ANNIE SAMUEL – an EPOK exhibitor – exhibited this summer in London and Margate

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Summer 2019 Happenstance Art & Framing Gallery presented the 10th Salon des Refusés: Exhibition of Artworks refused from the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, in the tradition of the 19th century Parisian Salon des Refusés.

Their “annual extravaganza of artworks missed, unappreciated, misunderstood or sacrificed at the last minute by the Royal Academy Selection Committee” exhibited over 100 UK and international creators across a range of art forms first in London in Royal College Street, Camden, in June, then in July at Margate.

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We caught up with Annie Samuel just before the London show. Annie exhibited a retrospective of her work at EPOK in our opening week back in September 2016.  Since exhibiting at EPOK, Annie has been busy:

• A finalist in the inaugural Derwent Drawing prize, The Mall Galleries London, 2013

• Exhibited at the Jerwood drawing prize, Jerwood Space Gallery, London 2017

• Showcased in the Lincolnshire Life magazine, 2017

• Had a feature of her work in the national magazine Prima in June 2017

• A finalist at The Harley Gallery January 2019

• Currently exhibiting at the Blue Owl Art Gallery, Grantham

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Interview with Annie

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EPOK

Where did you first get the idea for this piece?

ANNIE

From a series of photographs from an album that Morris had collected of Egypt when Mum and Dad were posted in RAF Fayad.

EPOK

So mum’s pushing the pram and Gerry is in the pram?

ANNIE

Yes, my older sister, Geraldine

EPOK

And who’s holding onto the pram?

ANNIE

Either side is my eldest brother, Morris, and next brother, Edmond

EPOK

What made you not do a faithful reproduction of the picture?

ANNIE

When I was going through the photographs I was aware of the starkness of white, showing the heat. And the reproduction of the photographs were monochromatic and I wanted to show that using a brown background to show the sand element of being in Egypt

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Annie at London exhibition

ANNIE

Yes, it’s going to be one of a series of the photographs from Egypt and I’m currently doing a pencil drawing at the moment. Going through that vintage before I was born, that part of the family and feeling the impact that had on all of us, really.

EPOK

The pencil drawing, what’s actually on the painting at the exhibition today? You mentioned the background paper what paints did you use?

ANNIE

White chalk and charcoal

EPOK

Did you spray it with anything to keep it on as I imagine it would rub off quite easily?

ANNIE

Only as a finish to hold the chalk on

EPOK

So it’s still got that matt feel, very sandy

ANNIE

Yea. But that actual framing was important. I wanted to have a real  fifties, vintage feel to the frame which would be apparent on the [overall] image

EPOK

Of course, this was the piece you put into the Royal Academy this year. Where you disappointed it didn’t get in?

ANNIE

Gutted. It stung, It was awful. But it was nice to be pre-selected. That’s a first; to be in the first quarter

EPOK

And of course well done on being in the exhibition tonight

Salon des Refusés, Yeah. Taken from the impressionists in the 1850s when they were refused to be in the established salons in Paris and they set up their own salon

EPOK

Fantastic Idea. So it’s in London then Margate and maybe sometime in the future there’ll be one in the Manchester area

ANNIE

That would be nice

EPOK

Thank you very much and lovely meeting you

ANNIE

No problem.

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Annie mentioned she is doing a pencil drawing continuing the theme of family and memory and EPOK has a sneak preview for you (picture on the right).

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You can see more of Annie’s work at her website http://www.anniesamuelartist.co.uk/

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EPOK

So brown paper. What sort of paper is it?

ANNIE

It’s pastel paper but it could have been any wrapping paper, anything really that had that brown effect

EPOK

So that light thing is the stark difference between the black and the white?

ANNIE

It’s the brightness, the whiteness the sun reflected back of the clothing It’s harsh, pure and searing.

EPOK

Was it difficult to know when to stop, because the temptation is to fill in more?

ANNIE

It was difficult to know whether to do the background or not to do the background but the actual people, the representation of the family, I could have worked into that part of the work more intensely

EPOK

Would you have wanted to, in retrospect?

ANNIE

I’m not quite sure

EPOK

It leaves a lot to the imagination which can be quite nice

ANNIE

Yes. I did do one previously that had less, but I decided to do another one which had more

EPOK

So this is the second iteration?

The picture Annie exhibited; Egypt c1952 and the Brothers