploration of the physical growth of the artist’s paintings that viewers will be able to witness from start to finish. During his residency, Michael will utilise the large studio space to explore the possibility of expanding the size of his signature still lifes, symbolising his personal evolution as an artist.

Whilst in the Makers Studio, Michael plans to experiment with creating larger scale still lifes, as well as developing smaller, more affordable work. With this process documented on the Documented on Contemporary Collective’s Instagram, viewers will have the chance to directly witness Michael’s process from the very early stages of creating a digital image concept and sketching on canvas, to the final stages of interpreting digital colour and replacing it with oil paints to create clean and fresh tones. There will also be an opportunity for Michael to draw inspiration from Bankside’s overall design and aesthetic, incorporating these elements into his finished paintings.

RAMZI MUSA & LANA MATSUYAMA
OCTOBER - DECEMBER 2020

Introducing our first post-lockdown residency featuring husband and wife creative team Ramzi Musa and Lana Matsuyama. The theme of the residency is a live visual dialogue between two creatives, where viewers can openly witness in person and over social, both in the practice and final works, the flow of cultural, conceptual, and stylistic influences between two artists.

Ramzi will explore his signature botanical/abstract subject matter, inspired by patterns in nature, but will work on a much larger scale than seen before, resulting in colourful, impactful works of art. In addition to large scale pieces, Ramzi will also create smaller, affordable, and accessible works on paper. There is an opportunity to explore fabric printing, as a continuation from his fashion background, but this will be dependent upon time and resources.

Lana will continue to explore the interaction of shapes, forms and textures, but aims to scale up in order to take advantage of the space, environment and interaction provided by Bankside. The public nature of the work environment will be an important and exciting aspect for Lana because she’s just as interested in exposing the process of creating a piece as she is in the final product; the “final” piece is merely a glimpse into a moment in the lifecycle of the work.

Like Ramzi, Lana will also create large-scale textural paintings and smaller collages, as well as sculptural paintings (working in paper maché). She also plans on creating a large sculpture (working in plaster) which highlights the shapes she often explores on canvas, but translated into three-dimensions.

The approach to this collaboration is representative of the artists’ approach to their relationship: one that respects individuality, and also looks to create something new that is more than the sum of its parts.

SARAH EMILY PORTER
SEPTEMBER 2020 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Sarah Emily Porter specialised in architectural history at Durham University, graduating in 2008 and has since attended Chelsea College of Art graduating with a Distinction in Fine Art in 2016. She now practices as an abstract painter from her studio in Leyton, East London.

Heavily influenced by her previous history degree, her work often has architectural and sculptural attributes but is derived from the traditions and histories of painting.

By pouring and manipulating paint on tilting wooden structures, Sarah Emily Porter practice places emphasis on the process of making by removing the gesture and emotion of the artist’s hand from the final work. Instead, she subjects paint to the forces of gravity and use systems and order to create opportunities for chance to occur, creating a tension between what was and what could be. Through this method of painting, she seeks to highlight the significance and complexity of colour and reveal intricacies in her materials.

LILY WEDGE 
AUGUST 2020 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Inspired by Traditional East Asian monochrome brush and ink technique, Lily uses the medium in a more contemporary wet on wet approach. Revisiting primitive outcomes in a photographic dark room which is the artist's background and what she trained in, this technique provides enables each mark unknown and uncontrolled.

During her virtual residency, Lily will create a new body of paintings that will serve as an exploration on different dog breeds and their characters. Incorporating time lapses, studies, works in progress and a series of smaller prints to supplement the new paintings, Lily will use this virtual space to share inspiration and give viewers an insight into her practice.

KELLY JENKINS 
JULY 2020 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Kelly creates tactile, embroidered paintings that are both atmospheric and evocatively powerful. They marry together highly intricate embroidery with abstract landscape painting. 

In Kelly's recent 2020 series, she has been interpreting personal data, represented as stitches within imagined and surreal painted landscapes of the internet. For the next month, Kelly will extend the concept of this series by focusing on specific data obtained from sources such as Google Trends and The Office For National Statistics; to analyse and translate into embroidered paintings, the emotional and habitual changes and shifts in behaviour within the United Kingdom in response to Covid-19.

HELEN GØRILL 
JUNE 2020 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Helen’s collages explore ideas about time, history and reality; using contemporary imagery that juxtaposes with the Old Masters she sets out to reappropriate. Her new artwork focuses on vandalising old masters and reviving art historical portraits through photo bombing and incorporating elements from contemporary sub-cultures, and often incorporates media such as lipstick, eyeliner and human hair. Within this context, the striking images hover between the 17thcentury and today’s climate of uncertainty; the deliberately defaced portraits by old masters refuse to become the passive objects they once were.

For the next month, Helen will use this digital space to explore a new series of miniature portraits inspired by the collection at the prestigious Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. This virtual residency has offered an opportunity to recreate and transcribe a digital collection which has hitherto remained largely unseen.

LEE HERRING
MAY 2020 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Lee Herring is a contemporary painter specialising in colourful, textured and abstracted landscapes. He was born in Sunderland, in the North East of England and has always had a creative streak.  After excelling in art throughout his early education, he went on to study Fine Art at the University of Chester.  It was here that Lee discovered his love of painting and began to develop his painting style.  After 3 years, he graduated with a First-Class honours and was awarded the coveted University prize. 

We are delighted to announce that in partnership with the Bankside Hotel, accomplished artist Lee Herring will take over the Contemporary Collective Instagram over the next month as our second Virtual Artist in Residence. Lasting until 2nd June, Lee's online takeover will encompass daily posts, timelapse paintings, artist setups, inspiration, and a variety of additional creative content. Follow @Contemporary_Collective on Instagram to keep up to date with Lee's virtual residency. 

RAMZI MUSA
APRIL 2020 - VIRTUAL ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

With a professional background in both the art and fashion worlds, Ramzi makes bright and colourful, large scale multimedia paintings of botanical scenes. Inspired by his travels to South East Asia and themes of exploration and the everchanging meaning of home, the artist will continue to develop his practice by experimenting with new mediums and sharing his inspiration to the greater community during this difficult time. 

In efforts to circulate positivity and new digital opportunities to artists during these difficult times, Ramzi will provide viewers with a virtual residency experience as he documents his practice directly from his East London home. Lasting until 31st April, Ramzi's online takeover will encompass daily posts, timelapse paintings, artist setups, inspiration, and a variety of additional creative content. Follow the artist as he experiments with new mediums and uses this time as an opportunity to grow as an artist and expand his overall practice.