Danse Macabre

While Looking for some exhibitions to go see to do with my current projects one leaflet caught my eye 'DANSE MACABRE 2009' The reason this caught my eye is because danse macabre is the dance of the dead which i looked at while in ASLEVEL and wrote about in a blog post before! I looked at the leaflet and while i couldnt get to the exhibition on the dates it had left, (london) i have since visited the website.
Danse Macabre is a gothic art exhibition that was on in Nottingham and London and included artists, photographers and live performances.
I looked on the websites of some of the artists and photographers and here are the more interesting ones that i found and liked:

michael cowell:

illistrator and artist (some photography but mainly just of areas of interest to him) his main work that interests me is his illistrations. They seem really eeary to me, often looking at isolation, or those with large groups seem even more haunting expesh when you cant see the faces (as in the image below)  The very sketchy and messy approch reminds me of the 30days of night comics. the shading and colourisation also has that 'dark gothic feel' with many of his images using this sort of tea stained colouring rather then pure white.

http://www.michael-cowell.com/

Photographer and illistrator Mark Leary who does a mix of work- some of his manipulations have a very surreal almost Dali feel to them which i do really like. His photography is a mix of different kinds of portrait, being alternative in style, and weird and clever set ups to put his model in. I really like this photo of his work  and its almost fitting that the title of his website is http://www.asylumseventy7.co.uk/ because the subject looks as if he should be put in an asylum. Obviously making a statement about vanity and obsessivness with how we see ourselves and how important it is how other people view us.

I was also excited to see that two former DEMONTFORT students were in the lineup, Both photographers:
Hamish Walker (fine arts degree)

 Hamish's photographs attempt to capture the exhilarating and terrifying atmosphere felt when walking through the city alone at night, where all your senses are heightened. Light reveals only details in this landscape, serving to reinforce the shadows.

and the work of Grace Elkin who also has a fine art degree from DMU whos work is a mixture of portrait, glamour and fashion with hints of the gothic and alternative scene with some surreal and some fetish (latex ect) work