Saturday 14 May - 18 June 2022
Jessica Holmes lives and works in the West End of Morecambe. She studied Fine Art at White Cross College in Lancaster and has continuously developed skills in various crafts. Upon leaving Lancaster Jessica gained Bachelor and Masters degrees in Prehistoric and Environmental Archaeology, working in the field for many years. In 2015 she rediscovered her love for art when she joined the Exchange Creative Community/ Good Things Collective and has taken part in festivals, exhibitions, markets and community work. This is her first solo exhibition.
Jessica has been creating fluid art for several years. Fluid art involves pouring epoxy resin or acrylic paint and then applying various techniques to create interesting results. She explains:
“Many resin artists work purely within an abstract field, but I can't resist trying to tell a story within my art and so my work tends to juxtapose the fluid abstract resin with more realistic painting and other controlled techniques. My work is very experimental. I'm still trying to find my artistic style, pushing and pulling at the edges to determine what I most like to create and how best to go about it. I’ve recently learned first-hand what a powerful medium art can be with regard to social change and bringing the community together. It's been an interesting journey so far!”
Jessica has also been developing an animation based upon mapping the historic movement of channels within Morecambe Bay. She is interested in developing geographical information systems in art and thinking about how these systems can be used creatively and how they can be led by ideas and people alongside the data. She is exploring creative ways of sharing her animation and collaborating with others so that she can develop a more holistic view of the bay.
“Morecambe is a beautiful coastal town full of art deco splendour and heritage, but like many seaside resorts it has been ravaged economically over the past half century and it has struggled to find a new identity. I love to explore this dual aspect of my town and try to remind people that it is still a place full of possibility and wonder.”
She is inspired by the Expressionist Movement and in particular the artists Wassily Kandinsky, Gerhard Richter and Gerard Stricher. In addition she takes a great interest in the architectural work of Friedensrich Hundertwasser and the magical realism of the author Gabriel Marquez. She does not care for standardisation.
You can follow Jessica’s art at:
meandercrafts.co.uk (or meandercrafts.com) and also through her twitter feed @jessica36645295
Photography by Nick Helier Photography.
