Since surviving Tuberculosis I have done a load more work, and some shows. I'm currently brewing up an art fair showing, a group show at Bearspace and a solo show at Arbeit.


I've got a lot of updating to do! But since getting a full time job I've been a bit busy.....

patience!

Tuberculosis.... no joke!

In March 2011 I was diagnosed with TB! It turned out to be M.Kansasii, a harder to catch cousin of tb. I was in bed for about 3 months and had to move back to my parents!

I was very productive whilst ill:

"Nissunami"

"Nissunami" is in this year's Print and Design Now show hosted by Bearspace with "Wondawoman" "Taranis" (right) was rejected:

I also did the groundwork for 3 big new projects.... but you'll have to wait for them.

Memorial Flower

A new piece
Memorial Flower (see sketch up and final version, yet to be displayed) A 300cmx300cm shape made of rolled printed wallpaper which has a pattern I created made from images of war found online. It's shape is inspired by temporary remembrance symbols like poppies, folded ribbons and crosses.

BLAST2. Solo show. Derby. Walking the Line...

BLAST2. At the New Court Gallery, Repton, Derbyshire

On September 9th 2010 BLAST at the New Court Gallery, Repton opened. One of the blast pictures (below) sold on the opening night and three more pieces sold after the show closed in November. BLAST featured 8 explosion paintings (created in the photo above) and 5 large Warholian prints (see below) it was featured in all the local press and I got interviewed on the radio with my mum. But she was better at it than me.
The exhibition was a huge success for me and a first major solo show. I really kicked ass and yes, most other art is boring by comparison to mine and this proves it; explosives = more exciting than painting on a crappy canvas in a leaky studio.

BLAST 1. Group Show. Newcastle

BLAST 1, Feb 2010, Carliol Square
Group show with Tom Whitty and Claudio Pascale. We took over the upstairs of World Headquarters Night Club. Filled it with art, and people, had a party. Then we left. I exhibited my explosion painting, the sketch up for JU87 and a coffin.

We promoted the show with a series of flyers with really graphic images on them. Passing them around at exhibition openings like illegal porn in the Victorian times. Art porn in the 21st Century.

EASYRIDER. Goup show. Newcastle

EASYRIDER, 29th October, Hangar 51, Newcastle upon Tyne

The first test of a graduate artist is if they are going to carry on with art after uni. Tom and I decided to leap into our next show, EASYRIDER. The original plan was to show with Lindsay Best and get a shop in the city centre. However the circumstances changed so we decided to return to Hangar, one more time...

The result was EASYRIDER a 1 hour performance involving: an 8 piece motorbike gang, a car we smashed up, and a film I made and Tom's Riot Police film.

Neither of us had managed to get the papers or even local culture mags like The Crack. To our dismay it was Front page of the Sunday Sun, nationwide Metro, Auto Trader Magazine, FORUM Magazine, covered through the week in The Chronicle and Journal. All of this publicity had positive sides; sales and attention but these benefits were far outweighed by the downsides!

Press links: Metro, Sunday Sun 1 and 2, AutoTrader

The video of the show is below:

My artwork in the show:

My print artworks in the show were based on a visit I paid to a militaria store with my imac and my scanner, I scanned half his store; guns, belts, helmets, anything. It took me a long time to settle on a final style but the three 200x40cm banners were as meaningless as I could ever have hoped. Guns 1, Guns 2, and God 1 - which was based on scans of notes I'd taken whilst discussing post modernism with a vicar. What I like about them the most is that you don't get any sign of the process from just looking at them, and I doubt people would remember them now.

SEX AND VIOLENCE

E20 E59 is a reference to Duchamp and this photo is inspired by Valerie Solanas shooting Andy Warhol who for a while I was really into. I think there's a big hang up about Warhol that needs to be overcome.

Joseph Steele @ Newcastle University Fine Art Degree Show 2009

Newcastle University Fine Art Degree Show 2009

For my degree show I decided to create an installation, a slick gallery space with my best artwork on display. You know writing this I can't help but feel like one of those people wallowing in their work, I never liked that. Anyway I got a JCB barrell, three mega posters in their steel frames, an office space on a mezzanine level and the standard promotional materials. On the opening night I played the Rolling Stones a lot, really loud and this brought lots of people into the space and created the pop-fad atmosphere I was after. Unsurprisingly, I got a first.

Joseph Steele's 'Pillow Talk' @ Spectacles and Carpets

I think it was the 20th May. I'm not sure. Anyway this stray bullet of a show in my 5 a month marathon was by far the most gruelling for me in that I had a stinking hangover and was getting the sinking feeling of about to leave uni.

