About Us

Contemporary Art Practice is a group of Staffordshire-based artists showing a contemporary mix of painting, photography, illustration, ceramics, film, textiles and fashion.

Welcome to Studio O

The artists’ individual style and subject of work varies widely, making it an interesting new experience at every turn. With such a variety of media and styles including intricate textiles, embellished illustration, detailed photography and innovative paintings; there surely will be something for everyone.

The Studio O group consists of:
Adam Gruning, Jack Roberts, Rebecca Barrs, Rebecca Boden, Sian Mellor, Billi Jo Morton, Nicola Whitmore, Annie Sanderson, Lee Hughes, Rhiannon Cory, Lindsey Heath, Cindel Simmill, and Rob Downward.

LATEST NEWS!
Studio O Group Exhibition
Our latest exhibition will take place at the Victoria Mill Art Centre in Congleton
Thursday 2nd December 2010 PRIVATE VIEW (by invitation only) 7pm
Come and see what we can do!
Friday 10-4 until Tuesday 7th December 2010.

Exhibition Address:
Victoria Mill Art Centre, Foundry Bank, Congleton, Cheshire, CW12 1EE (see website or map below)

http://victoriamillartcentre.com/
Contact us with any queries: Studioo@live.co.uk

Studio O Exhibition - Victoria Mill Art Centre Map

Studio O Exhibition - Victoria Mill Art Centre Map
02/12/2010-09/12/2010

Friday, 3 December 2010

Lee William Hughes Photography

Please check out my blog site :)

Lee William Hughes - Creative and Commercial Photography





Positively Eroded by Lee William Hughes
As part of a wider investigation into the theme of 'Time', the artist has used his first experiences of Congleton to look into the way that environmental factors can augment our common spaces and street furniture. This change may occur slowly and unnoticed, bringing new forms and dimensions to what was originally placed there by human hands.
The artist found that time could be 'read' in the slow build up of lichen over centuries, the effects of sunlight and moisture on porous surfaces, the twisting of beams and the decay of a commonly referenced street corner in a busy thoroughfare. Such environmental erosion may be too pedestrian for us to observe as a constant linear change, yet is revealed more clearly when frozen as a fresh moment in time and taken out of context with their intended space. Perhaps over time these objects and spaces gain a visual character that can offset the negative implications of erosion or degradation on our own shared habitat.

Thursday, 25 November 2010

Nicola Whitmore - Aquatract

My specialism is mixed media I enjoy working with different materials to create new ideas. I have created several pieces of work for the Studio O exhibition they are based on water and movement. The sea inspired my project on my holiday and the movement of the water. I have taken into consideration texture, movement, and color for the pieces of work for this particular exhibition. For more information about my work or to view more images please contact me on my email, in addition you can view images on my hub pages.

Email: nicolachadwick@live.co.uk
Hubpages:nickywhitmore






Wednesday, 24 November 2010

Lindsey Heath - Reclamation Reinvention

Reclamation reinvention is a project that I have been working on about taking old objects and giving them a new sense of life. For example an old chair or bookcase, and then changing how it looks to make it look new and modern. Reusing the unwanted to create interesting pieces.

As I want to work with interiors I decided to design and create my own prints, which I would then transfer onto fabric for the chair that I had chosen to re-cover. I took my inspiration from domestic interiors for my pattern ideas, and developed these ideas to reach my final outcome. I wanted to keep my prints simple and bold in both colour and design, as the interiors period that influenced me was the 1950's and I tried to reflect this in my work in a more modern way.

This image below is an example of the prints that I have been creating to be incorporated onto my piece of furniture. I have tried to keep with a 1950's interiors style colour scheme. 


Contact me on: lindseysuzanneheath@btinternet.com

Monday, 22 November 2010

Adam Gruning - 'Two and One'

‘Two and One’ is a contemporary take on how we perceive objects. The series of six limited edition photographs explores twelve objects with no direct relationship to each other, yet comfortably marry together to form a complete image.

The deliberate join and selection in each print signals to the viewer that half of two photographs have been placed together. However, even with this knowledge in mind the collaboration of the two halved photographs are still interpreted as one new object to make sense of the image, delivering a light, playful insight into our perceptions.

‘Your work isn’t a high stakes, nail-biting professional challenge. It’s a form of play. Lighten up and have fun with it.’ Sol Lewitt


Feel free to contact me on – Adamgru13@hotmail.com


Wednesday, 17 November 2010

Rebecca Boden - Culture Catcher

Rebecca Ann Boden
beckyboden45@hotmail.com 
I am a Textile designer whose work also links into fashion and textile crafts.


My most current project is based upon the magical object of the dream catcher and the Native American culture. The Native Americans believe that the dream catcher captures the negative dreams and releases the positive; I was intrigued by how this beautiful object that hangs above me protects me and guides me through the night.


The idea of the dream catcher’s threaded web, capturing and trapping my dreams, inspired me to produce a series of textile pieces, that are inspired by the idea of keeping hold off and also trapping objects within handmade webs.
I experimented with numerous methods to create the web formations that would hold various embellishments such as feathers, beads, threads all elements that are used within dream catchers. Displaying these webs on a printed surface created by heat transfer inks, gives them a base to stand out against.

“ Humankind has not woven the web of life.
We are but one thread within it.
Whatever we do to the web, we do ourselves.
All things are bound together.
All things connect.”
Native American Poem - Chief Seattle, 1854 






Monday, 15 November 2010

Jack Roberts - Marbles




My latest series of work as a contemporary textile artist has seen me explore my extensive collections of inanimate objects such as beer mats, stamps and marbles, through the mediums of photography and textiles.

These resulting works represent my personal collection of marbles expressed through heavy machine embroidery.  This unique approach to the exploration of repetition focuses on the juxtaposition of the negative space of the dominant marbles, and draws the eye to the blending collection of marbles beneath.

This series illustrates two of my greatest passions collectables and textiles. The resulting body of work provides an intriguing surface pattern combining intricate detailing with the contrasting simplicity of white space.


Feel free to email me on - art.addict@live.co.uk

Wednesday, 10 November 2010

Rebecca Barrs - My Universe

Rebecca Barrs draws inspiration from science and nature to create fine art photography. She likes experimentation to be a key factor in her photography to keep it exciting and individual.


An undiscovered world, a thousand theories to describe its origins. The universe is an interesting place; but sometimes we forget it's there due to our own lives on Earth. When looking at a night sky, it is hard to imagine what is really out there, we can only rely on secondary information. What if we could go to space and see the planets? How would they look?
For my project, I wanted to explore my interpretation of the universe and its planets through my imagination. I researched various illustrations of the universe from textbooks to astronomy magazines to help me to create the planets. 
I wanted to focus on the textures and colours within the planets and to do this I used various foods and liquids including swede, red meat, food colouring, mushrooms, vegetable oil, coffee, salt and pepper.
I combined them all together to create my own little universe.

You can find more of my work at

or feel free to Email

Thankyou.