Based in Münster, Malcher creates large, whimsical paintings of female bodies, looking to create a “sign-like depiction” of women in her practice. She takes inspiration from imagery of women as early as prehistoric drawings, and will use her time in Lombardy to accrue new references of the female body from the local art history.

Her dynamic compositions of stylized, feminine figures playing, dancing, and running across the canvas have earned her solo exhibitions in her native Germany and group exhibitions in the United States, South Korea, and across Europe.

Check out more of Malcher’s practice on her website or Instagram.

Simon’s practice stems from many different sources from the Baroque and Rococo to contemporary popular culture. Many of his most recent paintings were created on ornamental shaped panels, forms which deliberately recall Baroque altarpieces however his subject matter fluctuates from fleeting moments of everyday intimacy to sci-fi-esque visions. Central to Bejer’s artistic philosophy are the concepts of wonder, absurdity and playfulness.

ACS will be interviewing Simon as part of the ACS Student Spotlight series in the latter part of 2022.

Find out more about Bejer at his website.

Dowd-Smyth’s work is playful, earnest and absurd. Primarily a sculptor, Rosie’s work emphatically references back to her own hand physical presence within each work. Rosie champions the notion of the Do-It-Yourself (DIY), with the act of making coming prior to theory. There is a humour to her work which is juxtaposed with a sense of melancholy – it forces the viewer to look at the oddness of the world, man’s own ludicrousness and our unarticulated fears.

Find out more about Rosie at her website.

Yukhnovich’s work is inspired by the Rococo and examines the aesthetics of femininity, particularly the disparity between its position in art history and the artist’s own experience in contemporary society. ACS interviewed Yukhnovich for our Student Spotlight series, which you can read here.

On receiving the Residency prize, Yukhnovich said: “It’s incredibly motivating and encouraging to have been selected for the prize which has tempered any anxiety about leaving the structure and support of the MA. The certainty of having a studio for 12 months creates another period for developing my practice away from commercial pressures. The prize has enabled me to work full time in the studio and rent enough space to continue working on the large scale, which I find so exciting.” Find out more about Yukhnovich at her website.

His degree show ‘Smex Cafe’ was a fully interactive installation which turned part of the university into a multi-coloured, art-stocked cafe. Weir said of this show: “The idea was to alter perceptions of ‘painting’ and change the way that visitors see artworks and interact with an exhibition, whilst simultaneously creating a fun and accessible space for everyone.”

Since receiving the Award, Weir has gone on to exhibit in a solo exhibition at the DOK Artist Space as part of the Edinburgh Annuale in 2018. ACS interviewed Weir for our Student Spotlight series to find out more about his practice. His website can be found here.

McCullough’s work focuses on originality and replication in a variety of media. She explains: “from the seemingly arbitrary idiom ‘the Real McCoy’ to imitation butter, the sculptor’s plinth to the picture postcard, my work explores the cultural narratives and artistic legacy of the copy.”

ACS interviewed McCullough for our Student Spotlight series as she began her residency in August 2017, which you can read here. We were delighted to visit McCullough in her studio in March 2018 after settling in to her professional career, by which time she had become a member of the Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop to further expand her creative practice. Since receiving the ACS Studio Award, McCullough has completed a solo printmaking residency as part of the Interdisciplinary Residency Programme at Hospitalfield, Abroath. Find out more about her work at her website here.

Barrett explores gender, racial and cultural stereotypes in her work, and seeks to examine notions of empowerment and gender politics away from the male gaze. Her work also draws on imagery inspired by the Rorschach psychoanalytical test which invites the viewer to interpret unique subliminal messages.

She employs a detailed and varied process to produce her figurative sculptures which includes model making, photography, digital modelling, 3D printing and bronze casting. Her residency at the London Sculpture Workshop will allow Barrett to continue to explore casting techniques and work with new materials. Keep up to date with Barrett on her Instagram page.

Pauley’s bold and colourful work is inspired by water and the architecture surrounding the sea, lakes and swimming pools, and her piece ‘Water of Leith’ inspired by the coast off Edinburgh was exhibited at the Pittenweem Arts Festival in August 2018 where she later won the Bursary Award.

On winning the ACS Studio Award, Pauley said: “I am delighted to have won the award as my biggest concern was how I was going to produce work of any considerable scale without sufficient space to work in. I now have a huge incentive and drive to be ambitious and experimental with my work.” Find out more about Pauley at her website.

Watson makes large-scale monoprints on strips of Japanese paper to drape theatrically like tapestries across walls. Themes of cloaking and obscuring are embodied in the large monoprints, which in turn bring to mind the Gothic haunted house. These form huge images in washes of colour, upon which hang much smaller oil paintings hat function like incoherent cyphers. The chosen subjects, such as the unlit candle, Chinese vase, and painting of ships setting sail, symbolise both a romantic escape and the truths of history. By layering the images and materials, Watson strives to create a shifting understanding of the viewer’s relationship to her work.

Watson will use the residency to pursue new avenues of making. Find out more about her work at her website here.

Hayward’s work explores painting as a way of creating space and form through colour and shape, while investigating what the practice revealed historically. He believes that reflecting on the past enriches the present, and allows us to consider where to go next.

He is also inspired by the way that cinematography and photography can inform the act of painting and drawing. Overall, using a synthesis of writing, painting, drawing, collaging and photography, Hayward’s work explores the past and themes of nostalgia.

Dal-Pra’s current work focuses on the relationship between vertigo, body and moments of modern banality. She is inspired by the composition and dialogue of forms found in the work of Italian Mannerist artists such as Pontormo.

In an interview with Creative Boom, the artist explained “what I’m looking for is to use an ancestral medium in a classical technique, to talk about today’s world. Women are very present in my work, sometimes in a group. I like to try to make their shapes and their emotions communicate. Then, harmonies of colours guide me during the construction of my images.”

The artist’s latest paintings of dreamlike plants explore desire, control and magical thinking. The works reference varied sources such as illuminated manuscripts, botanical illustration, anatomical diagrams and herbal fertility guides.

Alongside her practice, Jane Hayes Greenwood is the co-founder and Director of Block 336, an artist-run project space, studio provider and a UK registered charity.

Learn more about the artist’s latest work and exhibitions on her website and Instagram.