Artist Talk from GRAIN: Simon Roberts

New Art WM Artist Talk from GRAIN: Simon Roberts Simon Roberts - Trough House Bridge, Eskdale, Cumbria, 2014 Photography hub and network GRAIN is hosting a new series of talks by artists and photographers. The next is from acclaimed photographer Simon Roberts on 12 April 2016, 6pm – 7.30pm The talk will be held at Lecture Theatre, Birmingham City University, Parkside Campus, 5 Cardigan Street, Birmingham B4 7BD Tickets £4 full price or £3 student/concession, booking for this event is essential.

Simon Roberts (b.1974) is a British photographer whose work deals with our relationship to landscape and notions of identity and belonging. He originally studied a BA Hons Degree in Human Geography at the University of Sheffield, a subject which has helped inform his subsequent photographic practice. Often employing expansive tableaux photographs, his approach is one of creating wide-ranging surveys of our time, which examine contemporary economic, cultural and political landscapes. His large format photographs are taken with great technical precision, often from elevated positions.

The distanced vantage point allows the relationship of people to the landscape to be clearly observed, and echoes the visual language of history painting. One commentator has described his photographs as “subtle in their discovery and representation of forms of cultural character, which exhibit a disciplined compositional restraint, a richness of palette, and wealth of narrative incident.” His work has been exhibited widely with solo shows at the National Media Museum, Bradford, Museum of Contemporary Photography, Chicago, and Multimedia Art Museum Moscow.

Recent group exhibitions include Observers: British Photography and the British Scene (From the 1920s to Now) at Galeria de Arte SESI, Brazil, and Landmark: The Fields of Photography at Somerset House, London. His photographs reside in major public and private collections, including the George Eastman House, Deutsche Börse Art Collection and Wilson Centre for Photography. In recognition for his work, Roberts has received several awards including the Vic Odden Award, offered for a notable achievement in the art of photography by a British photographer, along with bursaries from the National Media Museum, John Kobal Foundation and grants from Arts Council England.

He was commissioned as the official Election Artist by the House of Commons Works of Art Committee to produce a record of the 2010 General Election on behalf of the UK Parliament. In 2012 he was the only art photographer granted access by the International Olympic Committee to the London Olympics.

Most recently he was made an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society. He has published three critically acclaimed monographs, Motherland (Chris Boot, 2007), We English (Chris Boot, 2009) – voted one of the best photography books of the past decade, and Pierdom (Dewi Lewis, 2013). For more information contact hello@grainphotographyhub.co.uk or to book your ticket through Eventbrite click here . Archives July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 Exhibition 2015 13 November – 23 December The SALON exhibition showcases contemporary art for sale at the Waterhall Gallery, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery.

Related: Saatchi Art — Original Works & Limited Edition Prints — The biggest online gallery for original contemporary art — huge choice, but you pay for it..

Exhibition 2016 12 February - 15 May A selected West Midlands graduates’ exhibition that takes place at venues across the region between February and May each year. The New Art West Midlands 2016 exhibition was selected by Sonia Boyce, John Stezaker and Katharine Stout and features work by 43 artists.

Editorial Barbara Walker’s Shock and Awe reviewed by Andrew Jackson Friday 13th May 2016 Trevor Pitt and the Preston Street Union Wednesday 13th April 2016 Subscribe Friends of New Art WM If you are interested in staying up-to-date with contemporary art in the region or in buying and collecting please join our mailing list. Curators’ Network If you are a curator or visual arts professional and interested in the contemporary art landscape of the West Midlands please join our mailing list. Artist Talk from GRAIN: Simon Roberts - New Art WM Developing the market for contemporary art in the West Midlands 7ads6x98y

P.S. A few readers have asked which curated online gallery we actually reach for — it's Singulart — Curated Emerging Artist Gallery; take a look here if you want the current details.