Artists Clubhouse presents Palette and Poetry - A Fusion of Art & Music for Worcester Fringe 2023.
For Worcester Fringe Festival 2023 we invited local artists Emily Johnson, Kirstie Gregory and Josh Rouse to paint live in the centre of the city. Each artist picked a song or lyrics that inspired the piece they would work on, creating a live painting exhibition.
Each artist's style, technique and experience is very different, showing that music and art in all its forms can have different meanings to everyone and will inspire each of us differently. The project aimed to connect people to the arts and hopes to inspire them to get involved, at the event we had a separate canvas draped over a table for people to have a go at creating music inspired doodles themselves using POSCA pens.
About the artists:
Kirstie Gregory - I am a Worcester based artist creating paintings inspired by pop culture. Film, Television and Music are my loves, escaping everyday into the depths of fiction. I like to create a sense of mystery in my work, merging science and fantasy to provoke the imagining of impossible or improbable things.
“A tourist in the waking world, never quite awake”
I have chosen lyrics from various Florence and the Machine songs as my inspiration for Palette & Poetry. Ever since her first album ‘Lungs’ in 2009, I have been mesmerised by Florence’s lyrics, music, dance and fashion. I feel deeply connected to her themes and how she expresses them.
Instagram @kirstiegregoryart (https://www.instagram.com/kirstiegregoryart/)
Josh Rouse - I will be doing some lettering of a line from one of my favourite songs!
Little Simz - Heart on Fire. The line I have chosen is "This life is a blessing, But it comes with its stresses";
I resonate with this line from the chorus as to me I feel there can't be high times without the low, the human organism thrives with problems, when we don't have something to solve, we can feel lost or unmotivated but it should also be appreciated at the highest of times and we should be thankful even when we can find ourselves becoming stressed! The whole song speaks about a come up and staying true to yourself and not losing sight of that! The gritty rap is contrasted here by a melodic chorus from which I have selected a line to almost symbolise this balance. I will be creating decorative letters to represent this!
Instagram @rousesigns (https://www.instagram.com/rousesigns/)
Emily Johnson/The Awkward Peach - I am a Worcester based artist, I make clothing from recycled elements and up-cycle pieces often using dye or embroidery and I also paint. I taught myself to paint during 2020 through the lockdowns, a skin cancer diagnosis and year of cancer treatment meaning I had a lot of time alone sitting on the sofa to fill; it has quickly become my favourite medium whether in acrylic or water colour.
I have chosen to paint to the lyrics of 'Music for a Sushi Restaurant' by Harry Styles because it is a really fun song filled with items I love to paint, I hope my painting gives you a sense of that feeling you get from the song!
Instagram @the_awkward_peach (https://www.instagram.com/the_awkward_peach/)
Find out more about Worcester Fringe 2023 here: https://worcestertheatres.co.uk/get-involved/worcester-fringe-2023
