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Residency dates

28 March – 16 April 2024

Iain Andrews

Artist Images

Residency Images

Testimonial

"Juggling the demands of fatherhood, work (as an art psychotherapist) and studio time can sometimes prove tricky, and so the opportunity to spend two weeks at Xenia Creative retreat was one that I was very much looking forward to. Being based in inner city Manchester, I was particularly looking forward to spending time in the landscape that Xenia offered and having the uninterrupted space to work in a sustained way on a number of larger works. Upon arriving at Xenia, I was greeted warmly by Jaye and Lucy, the estate managers, and shown to my studio a spacious barn-like structure with its own kitchen, bathroom, bedroom and extensive space in which my work could be laid out. As a painter, I tend to work with the support flat on the floor, allowing me to walk around the canvas and approach the subject from multiple angles,  allowing a greater vocabulary of mark-making. As such, having enough space to arrange multiple canvases in such a way that they could be worked on simultaneously in a location that was full of light and space was greatly appreciated.
The studios have been thoughtfully designed and equipped with great attention to detail. There was a wonderful welcome pack of food laid out by Lucy, who, along with Jaye, was available throughout my stay to assist with any issues that arose, and together with the other two artists on the residency, we were given a tour of the grounds. The landscape at Xenia is second to none. The grounds are currently being sensitively rewilded, and are a treasure trove of fauna and flora. Amongst the prolific bluebells and wild garlic, orchids were found, and in the blossoms of the hedgerows was evidence they would be teeming with sloes, haws, hazelnuts, and blackberries come the autumn.  On a evening walk back from the nearby village (a mile's ramble through forest paths) I encountered a Badger and Tawny Owl, along with, in the daytime, Red kites, Buzzards, Green and Great spotted woodpeckers and both Muntjac and Roe deer. Such a rich environment cannot but influence the work that an artist makes, and for me I found it to be an extremely prolific time creatively. As a painter, being given such a gift demonstrates a certain amount of faith in one's practice by the giver, and as such, one tends to up your game and take risks that perhaps otherwise wouldn't be taken. Time at Xenia is a tremendously generous gift to artists.
Throughout the residency, I met up with the other two artists who shared their time there with me. There was no pressure to do so, so meetings were undertaken spontaneously and without expectation, allowing time to share ideas, tell the story of one's practice, and swap tips on how best to prepare wild garlic leaves into a marinade. For me, each day would start with breakfast followed by a short walk amongst the grounds with my sketchbook, stopping to record moments of interest as a preparation for returning to begin painting. When the sun set, the studios were well-lit with artificial light, allowing you to continue working well into the night should you so wish. The team at Xenia were helpful and accommodating as my wife and daughter arrived to spend the final few days at the residency with me, and enjoyed meeting the llamas and horses who share the estate. Bianca and her husband have clearly put in a lot of attention to detail when creating this opportunity, and I would have no hesitation in recommending it to other artists."

Bio

Bio

1974,

UK

 

 

 

About

Iain Andrews is a contemporary English painter based in Manchester. He holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours (BA Hons) in Fine Art and a Master of Arts (MA) in Painting, both attained from the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth (now Aberystwyth University). Additionally, he earned a Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) in Art Psychotherapy from the University of Sheffield.

Andrews' work blends modern abstract painting with elements from Renaissance and Victorian art. He is affiliated with Contemporary British Painting and has exhibited globally. Andrews gained recognition through BBC's "School of Saatchi" and won the Marmite Prize for Painting III. He has also judged the Marmite Prize and received accolades like the GM Art Prize runner-up in 2016.

For more information about Iain, please visit https://www.axisweb.org/p/iainandrews/

 

Residency dates

28 March – 16 April 2024

Iain Andrews

Artist Images

Residency images

Testimonial

"Juggling the demands of fatherhood, work (as an art psychotherapist) and studio time can sometimes prove tricky, and so the opportunity to spend two weeks at Xenia Creative retreat was one that I was very much looking forward to. Being based in inner city Manchester, I was particularly looking forward to spending time in the landscape that Xenia offered and having the uninterrupted space to work in a sustained way on a number of larger works. Upon arriving at Xenia, I was greeted warmly by Jaye and Lucy, the estate managers, and shown to my studio a spacious barn-like structure with its own kitchen, bathroom, bedroom and extensive space in which my work could be laid out. As a painter, I tend to work with the support flat on the floor, allowing me to walk around the canvas and approach the subject from multiple angles,  allowing a greater vocabulary of mark-making. As such, having enough space to arrange multiple canvases in such a way that they could be worked on simultaneously in a location that was full of light and space was greatly appreciated.
The studios have been thoughtfully designed and equipped with great attention to detail. There was a wonderful welcome pack of food laid out by Lucy, who, along with Jaye, was available throughout my stay to assist with any issues that arose, and together with the other two artists on the residency, we were given a tour of the grounds. The landscape at Xenia is second to none. The grounds are currently being sensitively rewilded, and are a treasure trove of fauna and flora. Amongst the prolific bluebells and wild garlic, orchids were found, and in the blossoms of the hedgerows was evidence they would be teeming with sloes, haws, hazelnuts, and blackberries come the autumn.  On a evening walk back from the nearby village (a mile's ramble through forest paths) I encountered a Badger and Tawny Owl, along with, in the daytime, Red kites, Buzzards, Green and Great spotted woodpeckers and both Muntjac and Roe deer. Such a rich environment cannot but influence the work that an artist makes, and for me I found it to be an extremely prolific time creatively. As a painter, being given such a gift demonstrates a certain amount of faith in one's practice by the giver, and as such, one tends to up your game and take risks that perhaps otherwise wouldn't be taken. Time at Xenia is a tremendously generous gift to artists.
Throughout the residency, I met up with the other two artists who shared their time there with me. There was no pressure to do so, so meetings were undertaken spontaneously and without expectation, allowing time to share ideas, tell the story of one's practice, and swap tips on how best to prepare wild garlic leaves into a marinade. For me, each day would start with breakfast followed by a short walk amongst the grounds with my sketchbook, stopping to record moments of interest as a preparation for returning to begin painting. When the sun set, the studios were well-lit with artificial light, allowing you to continue working well into the night should you so wish. The team at Xenia were helpful and accommodating as my wife and daughter arrived to spend the final few days at the residency with me, and enjoyed meeting the llamas and horses who share the estate. Bianca and her husband have clearly put in a lot of attention to detail when creating this opportunity, and I would have no hesitation in recommending it to other artists."

About

Iain Andrews is a contemporary English painter based in Manchester. He holds a Bachelor of Arts with Honours (BA Hons) in Fine Art and a Master of Arts (MA) in Painting, both attained from the University College of Wales in Aberystwyth (now Aberystwyth University). Additionally, he earned a Postgraduate Diploma (PGDip) in Art Psychotherapy from the University of Sheffield.

Andrews' work blends modern abstract painting with elements from Renaissance and Victorian art. He is affiliated with Contemporary British Painting and has exhibited globally. Andrews gained recognition through BBC's "School of Saatchi" and won the Marmite Prize for Painting III. He has also judged the Marmite Prize and received accolades like the GM Art Prize runner-up in 2016.

For more information about Iain, please visit https://www.axisweb.org/p/iainandrews/