Sophie Ashdown

Wow what an experience it was to participate in the Interim Show, and most amazingly to see the works of my coursemates!

Wednesday 12 March was “hanging day” where the works would be curated and hung in our assigned exhibition space.

The space we were assigned is the first section you see when coming in the main front entrances. I had visited CSM a few weeks before and took some photos. It is a cool space to be in with interesting beams and wooden details, but I was worried that it would be dark, especially in the evening when the skylight would not be giving light:

We discussed the location and layout in some length during a few of the Tuesday sessions and Jonathan was confident that we could find some additional lighting.

On the Wednesday that I arrived, the area was cordoned off and work was underway to hang some of the pieces.

Immediately I got to meet Jonathan and some of my coursemates, and I was so excited! I hugged everyone! What a pleasure to meet these friends and colleagues in person rather than just on a screen. It felt like we knew each other but still meeting for the first time felt a bit like a first date. Everyone was so lovely and friendly. I feel lucky to have to be part of this cohort.

When I arrived, Susan’s two huge incredible pieces were already up:

These were enormous pieces that were very impressive. When looking closely, I could see that she had constructed the pieces by connecting many smaller squares of canvas together which must have taken ages. The resulting paintings were so striking and vibrant. I loved them.

Mateusz’s large painting “Woman on the Beach” was in the process of being hung when I arrived.

It was hung in the perfect position to give a big “wow factor” to the space. Amazingly Mateusz had managed to bring the painting with him on the airplane, rolled up and stored below. It came out somewhat wrinkled but Mateusz sprayed it with water and once hung, it soon straightened itself out.

Jonathan was the centre of everything as he worked out which pieces were going to go where.

Karema’s project was going to go on two chairs. Mine was going to be hung, as was part of Debbie’s. Some pieces were on video. Some would be put on the wooden boards. Cat’s would be displayed on the floor. It was quite a complicated jigsaw puzzle to figure out what was going to go where and how.

My piece was hung towards the centre of the space, hanging from a metal ceiling post. The technicians helping us to do the hanging were really lovely. Gill helped to hang mine and was patient with me to get it at the right height:

Eventually most things were up by the end of the day and I was very impressed by the work that I saw.

Everyone put so much effort into the show. More on the actual show soon…

Thank you so much to Jonathan and the techs for getting us all set up!