Welcome back!

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Welcome to the first release of our new blog, the DUAS Loop. Each month we will be posting a newsletter updating you on:

What's been on - where you can find out about art-related activities that have been going on within the society and further afield!

What's going on - events and activities that are happening that you can get involved with!

What's "in" - recommendations of podcasts, books and exhibitions we think you might enjoy!

In addition to this we will be doing a monthly interview with a local creative, based in the North East, so keep your eyes peeled.



But first, a word from our president...

Hello DUAS members, welcome back to Durham and the society! I hope that you have had chances to get involved in some form of art activities in these strange times.

Due to COVID-19 guidelines, it is very likely that our traditional array of weekly sessions will not be possible. As well as virtual workshops and talks, we are hoping to run some life drawing sessions in person with capacity and time limits. Get in touch if there's anything you'd like to see us hosting!

To help in making up for all the missed arts, our Exec team is introducing a new initiative this year, where we will be posting updates on the society in general and other art events. Including upcoming collaborations and sessions, there will be monthly blogs of an interview with an artist or another creative, who works/is based in the North East, particularly Durham.

I hope you all have/have had safe journey back to Durham and enjoy the oddest term of your university life. Don’t forget to share your art life with us!

Best wishes,

Yujin x

What's been on? 

Over summer, DUAS has been working super hard to plan for Michaelmas so that we can do all of our arty activities in a safe and accessible way. With rules and regulations ever changing, we can't say for certain what will happen this term, never mind this year, but we can show you what we've been up to over the break and what we hope to do over the next few weeks.

We also have a few new features, the first one being this newsletter! We will still be using other channels to keep you up to date, but the newsletter is where you can find the information in one place!

On our Instagram and Facebook, we will also be introducing an Art History Focus every Friday. We're trying to branch out into more academic areas of art, and the Art History Focus will be a chance for you to learn about artists, paintings and movements! If you would like us to cover anything specific, send us a message and we'll add it to the programme.

We are also trying to use this space as a way to improve the representation of artists in art history, which has typically been for white European men. Not that there's anything wrong with any of those things, but often there hasn't been room left for anyone else, and we would like to contribute to changing that.

Lastly, we have a couple of collaborations with other societies coming up soon. Look out for more information closer to the time!

Student Art

Adeline Zhao @ade.zhx

We absolutely love this surreal illustration with intricately detailed butterflies! Adeline has used bright and vibrant colour to really bring this to life.

   

Izzy Emmet @izzy.artworks

Izzy creates amazingly realistic animal portraits. She uses pastel pencils for these stunning portraits, capturing the texture of the fur and the light so well. The detail Izzy captures is fantastic! The second photo is a commission that really showcases Izzy’s incredible talent. She also uses pastel pencils very skilfully for this beautiful portrait.

   

Jennifer Leigh @pastel.inspire 

Jennifer expertly uses acrylic in this experimental study of sheep. Her use of colour really brings the scene to life. The other painting is another example of Jennifer’s amazing work. She completed this digitally, showing her amazing command of colour and technical ability. Jennifer has a video on her Instagram account showing her process!


We do up to three student features a week. If you would like your art to feature, please send us a message on our Instagram page (@duartsoc) or our Facebook page! We can share one of your posts, or create a feature using a story or a post. For our QuarARTine galleries, head over to our Instagram page and find it in the ‘Story Highlights’ section.

Summer in the City

This summer Durham hosted its second Summer in the City Festival, a collaboration
 between Durham County Council and Durham University celebrating Durham's art, music and theatre. Click here to check out some of the work that featured in this year's festival, such as Street Gallery and Art Hunt!
 
In light of the Covid-19 pandemic, the festival has this year gone completely digital, and events will continue throughout the year, so keep your eyes peeled for Summer in the City updates by following them on Facebook and Instagram! 


What's going on? 

...in DUAS

As previously mentioned, we are unsure of our capacity to be able to run sessions in person, due to the changing government guidelines regarding Covid-19. We will be starting our term 

Life drawing 

These sessions usually take place weekly on a Tuesday evening. We are currently working out how we can continue these sessions in the current situation. In the future Life Drawing has plans to do themed evenings, such as using specific colour and music, as well as some collaborations with other Durham Societies.

Thursday Sessions

Thursday sessions will commence over zoom, the plan for October being as follows:

 8/10/20 – Taster session 

15/10/20 – Portraits

22/10/20 – Plants

29/10/20 – Collage artists


DUAS Exhibition


We are in the process of planning our Christmas exhibition, so keep an eye out for more info on this!

Further afield...

Exhibitions to see in the North East

See below for some of the galleries in the North East that are now open to visitors, in keeping with social distancing rules.


Imran Perretta - open until 8 Nov 2020
Abel Rodriguez - open until 8 Nov 2020
Huma Bhabha - open until 21 Feb 2021 
Getting there: Train to Newcastle and then Q2 towards Gateshead (get off at Baltic Square)
You can also listen to Podcasts about the exhibitions!


Getting there: Train to Newcastle and then GRN metro from there towards Sunderland (get off at St Peters)


Other Worlds: The Art of Atomhawk - open until 1 Nov 2020
A British Museum touring exhibition - Ancient Iraq: new discoveries - open until 1 Nov 2020
These exhibitions can also be visited virtually.
Getting there: Train to Newcastle and then GRN metro from there towards Airport (get off at Haymarket)

Museum of Art, Fashion and Design 
Pre-Raphaelite Knights Reinventing the Medieval World - open until 8th Nov 2020
Norman Cornish: The Definitive Collection - open until 17th Jan 2021
Blimey! Lucretia - open until 11th October 2020
Book student ticket for £6, access to all the collections 
Getting there: Train from Durham to Darlington, bus from Darlington to Barnard Castle


What's "in"?

 This month's recommendation is a podcast by the Art Fund, Meet Me at the Museum. Featuring well-known faces taking someone they love to a favourite museum or gallery, it's a great way to discover a a gallery on the go or from the comfort of your living room! 

...And that's a wrap! 

Thank you for browsing our first edition of the DUAS Loop, keep up to date with our facebook and instagram for more updates, and be sure to check out our first interview, with local artist and founder of Street Gallery, Eleanor Matthews, to be released in 2 weeks time! 

Contributions from Helena De Gorrequer Griffith and Amana Moore 

Edited by Amana Moore 

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