Dear Friends and Supporters,

Hello! We are Sweet Ditch, a group of female artists who have joined creative forces to put on an exciting and diverse show this summer, with more exhibitions to come in both London and New York.

We have artists ranging from painters and illustrators to film makers, sculptors and live performers. Our first show is about raw, original artwork. Work that is not trying to be anything other than honest and courageous. 

As Sweet Ditch, we set out to challenge and inspire one another, and hopefully our audiences too. We are proud of the work that has been born out of of this supportive multi-disciplinary environment and can't wait to show you.

We hope the uncompromising nature of our art will strike a cord with men and women who for whatever reasons are not making the art inside them. We want to inspire people to create no matter what.

A little about the Artists....

Kate Rubens-  Kate is a London and New York based artist, a painter and dancer who has spent the last few years drawing comparisons between both forms of art. In her practice she focuses predominantly on the female form creating work which draws on her environment and the changeable relationship she has with her body.  www.katerubens.tumblr.com

                                            

Nicole Cataldo-Davies- Nicole has in this instance put aside her artistic direction, choreography and live action in order to delve a little more selfishly into her own trials and tribulations of being in the world. Trained in traditional arts, social sculpture and drinking cups of hot water, she is returning to the realm of sculptural installation in an attempt to marriage her performance and participatory work with a tongue and cheek exploration into 'immanence'. 
www.nicolecataldo-davies.com 

                  

Christina Hardinge- Christina is an artist and filmmaker  based in London. Christina's work bears a powerful personal imprint. Marked by a fascination with both children and the elderly, her films are low on dialogue and explicit story exposition. Instead, they look to bold, unusual images, vivid details and an acute use of sound design to create their unsettling worlds.  www.christinahardinge.com  

                  

Laura Adamson- Laura is a fine artist and teacher living and working in North London. For the forthcoming Sweet Ditch show Laura will be exhibiting a series of paintings of the important men in her life past and present. Laura is also devising a performance piece that will be shown alongside the paintings.

               

India Banks- India is an artist, designer and director for theatre and film in addition to devising and performing with CRANK Theatre. The performance art and theatre she creates is rooted in satire, fusing dark humour with commentary on social issues. She has also worked with young people and vulnerable adults in the fields of devised theatre and design. She has recently started working in the fields of documentary film and music videos. She is currently doing a part-time MA at SOAS which combines filmmaking with development studies, ethnomusicology and study of the global arts industries.

               

Maria Bird- Maria’s artwork sits somewhere between drawing, collage and sculpture. Her work is often tangled and hard to see all at once, asking for a more self-conscious form of looking from the viewer. The moving surface drags the eye through different channels and pathways, forcing the viewer to re-enact the making process to grasp the full picture. Maria Bird wants the viewer to share in the choices, focus and stamina the piece required, and to get a clear feeling for the energy and emotion behind it as well.

                                    

Anthea Clarke- Anthea is a singer, songwriter, fashion designer and artist based in London. Currently working on projects that explore desire, how it makes us feel and the positive and negative impact it has on our lives.   www.facebook.com/iamfya - http://www.mytribefashion.co.uk  

                                      

Martina Ziewe- Martina is a London based artist. She predominantly paints, more recent work has crossed over into installation and performance. Martina is presently exploring the line between the physical and spiritual, making visceral work that comes from the gut. She is curious about the creative impulse and process of art and life continually feeding back and informing one another on what it is to be alive.

                                           

Heather Nelson- Heather is an artist based in Hackney, London. She studied a degree in Sculpture at Camberwell School of Arts, but since leaving she has focused mainly on painting. Using oil paints, she conveys her thoughts and interactions through metaphorical imagery. The actual imagery used always has personal meaning to her life but is redefined to represent something else.  http://mixedcomposition.blogspot.co.uk/

                                          

Carrie Topley-  Carrie is an artist that uses both her background in music and dance to inform her practice. Previous work has involved taking visual data and turning this into musical scores, often using violin, vocals and the use of loops and effects pedals. The line where music/rhythm meets the body as a performance tool is where most of her exploration into live work stems from.

                            

Eddie Hecht- Eddie usually works in TV and film in the art department, however prefers to identify herself as a 'maker' whose goal is to collect as many creative skills across as many mediums as she can. She always has had a sketchbook on the go in which she express' her different understandings of sexuality, beauty and biro lines.  In this exhibition she will draw together a collection of these images that flow on their own accord from her head to her hand. In particular exploring the human body as an empty vessel and the relationship between the positive and negative spaces it can create.

                                         

How You Can Help...

We are very excited to have confirmed a rare and beautiful space to exhibit our show, The Safehouse which is located in Peckham, South London. Unfortunately the space and all other things needed for the show such as promotion, equipment and materials does not come cheap. So this is where you come in, we need to help cover some costs:

500 - Hire of Space

350 - Promotional Material

200 - Exhibition Catalogue

300 - Equipment Hire

150 - Alcohol for Opening Night/ Licence

500 - Materials

Alas we cannot achieve what we dream to do without the financial support of the public. Our city, London, is an expensive one. We simply can't afford to do this exhibition on our own. Trust that we will use the experience and leverage generated from this show to go on and continue making work that will benefit not just ourselves, but other collaborators, students, projects and communities as well.

Our show 'Sweet Ditch' will be taking place on the 4th till the 8th of June. We are excited to be hosting events during the show including a Opening Private View and a very special Live Arts Performance Night.

All the artists involved are dedicated to making this show a reality and to have the opportunity to create an exhibition which is truly to its highest standard. We appreciate all your time and support and every donation big or small helps us on this creative journey.

A huge THANK YOU! from all the artists at Sweet Ditch

Follow us…

on Facebook- facebook.com/sweetditch

on Twitter - @thesweetditch