Introducing Somewhere in Between: a collective of MA Fine Art graduates

Graduating into unprecedented times is not easy but MA Fine Art 2020 graduates Zoe Prichard, Pippa Healy, Rosie Zielinkski, Tabby Cooper and Boglarka Eliz Les-Varga found that coming together to form the Somewhere in Between collective helped them make the transition.

Keen to carry on the connections and conversations they had formed in Camberwell’s printmaking workshops, Something in Between’s passion is to drive discussions, discover new artists and to be an inclusive space for a niche area of modern art.

The collective’s pro-activeness has paid off: they have been covered widely in the arts media since forming and are launching their first zine this month. We caught up with the group to hear more about their experiences, the importance of building support networks and what their future holds.

How did Somewhere in Between begin?

We came together as we were all studying MA Fine Art: Printmaking at Camberwell. We are from two different year groups but were introduced to each other’s work during group crits and in the workshops.

Printmaking workshops are very social spaces artists often talk about how and why they make their work whilst making it. We really admired each other’s work and were somewhat outsiders compared to many students who work with painting and drawing as the foundations for their practice. We were drawn to each other through the lens of photography.

As we were graduating during the pandemic our goal really was to support each other. The workshops closed due to Covid and we were unable to have our final shows. We wanted to carry on and explore our connections and conversations around photography and printmaking.

What are the aims of the collective?

In March 2020, the workshops closed due to Covid and we had to find new ways of working within our home settings. Currently we are all based in and around the London area and have really embraced online and social media spaces.

However, in future, we would like to look at hiring a shared space to work as a collective should, together!

Being able to bounce ideas off each other live rather than online is a huge benefit to the work we produce and being able to borrow an ink roller when you’ve forgotten yours is also a benefit, ha ha!

We aim to be an inclusive and supportive network. We would like to exhibit our work and work of other artists who use photography and printmaking. We are publishing our first zine in March 2021 which includes the work of over 30 British and international artists. In the future we will also produce limited edition prints.

Can you tell us about your practices?

Many of our practices are digital and photography based, with the physical act of printmaking adding a new meaning and direction to our work.

Combining these mediums can be challenging, however, having to adapt to the situation dealt to us has allowed for creative and intuitive ways of making to flourish.

As an example, creating gelli-plates, and using found photographs, we have been able to create works which otherwise may not have even been considered, which has allowed us to approach our work from different angles. Creativity can sometimes falter in difficult circumstances, so we are trying our best as a group to be kind to ourselves and to keep the passion as alive as we can.

We have been meeting weekly online to discuss our work, share ideas and brainstorm the future and how we would like to see this collective progress. We are using the time we have to look at new ways of exhibiting and publishing our work, as well as looking for new printmakers to collaborate with in the future.

What are you working on at the moment?

Our most recent work is the upcoming zine, which has an expected release of March 2021. It was a product of an open call we hosted in January, for images using the process of printmaking and photography. The idea being to bring together a wide variety of different artists with a love of a defined medium. We wanted to reach out as far as we could, and due to social media having the power it does, we have had applicants from across the globe.

It was open to all who may be interested, and we had an overwhelming response and saw many talented applicants. We’re really looking forward to releasing it and to see more happen in future.

We also hosted an online panel discussion in October 2020, to officially launch our collective, alongside the MA Printmaking Graduate Showcase

We introduced our work and had an informal discussion as to why photography and print are a at the centre of our practice.

Do you have any advice for students considering studying on your course you graduated from?

As former students, we would always heavily encourage anyone interested in art to take a course at degree level. Having a passion for a creative art is always something that should be nourished, and degree courses help to refine practises and approach work in an industry-standard manner.

However, what this collective has taught us is that using the degree as a platform to go the extra mile and use the network that is built for you to foster relationships is equally important.

Working within the art industry can be competitive, so building friendships and working with others is a huge advantage when looking to postgraduate life. Use the time as a steppingstone, not only for refining your own work, but also to set yourself up for the future with a network of like-minded people that you could see yourself working with in the days to come.

You never know who you might meet and perhaps one day you could even found your own studio or something similar with your peers now. But most importantly, use the time to enjoy creating, make as much work as possible, make use of the brilliant facilities at hand, and above all else, love what you do and enjoy the time you have!

Find out more about MA Fine Art: Printmaking

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