Over the summer, I produced a series of paper pulp panels for a composite art installation. Each section will now have type added – recycled fragmented sayings and thoughts – using letterpress printing on a book press.
Paper Pulp and Type
Pulp Works
New Selling Platform
My new selling platform at Big Cartel is now live and includes a selection of fibre art pulpworks, etchings and digital prints. Click on the link to browse the artwork which will be updated on a regular basis. If you have any questions please get in touch – I’d love to hear from you.
Uni e verso (1991) / 2 colour etching / aquatint, open bite, aqua-forte /
A/P4 (edition of 20) / Somerset White Texture 300gsm / H 35 cm x W 28 cm
Arrestarsi ai raggi notturni (2006) /cotton fibre, pigment dyes / H 31 x W 27 cm
Halse for Hazel (2015) / A1 / limited edition digital print / edition of 15 / Epson archival inks on Somerset Velvet 300gsm paper
Arte Polpa
Earth is Calling
About the Book
My focus has shifted to invisible nature, micro pollution and micro fibre plastic.
Current project, Earth is Calling, explores the issues through a series of fibre art pulp works, contrasting natural, organic material with man-made plastic fibre. In other works micro-photography, film and time-lapse are used to produce my outcomes.
The project culminated in a large-scale exhibition at the Crypt Gallery, London (Oct/Nov 2019) for which the book below was produced. The intention now is to tour the exhibition while developing further work. Two venues have been agreed on so far.
Private View – Earth is Calling
PRIVATE VIEW
on Thursday 24 October, 6pm – 9pm
at The CRYPT GALLERY
165 Euston Rd, Bloomsbury, London NW1 2BA
Located in the crypt of St Pancras New Church
(access to the gallery along Duke’s Road, 2nd gateway)
Meet the artist – refreshments provided
We look forward to seeing you there
FREE EVENT
Exhibition times: 23 Oct – 3 November 2019 – 11 am – 7 pm
EARTH IS CALLING
Exhibition of new work by IRMA IRSARA
Featuring soundscapes by Jonathan Lambert
The focus of my work has shifted to invisible nature, micro pollution and micro fibre plastic, using micro-photography / film to produce my outcomes.
Earth is Calling reflects on the issues through a series of fibre art pulp works, contrasting natural, organic material with man-made plastic fibre. The artist will also present time-lapse and micro time-lapse works of melting ice embedded with natural and man-made items sourced from various locations (including along the Thames foreshore). The accompanying sound was created by musician and soundscape artist Jonathan Lambert.
The gallery, in the Crypt at St Pancras Church, is one of London’s most unique and atmospheric exhibition spaces. It’s located in the centre of London right opposite Euston Station
Möbelhaus Willinger
Art in Health
A recent proposal led me to think about art in health settings. I’m very aware of the importance of art in these types of surroundings both from my experience as a patient who has benefited from the presence of uplifting work and as an artist who has shown work in similar settings.
Joanna Wakefield, Art Director at Art St George’s, believes that abstract art is a particularly powerful medium to enable patients and staff to find their own narratives, noting that the nature of the art within their collection is purposefully without subject bias, whilst leaning away from dark colours and macabre scenes towards bold, textured abstract works with plenty of room for interpretation and reflection.
My own work takes its inspiration from specific themes and subject matter but the finished work is generally abstract. I have work in the permanent collections of the BMA building in Tavistock Place and the Tavistock Clinic where I’ve exhibited a number of times in the past. I’ve also displayed my art at the Wandsworth Medical Centre and it has been used in visualization sessions for relaxation and meditation at the NHS Trust’s Bristol Breast Care Centre.
I’m conscious of the power of artwork to calm and uplift; to alter and enhance an environment and change an individual’s mood through colour. I’m deeply interested in the relationship between colour and state of mind. I’m conscious of the calming influence of blues and the potential of colours such as carmine red and jaune d’or to interact in a stimulating way to reinforce feelings of positivity. Art has the capacity to effect a different state of mind and transport the viewer somewhere else albeit for a brief moment in time.
