The Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery

Initial Thoughts 

I didn't even know this gallery existed and it's also incredibly close to uni.

When first entering the small space I weren't too sure about the place with it only being two rooms at either side and a central space. 

As I began to have a deeper look around each area I became a lot more interested. Especially in exhibition space for Gyorgy Gordon which showed a retrospective of his life as well as a selection of his work.

I particularly liked the documented photographs of the artist himself before seeing his work in the next room giving me a view into his life which helped me understand the meaning behind his work (which seems to be quite dark) when I saw it.

At the other side of the gallery were collections of items saved from the Russian Revolution which I only have basic knowledge on but the pieces allowed me to know further information. Items such as toy houses and tapestries which were some of Katherine Lunn's wedding presents.

In the central area of the gallery there was a range of different artwork including small sculptors, as well as traditional and contemporary paintings. Although, during my visit I didn't focus my attention on the centre of the room and plan on going again to do so.

The only thing I disliked about the gallery as a whole is that you cannot take photographs. Especially when you want to see the piece again and aren't able to do so because the exhibition has changed and it is not available to see anywhere online.

During my time there I drew some of the pieces throughout the different rooms of the gallery.

 I particularly enjoyed drawing the Screaming Torso and the Screaming Torso Two by Gyorgy Gordon as I find the use of black ink interesting against the slightly off white paper that has been used in both pieces. Both of the pieces have a darkness to them which has been done with the use of the quick, jagged brush strokes with the deep black ink.




The paper is also slightly crinkled because of the wetness of the ink which makes the lines seem more sharp with the shape of the torso being barely visible.

As a whole I would rate the gallery a 7/10 because of the amount of varied artwork that can be seen throughout such a small space as well as a strong exhibition space which is highly concentrated on the artist and shows the life of the artist before seeing their work. 

VISITING LECTURER - Kristyna Baczynski

• Quit A-levels and joined art foundation.
• Degree at Leeds Met (now Leeds Beckett) - Graphic Arts which is more multidisciplinary.
• Post-grad wilderness - got to make work for yourself and get it known).
• Concentrates on themed sketchbooks making them restrictive and applied.
• Uses different materials making it playful but measured.
• Started off with local client work (Hyde Park Picture House, Leeds College of Music).
• The more you get your work out there (online etc) the more likely you are to get more clients. As well as being nice and doing a good job.
• Her parents are from Ukraine which sometimes comes through in her work (folklore).
• If one job is seen by the right person then a link can be made between clients.
• Doing shows helps to give yourself deadlines.
• Having her own risograph printer allows her to self publish work (cheaper)
• Always trade/give pieces of work to other people.
• Self-publishing and comics have a strong community making it easier to make your work known. 

After seeing Kristyna's work in person I am more fascinated by how she creates pieces and uses her time effectively as a freelance illustrator. I now know that after I graduate it is extremely important to continue making work for myself and trading/giving it to other people to get it known. Also I have learnt that the internet is useful for getting work out there but it can also be toxic because of how many other artists are on there and it can quickly become lost. 

My favourite piece of artwork by her is the 9 Lives zine. She created this when she was low on money and managed to make a concertina with 9 pages using a piece of A3 paper meaning a lot of initiative went into the making.
I enjoy the minimalistic colours that have been used throughout the whole zine as well as the colour the paper has been printed on as it makes the design a lot more subtle rather than placing it on a bright white background.
The use of layout in this zine and the initial thought process of making it is what strikes my interest the most as she has used a lot of thought to get herself back on track again.