Installation views of 'Cosmos or Chaos'

Simon Morley gallery talk

I am delighted to announce that Simon Morley, who wrote the catalogue essay for my exhibition 'Cosmos or Chaos', will be at studio1.1 on Wednesday 20th January at 3pm to give a talk about the work. The gallery talk will last about 40 minutes, after which there will be an opportunity for questions and informal discussion. I hope you will be able to join us.

Simon is the author of 'Writing on the Wall', and has written for Art Monthly and The Independent on Sunday. He is a painter who has shown his work in London, Amsterdam, Tokyo and Korea, and is represented by Art First. He is a lecturer at Winchester School of Art.

For further information about this event please contact the gallery:

studio1.1
57a Redchurch Street
London E2 7DJ

Website: http://www.studio1-1.co.uk/

Nearest tube: Liverpool Street

A big thank you

Thanks to everyone who came out last night to the opening of my solo show in Shoreditch, 'Cosmos or Chaos', braving the snow and the ice!  It was wonderful to see so many people there, despite it being the coldest night of the year.

A big shout goes out to Michael and Keran from studio1.1 for hosting the show, and to Arts Council England who made it all possible. The exhibition continues until 24th January.

I'm having some installation shots done on Monday, so shall try to post a pic on the blog next time,  if I can find out how to do so....

Meanwhile, there are a couple of exhibitions that I want to see before they close - I'll try to get to the John Baldessari show at Tate Modern over the weekend, and then go see 'Sacred Made Real' at the National Gallery before the 24th January.

'Cosmos or Chaos'

There's an exhibition of my paintings coming  up in the new year in London at studio1.1, a gallery in Shoreditch, entitled 'Cosmos or Chaos'. This will be my first solo exhibition since 2008, and it is supported by Arts Council England, the national development agency for the arts, through its Grants for the arts programme for individuals and organisations. I am really thrilled to have this opportunity to make my work more accessible, and to bring it to the attention of a wider audience. Hope you will come by to say hello and take a look at my new paintings.

Private view: Thursday 7th January, 6-9pm
Exhibition runs from 8 - 24 January 2010

Cosmos or Chaos:  "As the title immediately suggests, Julie Umerle’s paintings exist at the meeting point of decision and accident, as indeed do our lives.

In this series of works, created specifically for the exhibition, gravity and design collude and collide in a synthesis which calls up a most unexpected counterpart. Colours are chosen to oppose and confound, while the exact materiality, the weight of the paint interferes, patterning its own trajectory."

studio1.1
57a Redchurch Street
London  E2 7DJ

Open: Wednesday - Sunday, 12 - 6pm

Website:  http://www.studio1-1.co.uk/

Nearest tube: Liverpool Street

'Watch This Space' Charity Art Auction

Yellow/Red II
Acrylic on canvas
24 x 24in
© Julie Umerle

On December 8th, ‘Watch This Space’ will organise the first Special Yoga Centre auction of young and emerging artists. This will not only give collectors a chance to discover some hot new artists, and support their practice by purchasing their work, it will also raise much needed funds for the Special Yoga Centre. I am delighted to be participating in this event by donating one of my paintings (as above) to the charity auction.

Over the past three years, The Special Yoga Centre has hosted charity art auctions of artworks by some of the country’s most celebrated contemporary artists including: Damien Hirst, Sam Taylor-Wood, Peter Blake and Marc Quinn. The last auction, introduced by Samantha Cameron, and hosted by Gabbi Roslin, raised a staggering £100,000, even more amazing since this event took place in the midst of an economic downturn. A Christie’s auctioneer auctioned off some exquisite pieces, including a spot painting and etchings by Hirst.

Yoga expert and co-author of ‘The Spiritual Teachings of Yoga’ Jo Manuel founded the Special Yoga Centre in 2004 as a charitable organization supporting children with a variety of conditions, which can be aided by the practice of yoga. Children with Down’s syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism, epilepsy, ADD, ADHD and other physical and developmental difficulties all benefit from the expert teaching offered at the Special Yoga Centre, whose policy is to offer yoga to all without regard to financial or cultural constraints. Children from all walks of life, including the late son of shadow Prime Minister David Cameron, have benefited from the care and teaching of the Special Yoga Centre.

Artists featuring in the auction will include; Andrew Campbell, Ann-Marie James, Arran Gregory, Ben Jenkins, Best One, Cereinyn Ord, Daisy de Villeneuve, Elliott Young, Epoh Beech, Eugene Wood, Graham Hudson, Harry Malt, Ilaria Conte, Izzie Klingels, Julie Umerle, Jim Cooper, Kevin Fitzpatrick, Konrad Wyrebek, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry & Peter Harris, Lee Jones, Louise Richardson, Mat Pringle, Matilda Temperley, Max Parsons, Monkey Punch III, Niall O’Brien, Nick Cunard, Nick Jensen, Peter Edwards, Ricky Adam, Robin Clare, Sam Szulc, Sarah Cooney, Sarah Kate Wilson, Sara le Roy, Sky Sharrock, Sohrab and Suzie Wright.

Frances Outred, European Head of Post-War and Contemporary Art at Christie's, will take the auction, with a special celebrity host getting the crowd going. Therefore this event provides an excellent opportunity for collectors to discover exciting new artists. It will also aid the career of these artists (who will receive a percentage of the proceeds), and allow the Special Yoga Centre to continue it’s invaluable practice with the aid of the auction proceeds.

Committee members are:
Damian Barr – The Times
Jonni Fitzgerald – Fashion Stylist
Lucy Meakin – All Visual Arts
Meritaten Mance – Mance & Rose PR
Tiger Savage – Creative Director, M& C Saatchi
Iram Qurashi – Cultural Consultant
Irshaard Ibrahim – Director of Sleep Clinic
Paddy Barstow – ART MOSH
Rachael Barratt – Kultureflash Art Editor
Sydney Levinson – Rhodes & Rhodes

The last auction at the Special Yoga Centre was featured in the Evening Standard, London Paper, Daily Express and Daily Mail. Watch This Space will curate the auction and take care of the PR. Watch This Space have already been featured by BBC News, New York Times, International Herald Tribune, Evening Standard, Amelia’s Magazine, MySpace, Art Daily and The London Paper.

For further information go to http://www.watch-this-space.org/

or contact Lee Johnson on lee@watch-this-space.org

or Bakul Pakti on bakul@watch-this-space.org

The Special Yoga Centre, The Tay Building, 2a Wrentham Avenue London NW10