Conversations — The Holborn Group at Department Store, Brixton

For two days only, the Holborn Group took over Department Store in Brixton with Conversations, an exhibition featuring work from the collective alongside a group of invited guest artists.

Firstly, I love this venue. Just three minutes from Brixton tube station, it’s a huge open space with exposed walls and concrete floors — the perfect backdrop for this eclectic group of artists. Sadly, the exhibition was only open for two days, so by the time you read this it will already have closed.

I knew via Instagram that several Prism artists were showing and, having just been accepted into this art organisation myself, I thought this was a great opportunity to see the work of some of the artists in my new group.

As you walk down the large black metal staircase, the first thing to catch your eye is Mew’s huge pink quilted dog. What’s not to love? It’s pink. And it’s a dog.

Karen Byrne’s large inflatable sculptures also vie for attention, emblazoned with the words GOODENOUGH. I desperately wanted them to be beanbags so I could squish and pummel them, but this is an art gallery, so I behaved myself and stood back to admire them instead.

Wolfgang Woerner’s large, energetic drawings feel almost like a reflection of the artist himself — positive, energetic and wild. His sculpture Held, however, brought me to a much quieter place.

It reminded me of the 1970s TV show Bagpuss. Not because of the characters themselves, but because of their pose. It took me straight back to the end of each episode, when everything became quiet and the characters all lay down to rest.

The work I spent the most time with was Helen MacRitchie’s. I was fascinated by her almost scientific approach to felt-making, informed by her background in chemistry.

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I have felt sitting in my studio, just waiting for me to become inspired, and Helen very kindly gave me what can only be described as a YouTube-worthy rundown of what felt can actually do.

I came away completely inspired to pull out my roving — a new term I learned on the day — and start experimenting.

And perhaps that was my real Conversation at Conversations.

Sometimes seeing someone else’s work is enough to make you look at your own materials differently. A conversation, a technique you haven’t considered, or simply seeing how another artist thinks can be the little push you need to go back into the studio and experiment.

Taking time out to visit a new exhibition gives you just that little creative jolt to start the week with.

Artists on show

Holborn Group participating artists

Olivia Adamczyk O’Sullivan

Toshiko Banton

Karen Byrne

Deborah Crosby

Munisha Gupta

Kath Russell

Wolfgang Woerner

Guest artists

Jonathan Armour

Helen MacRitchie

Mew

Jane Riley

Ray Ward