ANDI MCGARRY / ARTIST

ANDI MCGARRY ANDI MCGARRY

ANDI MCGARRY is a VISUAL ARTIST – Geordie by birth, living in Ireland for the past 25 years, creating and curating Artist Books exhibitions. McGarry is heavily involved in community work, having founded the Geordie Gallery in Yola Farmstead.

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Could you tell us about your background? Where your interest in art began and how you got your start?

My early interest came via my mother who liked arts/music and encouraged all of us kids to be creative and also my grandmother who also actively encouraged us, this nurturing and encouragement at an early age was vital and very important.

I went to a secondary school that had two good art teachers who also encouraged and then I went on to do foundation course in Art at Gateshead tech College - this gave a grounding in printmaking and then a BA in fine Art at Brighton Uni – which was an unstructured course suited me down to the ground. Since then went back to learning recently completing Post grad At NCAD in Art Community and Education – followed by a grad cert at UCD in Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Enterprise.

If I was to say where I got my start – several points really – being selected for New Contemporaries 1984 prestige event. Organizing at an early stage like the punk venue I ran for a year the Garage. First one man show at Wexford Art Centre – helped by Denis Collins that was a biggie, And I guess being published by Stephanie Brown in Artists Newsletter because she took my work seriously I redoubled my efforts. The cool review by Aiden Dunne on my joint show at Thomas Town with John Bently that would cover most of those landmark moments. Sales are great but I like reviews – money gets spent but you can go a long way on critical review from the right quarter.

Was there a turning point or moment of clarity in your life when you knew you have to pursue art as a career?

No turning point aside from picking Art over English at Tech college amongst other things cos I liked the look of the woodenbuildings where the art people were housed. More mile stones included, New Contemporaries 1984, Stephanie’s Reviews in Artists Newsletter, Making my first film etc.

Discovering my talent for organizing things and learning to collaborate and discovering teaching. My practice as a mixed economy.

ANDI MCGARRY ©

The Garage – a punk project in the late 70s early 80s. I was in a punk band and I conceived and co organised a punk festival and later turned the space into an actual venue for a year, necessity bred the invention on that one. Artists Books making them after being on a fishing boat, making a catch of poems, making marketing and selling them setting up sun moon and stars press to circulate organic ideas. Getting my first book sale to the Tate in Nigel GreenWood Gallery – that was I remember also significant.

Give us an example of one of your favourite projects that you've ever worked on and why? Can be personal or professional?

One of my favorite projects would be “the kipper “a homemade boat with

“I think with just the smallest droplets of encouragement you can water the seedlings of creativity

a bunch of young people in Tyneside in 2000. It was Arts Council Year of the Artist funded in collaboration with Waterville Detached Youth Project and

also the Globe Gallery North Shields. We made a boat in North Shields in the old Tyne Brand building – the whole project photographed by the youth project using black and white film which Steve Conlan, a photographer printed out as 2 meter by meter prints which they printed up themselves using huge homemade developing trays, and homemade dark room. The big prints were showcased along with the boat and in association with the globe gallery - after we'd paddled it down the Tyne from Newcastle – 12 miles in one tide. The whole thing also captured on Tynetees television. A lot of the kids who made and paddled the boat were having difficulty at school –this project really worked wonders for their confidence and collaborative skills.

What's the best piece of advice you've ever been given?

I was advised to join DACS (Design and Artists Copyright Society) and did – also join IVARO (Irish Visual ArtiSts Rights Organisation) which I also did – been collecting royalties every year since.

Following on from that – What's the worst piece of advice you've ever been given?

I am very poor at taking other people’s advice – Anthony Gormley once told me to reduce my means when I was at Brighton. I don’t think I ever did!

Okay, now choose your weapon: Pencil, Paintbrush or other? And why? What's your favorite medium to work with?

I do love drawing alright – I like the raw power it connects you with and to, especially charcoal and pencil ... but also I like painting, and have moved to big mural sized pieces recently, but film making also when its working is so good and there are so many possibilities with the soundtrack and song writing would be up there too.

Can you tell us a little bit about your creation process? How do you tackle projects?

Any number of permutations – coffee, walk the dog, procrastinate coffee, wash dishes, set something up, sweep floor, burst into studio, make something happen, walk dogs, review work, maybe drink beer, jog, play guitar, make the family a nice dinner, watch a film, computer e mails etc. If I’m doing a collaboration, a different part of my process is called on – I can become quite professional and can get things done. The Creative process itself is very fractured, I am always on look – out for new ways to trick myself into doing the business. Creative process almost always begins with an IDEA. I need to ensure the idea has legs. Often get obsessed with a thing.

In your own words,describe your style? Any particular influences or eureka moments that helped inform it?

My paintings? Landscapes with figures, muses, seascapes, mono–prints, the female form, books, figures, organic ideas, nature and free thinking.

Editing a film in Super 8, working with Windows Movie Maker producing new films. The Brancussi Studio Collections, La Fee Electricitie English Fields by Anthony Gormley, London Artists Book Fairs, David Nash, Studio Blaneau, Marc Chagal exhibition London, the Rothko Rooms in Tate London and the Piccasso Gurnica in Madrid.

Tell us about the creation and evolution of the Geordie Gallery – how did you get involved with Yola Farm?

Met Paul at an Art Fair, he was looking for interested people to help in a community project in Yola – I offered my services as an artist who could do collaborative community projects to enable groups to bond and grow and develop. This one particular successful project the boat project works really well in group dynamics and I’ve run this over 40 times now. Sowe built a

boat in Yola with a group of teens, and then took it on a paddle down the River Slane. We gave it a testing first in the local safe in Rosslare.

This project kicked off a dynamic that continues to this day, and I have found my services as an artist regularly called upon with yola projects. Geordie Gallery was a new project designed to create an art /exhibition space in an unused building in yola.

The idea was to show local works and to plug the local school into the timetable and have the gallery as a resource for them to use. To date the Gallery has had 6 exhibitions mainly of local Artists. It is envisioned a a kind of community gallery.

Can you give us examples of some of your favourite artists and why you chose them?

Painters would be Modigliani – love his nudes and his treatment of the canvas. I love Ferdinand Leger, love his female forms with big noses and his human figures in landscape. Henri Mattisse Love some of his females also his colours and decoration also his acute sense of timing. Raul Duffy – his semi-abstract, but clinging to figurative form, his essential timing and Gerhard Richter’s Blurred Nudes. Branccussi for sculpture, his simplicity of form.

Music wise – I love a lot of the punk music made in the late 70s, early 80s Magazine, XTC, the Buzzcocks, the Stranglers, the Clash, the Feelies and Pattie Smith. Also like soul, more recently Blues.

itself is very fractured. I am always on the lookout for new ways to trick myself into DOING BUSINESS.

What would be your best advice for aspiring creatives?

Did you ever think about Banking?! No, only joking! My daughter, for example whom I’ve tried to put off – now also wants to walk on the road less travelled and study art – artists often spend their whole lives in poverty I said to her, and whilst when your young money mightn’t matter – later it can get tricky.

I think with just the smallest droplets of encouragement you can water the seedlings of creativity; it doesn't matter what the medium is – and even whether it’s a collaboration or not –

people love getting creative. I rarely give people advice – but I do give people encouragement.

And lastly, if you could go back in time, what would you say to your younger self knowing what you know now?

I love looking through my old sketch books at a younger me, the ideas and the interests don’t change that much – my phrases were more flowery , I wouldn’t change a lot – no regrets – loved every minute. So I might say keep on keeping on brother....