Beate Gegenwart

Until 2014 Head of School of Applied Arts and Art Practice. Since September 2014 Honorary Research Fellow, Faculty of Art and Design, School of Design and Applied Art.

Research Interests

Digital Techniques in Applied Arts Practice, Vitreous enamel Research, Border Zones, Border Lines, Exile and Displacement in Visual Culture

Skills: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, laser cutting, digital textiles, 3D printing

September 2014 – Maker in Focus, Mission gallery, Swansea

September 2014 – Enamel and the Printed Surface,Studio Fusion gallery, Oxo Tower Wharf, London

August 2014 – International Enamel Symposium Erfurt, Germany

September 2013 - 15. International Emaille Symposium, Erfurt, Germany, culminating in an exhibition.

‘Drawing, Permanence and Place’-co-curator and exhibitor

The exhibition was an international touring exhibition travelling to Kunstverein Coburg, Germany, 2011 Craft in the Bay, Cardiff, March 2012. Kulturhaus Kroenbacken, Erfurt, June 2012. Museum voor Vlakglasen Emaillekunst, Ravenstein, the Netherlands, August 2012

’Heat Exchange’

Exhibition for SNAG (North American Society of American Goldsmith), co-curator and exhibitor. Cross-continental (Germany, UK, Australia and North America) dialog between the selected artists via the medium of a blog. http://heat-exchange.crimsoncactus.net Shemer Art Center and Museum, Phoenix, Arizona, May 2012

‘Momentum’

An exhibition investigating digital crafts, curated for ‘Craft in the Bay’ and touring to the University of Hertfordshire. The catalogue was supported by the Arts Council of Wales.

Other recent exhibitions:

July 2012 ‘Badges and Buttons, Waistcoats and Vests’, Velvet da Vinci, San Francisco, USA July 2012 - European Prize For Applied Arts, World Craft Council, Mons, Belgium Sept 2012 - Beyond Borders: Experimentation and Innovation in Enameling, 11th International Juried Enamel Exhibition, The Richmond Arts Center, Richmond, California Sept 2012- ‘Books In Enamel’, Studio Fusion Gallery, Oxo Tower, London

• The Enamellist Society of North America
• SNAG- Society of North American Goldsmith

My creative practice and research focuses on vector- and image-based digital technologies, examining their potential and impact on traditional crafts processes, particularly in the ‘fire arts’ of vitreous enamel and glass. I am passionate about the enamelled surface and artefact and how to develop its rich possibilities and history in a contemporary applied arts context. Over recent years I have concentrated on developing a visual language and drawing styles in relation to available digital technologies. My creative practice explores how new concepts, techniques and materials can enrich the field, predominantly through the use of laser/water jet cut steel and intricately, laser engraved vitreous enamel surfaces. Recently I have begun research into 3D printing technologies and post-processing techniques such as electro-plating.

Full research profile

Primary areas of experience and related skills are:

• Management experience
• Curriculum development, validations
• Practical teaching in the studio
• Assessment in the role of tutor, counsellor and practitioner.
• Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, AVA
• Laser and water jet cutting, digital textiles printer

National Advisor for the Arts Council of Wales and contributing to their investment review.

Drawing, Permanence and Place-ISBN 978-0-9560266-3-7

Momentum- ISBN 978-0-9566868-1-7

European Prize for Applied Arts ISBN 9782875360113

Featured in Digital Crafts by Ann Marie Shillito, published by Bloomsbury 2013 ISBN 9781408127773

Alchemy 2, Transformation in Contemporary Enamels, catalogue 2013

Surfacing, The Enamelist Society Conference, catalogue 2009

Awards

First prize for wall work, ‘Alchemy 2’, The Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center, Cincinnati, USA

First prize for wall work,   ‘Surfacing’, Oakland Art Gallery, Oakland, San Francisco, USA

Blogs:

http://www.designwalesforum.org/blog/item/id/welcome-the-new-residents

http://heat-exchange.crimsoncactus.net/

beategegenwart.co.uk