Thu, 27/10/2022 - 10:07
Dawn Wesselby is a mixed media artist with a focus on ceramics, print and installations and has recently moved into a studio at Banks Mill following her student residency award win.
The University’s Banks Mill Studios provides support and space for individuals wanting to start a business in the creative industries, and each year runs a student residency award giving students the chance to take on space rent free for a year and take advantage of the business support on offer.
Dawn is currently studying a Master of Arts degree, after completing her Bachelor of Arts and is hoping that the space at Banks Mill will give her the opportunity to experiment and create new work, something she is unable to do without the studio. Dawn comments: “Being part of the community at Banks Mill will enable me to share ideas with other artists and an opportunity to raise my profile as an artist. Having the opportunity to focus on my artwork as a business will be invaluable in launching my career as an artist.”
Whilst at University Dawn was contacted by one of her ex-tutors to set up a community arts business as they had the opportunity of some funding; she has since worked on several community art projects with different community groups.
Dawn shares her thoughts on the project: “I believe creativity really helps people’s wellbeing if we are able to unlearn some of our fears about ‘not being good enough’. So often people believe they are not creative but often they are, it’s just a case of finding the right medium.”
In 2016 Dawn took voluntary redundancy from her job as a commercial bank manager, and her experience has given her the expertise with accounts and cash flow projections which is useful when applying for funding bids or costing projects. Since leaving work Dawn attained a distinction HND at Grantham College and since then she has been involved in several community art projects including Gravity Fields and the Festival of Angels at St Wulframs Church in 2021 which involved creating angel sculptures from two - six meters tall.
Dawn tells us about her current Uni work: “For my MA I am exploring the complexities of internet sex as well as sex trafficking. As this work can be mentally draining, I like to balance this with more positive creativity. I want to explore some printing inspired by the concept of shinrin yoku (forest bathing) and the health benefits of walking out in nature. I am currently painting on motherboards which is more challenging than you might expect. Partly due to the uneven surface and plastic nature of the ‘canvas’ which means it takes five or six coats to get an opaque image. I therefore work on two at a time so I can alternate between each motherboard, allowing the paint to dry in-between.”
In addition, Dawn is also a qualified a yoga teacher and has been practicing for over 20 years which means she has several techniques for when it all gets too stressful!
You can find out more about Dawn’s work on her website and follow her on Facebook and Instagram. You can find out more about Dawn’s community art projects here