REVIEW: [Pick Me Up] Graphic Arts Festival @ Somerset House

Pick Me Up Graphics Arts Festival
Embankment Galleries, Somerset House
21 April - 2 May 2016

Somerset House hosted the annual graphic arts festival 'Pick Me Up' which is currently in its seventh year running. It's a fantastic opportunity to showcase emerging and established artists, studios and collectives. Last year was the first time I came along to this festival, and I absolutely adored the experience. The Embankment galleries became a web of live workshops and stalls, selling anything from prints, zines, clothing and more. As well as that, you get to see the designers in action and watch the creative process, and possibly get something custom made. Because of how much I enjoyed myself last year, I had high hopes for the festival this time round.

The festival begins with a curated exhibit featuring a selection of upcoming artists, A couple of my favourites included Alice Bowsher with her simple but strong black ink drawings, and Aart-Jan Venema's colourful and detailed compositions. Alice Bowsher happened to be the illustrator in residence for the day, and was selling her paintings for £15 a piece.

The majority of the work this year was print based and many were printing on site so you could watch. However I felt the variety of collectives they had in house last year was a lot more exciting and diverse. It also felt like there were less people participating in general. It may have felt that way because the show was curated in a much more minimal manner. There wasn't an energetic frenzy that I felt last year - and I missed that buzz. We did come along to the show towards its end, so perhaps there was more going on at it's beginning. I was hoping to come home with a lot of prints, but nothing particularly caught my eye on this occasion.

One particular new addition which I thought was great, was the Clay Collective. I had not seen any ceramics featured at the festival last year, so that was really unexpected but refreshing. There were some beautifully quirky pieces on sale and it definitely broke up the print based work on display. I was very tempted to take a couple of pots home with me.

Despite not enjoying the festival as much as I did the previous year, I still really love the concept of this festival and what it offers. I think it's a fantastic event in the year, and has such a unique dynamic compared to other art exhibitions. You get to speak to other creatives in a very comfortable and friendly setting, and it's a great opportunity to potentially do a bit of networking. It's definitely a wonderful event in which to get inspired, and the huge array of very reasonably priced art certainly is a bonus.

If you're interested in any of the artists or collectives that I've mentioned, please check the Pick Me Up website that has full links and details of everyone featured this year.

http://pickmeup.somersethouse.org.uk/2016/