Art in the workplace

Andrew Bradley graduated from North Staffordshire Poly in 1980 with a BA(Hons) in Fine Art Sculpture. Although perhaps best known as a community artsist, he has exhibited no less than fourteen times. His artistic career has included a wide range of residences and murals in schools and other institutions in Walsall - the home base where he was, in the early '90's, Chairman of the Walsall Arts Council. He also contributed, in the 80's, to several theatrical events, with stage sets and costumes, and has decorated one or two civic vehicles as well. His materials include a fascinating range of ready-made found objects, from magazine cuttings and twigs to trowel blades and bits of fencing. With judicious use of paints and added textures, and a canny eye for arranging and compiling his objects just so, Andy is capable of creating, through his sculptural collages, some striking and often powerful images. Words people use, or pictures he sees, or newspaper or magazine cuttings are often his starting point, and an association of ideas and hoards of old pictures he has saved help him to rapidly build up new creations. The exhibition will be open in the tace gallery from Thursday 22nd May to Saturday 28th June.