Last night, XCHC hosted the latest in the Art Social Christchurch series. Titled 'Art for Equality' the event aimed to bring together a community in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. As well as opening an exhibition—wherein pieces were inspired by black culture or other ethnic minorities, all of which can be purchased via a silent auction until next Thursday—the event provided an opportunity for attendees of varying artistic talent and interest to create their own artwork. Prior to the event, whilst she was busy with organisation of the evening, I sat down with Art Social founder and facilitator, Shannon Kelly, to discuss the inspiration behind the initiative, as well as her own artwork. Enjoy! (the final image is Shannon's piece that is currently exhibited at XCHC as part of 'Art for Equality') ~ Isaac
Tell us a little about your own artistic journey to date.
'I finished art school in 2012, and then had a bit of a hiatus during international travel. When I eventually revisited my practice, I decided to take on somethings that challenged my style; figurative painting, as inspired by my three years in Asia, for example. I've always had a fascination with Indigenous culture, nature and mythology, and you can see a lot of this in my work. It's difficult to pinpoint my specific 'style' though.'
Are they any artists who you admire or take influence from?
There's an artist, Lauren YS, who goes by @squid.licker on instagram. She's quite psychedelic and other-worldly, and creates these crazy characters as well as epic murals. There's also David Chang, another crazy character, who has quite the range of styles. He goes from beautiful water colours to murals, and just likes to have fun. I also love Ralph Steadman, the illustrator for Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. He was originally a cartoonist, and now he's got this wildly grotesque depiction of things. I also love traditional Japanese art.
In what style is the piece you are creating for the 'Art for Equality' exhibition?
This is a challenge piece for me, as I am not a portrait artist, at all. I wanted to work with acrylics as well as hands, faces and skin tones. I'm usually more of an illustrator than a painter, so this is an opportunity to expand my colour palette. I don't typically plan any of my pieces, and this is the one that I've planned the most.
How did you—and, therefore, Art Social—come to be involved with XCHC?
I'd heard of XCHC, mostly due to the awesome stuff that it does. So I came down, met Preston, and our ideas clicked. I was already thinking of doing something like Art Social, before it had a name, so I found it to be the perfect place for people to hang out, meet other artists, have a drink, listen to music, and explore their craft and creative outlets. There's nothing too structured about Art Social; it allows for things to flow organically. Preston was looking to begin running evening events, so Art Social fitted nicely with that intention, and through that collaboration he helped me discover my vision [for Art Social] in turn. Art Social also now has many different co-facilitators for each event. Clem and Joss, for example, helped me facilitate a previous event influenced by the Extinction Rebellion movement; a night where their members could make some T-shirts.
Why did you want to bring Art Social about?
I saw a niché in the market for facilitating a event where people could hang out in an open environment and explore the creative process. I love hearing when people say that they "can't draw", and that they're "not an artist", only to then be encouraged by others around them. Also, there isn't a lot of evening variety in Christchurch. You can go to a bar or a pub, but I wanted to give people something that didn't revolve around alcohol. Here, people can make some art, or just experience some art if that's what they'd like to do.
If you could add anything to XCHC, what would it be?
Some soundproofing, so we can have later events here! And maybe additions to the kitchen space, so we could host some guest chefs.
Where do you hope your artistic journey takes you from here?
I just want to keep making lots of art. I also want to do some pop-up art social events around the city, in order to include different demographics.
To view Shannon's work, or keep up to date with the Art Social events:
Instagram - @cosmikdebrisnz and @art_social.chch
Facebook - Art Social (@artsocialchch)
Note: This article was first published on Patreon in June 2020. Have a look and sign up here if you’d like to support the our artists: https://patreon.com/exchange