I sat in bed for 6 hours and spoke to anyone about myself who came in.

Art I guess

Material World @ Cobalt Studios

COBALT STUDIOS PRESENT:

Material World.

This show which opened on the 15th May 2009 was (again) another knock out success. A very different show from Mayday or Proud of our Roots this saw me exhibit alongside some established and starting out artists in the North East: Glass artists Gavin Marshall, Effie Burns and Kathryn Hodgkinson, painter Paul merrick and retired architect turned photographer David Whitton.

The show was more commercially minded with an emphasis on making the work look absolutely stunning, which it did. I exhibited three megaposters; military hardware identification chart #2 weapons of world war 2, and two prints based on the monument and millenium bridge. My theme? Sex and violence of course. The show attracted some 150 people over the weekend and is ongoing. And I sold some!

Proud of our Roots

6th May 2009. Lamplight arts centre, Stanley.

This show saw me exhibit alongside emerging photographers, mainly from the Stanley area. Debbie Todd was instrumental in pulling the show together which was a great success, the opening was packed and had a speech from the Councillor and... me, I don't know why but they asked me to say something and I ummed and erred my way around the subject of art and culture coming to the conclusion that the Northern drive for supporting and promoting art and culture, to raise the profile of the region only means something if people put on shows like this. It brought together different people from different worlds and gave visitors an insight into something beyond the every day.

Chris Moon, Anthony Gardiner, Andy Singe Thompson, Lorna Christie, Liam Mcgough, Sara Coulson, Debbie Todd Photos, Sarah Lockey

MAYDAY and Operation #6

Operation #6 was an initiative launched by getonthewall.com to further the development of art and culture in the North East and raise the profile of Joseph Steele the artist with some 5 seperate exhibitions including this one, MAYDAY.....

This show blew my head off. On May 1st 2009 my business getonthewall.com hosted my work as an artist (Joseph Steele) to deliver MAYDAY an art happening at Hanger 51 Ouseburn Valley.

The art happening involved a JCB 3cx Backhoe Loader, a Harley Davidson Rocker FX a mini bmw and my latest work in print and performance. The show was another knock out success and clearly defined me as being 'better than Tom Whitty'. Watch the video here click on either of the 'Joseph Steele' videos.

I was exhausted by the time of the show and messed the performance up a bit (it went on and on) but there were some great moments. Again Tom and I opened the space up at night and we had chavs etc come in and buy cheap booze off us and look at the art, wide eyed. The Sunday after the show I put a sign up outside saying 'Parking' £1 / day. and had one customer. I was most pleased with the fact that the show cost me about £20 to put on but looked like it cost about £500k I guess that was the point.

On reflection I wish I'd called the show 'Sex Symbol' like I was originally going to, I think in future I'm going to sideline my pursuit of political comment and narrative in favour of smut.

Style over substance right?

Tom Whitty vs Joseph Steele

I'm playing catch up with this blog:

Feb 27 2009. Hanger 51. Ouseburn Valley.

Tom and I teamed up to deliver a show that kicked the crap out of everything else either of us had seen in newcastle . (apart from the stuff at the Baltic but they've got glass elevators.)

Over 200 people saw it in two and a half days. I showed (what was then) a new range of work: Megaposters, in big steel frames. Tom parried with 35 seconds worth of painting. My favourite part of the show was at night, when the people we knew weren't there and we'd get passers by, drunks, chavs coming in and looking at the work. That was the most interesting for reactions and insight into how the show had worked and the answer is it looked awesome, strong, big. I was worried my work would get dwarfed by Tom's 4-5 metre paintings but, it didnt', because it's so damn good!

The dream is over, art begins now

Hello

The dream of university is over, life begins now. So I'm sat in my shoebox room in Heaton, Newcastle upon Tyne, surrounded by all of my crap; JCB posters, rolled up art, cheap computer equipment, 3.5 million candle builders torches and a cup of tea. This blog is so I can stop rambling when I talk to people.

Intro:

Joseph Steele is an artist based in Newcastle upon Tyne. He works primarily in digital print and performance. Apparently he is (I am) a work of art in my own right, so I guess that's what you should think too.

Getonthewall.com is a multi award winning graphic art promotion and design business operating in newcastle. getonthewall went operational in September 2008 and since then has delivered high quality design, high impact art/music events and promoting the artist Joseph Steele to the world.

Outro:

I've got to get on with some work now, but hopefully in 2 weeks I'll be writing this on my new macbook pro as I say goodbye to Microsoft, long nights of type rendering and hello to my iLife. I think I need to get out less.