Tessa Farmer
Encyclopedia
Tessa Farmer is an artist based in London
. Her work, made from insect
carcasses, plant roots and other found natural materials, comprises hanging installations depicting Boschian battles between insects and tiny winged skeletal humanoid
s.
She received her BA in 2000 and her MA in 2003 from The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art
, Oxford
. Subsequent awards include the Vivien Leigh Prize, a sculpture residency in King's Wood, Challock, Kent, and a Royal British Society of Sculptors
Bursary Award. Her work is in the collections of the Saatchi Gallery
and the Ashmolean Museum
among others.
In 2007, Farmer was chosen for the final shortlist of The Times
/South Bank Show Breakthrough Award.
- author of The Great God Pan
, and The White People
. Tessa was unfamiliar with Machen's work until a member of The Friends of Arthur Machen drew her attention to similarities between some of Machen's stories and Tessa's own work. Since then, Machen has become an influence in her artwork.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Her work, made from insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
carcasses, plant roots and other found natural materials, comprises hanging installations depicting Boschian battles between insects and tiny winged skeletal humanoid
Humanoid
A humanoid is something that has an appearance resembling a human being. The term first appeared in 1912 to refer to fossils which were morphologically similar to, but not identical with, those of the human skeleton. Although this usage was common in the sciences for much of the 20th century, it...
s.
She received her BA in 2000 and her MA in 2003 from The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art
The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art
The Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art, known as The Ruskin, is an art school and research institute at the University of Oxford.Working collaboratively across two sites, the school provides undergraduate and postgraduate qualifications in the study and production of visual art...
, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
. Subsequent awards include the Vivien Leigh Prize, a sculpture residency in King's Wood, Challock, Kent, and a Royal British Society of Sculptors
Royal British Society of Sculptors
The Royal British Society of Sculptors is a registered charity whose aims are to promote and support sculpture. It has a worldwide membership....
Bursary Award. Her work is in the collections of the Saatchi Gallery
Saatchi Gallery
The Saatchi Gallery is a London gallery for contemporary art, opened by Charles Saatchi in 1985 in order to exhibit his collection to the public. It has occupied different premises, first in North London, then the South Bank by the River Thames and currently in Chelsea. Saatchi's collection, and...
and the Ashmolean Museum
Ashmolean Museum
The Ashmolean Museum on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is the world's first university museum...
among others.
In 2007, Farmer was chosen for the final shortlist of The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
/South Bank Show Breakthrough Award.
Family
Her great grandfather is Arthur MachenArthur Machen
Arthur Machen was a Welsh author and mystic of the 1890s and early 20th century. He is best known for his influential supernatural, fantasy, and horror fiction. His novella The Great God Pan has garnered a reputation as a classic of horror...
- author of The Great God Pan
The Great God Pan
"The Great God Pan" is a novella written by Arthur Machen. A version of the story was published in the magazine The Whirlwind in 1890, and Machen revised and extended it for its book publication in 1894...
, and The White People
The White People
"The White People" is a fantasy-horror short story by the Welsh writer Arthur Machen. Written in the late 1890s, it was first published in Horlick's Magazine—of which Machen's friend A. E...
. Tessa was unfamiliar with Machen's work until a member of The Friends of Arthur Machen drew her attention to similarities between some of Machen's stories and Tessa's own work. Since then, Machen has become an influence in her artwork.
External links
- Tessa Farmer, Tessa Farmer: Home Page
- Tessa Farmer, Miniature Worlds
- Parabola: Tessa Farmer
- Tessa Farmer at Saatchi Gallery Collection