My practice encompasses a broad range of media and techniques with the ‘pulp work’ (examples shown) represent a large part of my recent output. The uneven edges of the final work is very important to me as it breaks down the border between the picture and what lies beyond. It enables the work to define a space and become part of the surroundings rather than being a series of contained images.
Rivelare (Reveal) 63 x 105 cm – cotton fibre, pigment dyes, hemp, sand 2018
Working as a Woman Artist
Reflections on Working as a Woman Artist:
talk and visuals by Irma Irsara
DATE AND TIME: Thursday March 8 – 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
LOCATION: Resource For London, 356 Holloway Road, London N7 6PA (map below)
BOOK TICKETS (free):
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/reflections-on-working-as-a-woman-artist-talk-and-visuals-by-irma-irsara-tickets-43618971518?
DESCRIPTION
Italian artist Irma Irsara has chosen International Women’s Day to talk about her experiences as a woman artist during a career that spans over 30 years. The event is being held in conjunction with her current exhibition at Resource for London: ‘Zero Celsius – Digital Prints’.
Irma will share her thoughts on growing up in a male dominated environment, the impact of gender politics on her time at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Urbino, and the current position of women artists in the art establishment.
She will reflect on her experiences, both positive and negative, with galleries, collectors, art consultants and art fairs, as well as exploring the idea of going the solo route versus connecting with peers through collectives. She will explore how the urgency of wanting to create art conflicted with the practical side of the business. She also had to re-think her practice after the birth of her children and considers the effect of motherhood on both the content of her art and her working practices.
Irma Irsara grew up on the foothills of Monte Croce in the Italian Dolomites and her work is heavily influenced by the natural environment. She has a special interest in ecology, conservation and climate change. As well as her artistic training at the Accademia di Belle Arti di Urbino in Italy, she studied Country Care and Conservation at Capel Manor Horticultural College in Enfield. Her practice encompasses a broad range of media and techniques, with ‘pulp work’ representing a large part of her recent output. She has lived and worked in London for many years and exhibits both in the UK and abroad.
Resource for London is where the voluntary sector comes to work, meet and exhibit. Owned by Trust for London and managed by the Ethical Property Company, all proceeds stay within the voluntary sector and are used to support groups tackling inequality in London while the Centre is managed to high environmental standards.
Drawing a Line Under Torture
Drawing a Line Under Torture, Freedom from Torture‘s biennial charity art auction takes place 8 November 2017 – 12 November 2017 at Bargehouse, Oxo Tower Wharf, South Bank, London
To bid on the work below and many other pieces, please follow the link:
http://ow.ly/6pCf30g8Ona
All works will continue to be on display until the close of the public exhibition and will be available for collection from Tuesday 14 November 2017
Freedom from Torture is a UK-based human rights organisation, and one of the largest torture rehabilitation centres in the world; it is the only specialist national charity working to ensure the rehabilitation and protection of torture survivors seeking refuge in the UK. Since it’s establishment in 1985, more than 57,000 survivors of torture have been referred to us.
Fonte (Fount)
Cotton fibre pulps, direct dyes
52cm x 47cm
2017
Guide Price: £760
Framed
Irma Irsara’s work is heavily influenced by the natural environment in which she grew up – the foothills of Monte Croce in the Italian Dolomites. She has a special interest in ecology, conservation and climate change. ‘Fonte’ reflects an early childhood moment in a place revisited but now changed due to the effects of stream erosion. The title refers not only to rising water through cracks in the bedrock but also the idea of innocent thought set against the backdrop of succeeding stages of life.
Irsara’s practice encompasses a broad range of media and techniques with the ‘pulp work’ representing a large part of her recent output. The wet-on-wet process involves building up strata of dyed pulp which can be further modified through embedding, sculpting, ripping, embossing etc. She exhibits both in the UK and abroad.
Irma Irsara 