What Artists Like #3

Step inside the mind of multi-faceted Masters Artist, Tia Taylor Berry, who was nominated by our previous Guest Curator – Errol Theunissen.

NW – You have created a world that coalesces so perfectly – gentle colours, harmonious shapes, thoughtful images, delicate mark making. Even your name and how you present yourself alongside your work seems to fit so well. Have you always been so sure about what you want to create?

TTB – I have always known that I must create, yet what I create has never been the result of conscious choice, more so because of an innate urge that exists within me to translate / record my experiences with spiritual space and my research into the often unseen and unknown. Because my work is the result of a mediumistic practice I think that the overall imagery and aesthetic of the work has been developed through recurring interactions and encounters with Spiritual Space and through recording those experiences. I approach my practice with great openness, to record what is, as it is shared with me (be this through Visions, dreams or the result of the employment of a spiritual method). By not attempting to control or dictate the outcome it allows the work to settle into a space where each piece communicates with another.

NW – What kind of drawings did you make as a child?
TTB – As a child I grew up in the country, so I was surrounded by an abundance of plants, animals, nature, and dynamic landscapes. I would fill my days with adventures and expeditions to find various things I believed lived within the landscape I called home – I would then draw these things, from plants to insects to imagined mystical creatures Roaming the land….oh and also a lot of colour, abstract, ‘blobs’ with doodled patterns, which looking back, speaks to the intuitive method of making I now employ in my work.

NW – Congratulations on being awarded a Freelands Foundation Studio Fellowship. What an incredible start to your career. You’ll be based at Grays School of Art in Aberdeen. How do you think the North East of Scotland will impact your work?

TTB – Scotland, specifically Aberdeen, was historically a nexus of magic prior to it being named the ‘Granite City’ in the 19th century. This rich and layered history along with the stories shared of seers, mystical beings and magic will be a great source for me to connect to and work with. I have found already the feeling or sense of energy here is profound and it is tucking itself into my work in so many subtle and beautiful ways. Away from Scotland’s history though, the undeniable beauty of the areas that have welcomed me as an explorer and researcher within them will continue to be experiences that come to exist within the work – the colours of the land and its spaces, its stories and its energy.

NW – ‘What resides beyond’, your degree show exhibition, is such a sophisticated piece that combines painting, sculpture and installation with a confident sense of space. You’ve also published a couple of books and are now working on a tarot deck. These are wildly different formats, but you make them feel effortlessly connected. How do you work so consistently across different mediums? Where do you see your work going next?

TTB – In my practice, each medium has a unique purpose. Each on, though different, exists because the work asks for it. Whether held quietly within the pages of a book or printed on a 78 card tarot deck to then be transformed into a 10ft sculpture, the work seeks to inhabit various forms and spaces. The chosen medium is a reflection of this.
I also believe that due to the recurring motifs of shape, colour and pattern the work naturally becomes ‘cohesive,’ no matter what medium is being used. The elements or aspects of the work that form its core are of an otherworldly essence and the sense of that or the unseen ‘thing’ held within the works can be felt throughout. I also don’t force the work to be or become something other than what it is, I allow it to guide me rather than the other way around. As for where I see my work going next, my main focus is my artist tarot deck ‘Chromatic Visions’ and my solo show to open early 2025.

NW – If money/connections were infinite, what would be your dream commission/collaboration and why?
TTB: There are so many sprawling ideas and visions I wish to follow and bring into existence. Right now, some of them would be an experience of meeting with Hilmas Ghost, who are a feminist artist collective, co-founded by Brooklyn based artists Dannielle Tegeder and Sharmistha Ray. I have been so deeply affected by their works and their presence within the realm of art and magic. To meet them one day would be such a dream and honour. As for the dream commission, last year I visited New Orleans and was enchanted by the experience of the Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden, I could have spent my whole visit there. To create a sculptural piece to sit within that space would be a dream, and honestly, one I have quite literally dreamt about..several times.

Keep scrolling to see the three works Tia has highlighted from the New Blood Art Collection, plus books she is currently reading. Tia has nominated Olivia Mansfield as the next Artist Curator.
Thanks for reading 🙂Nicola Wiltshire

WHAT ARTISTS LIKE

“A piece that holds an ethereal sensitivity, an essence of magic and compels one to approach with intrigue.” – TTB

“A Goddess of dawn and light, this piece speaks to a divine power and connects us to an earthly rhythm, created with colours that demand to be seen as well as felt.” – TTB

“A realm or space that embodies the essence of mystery and movement. Works that feel as though they are presenting a question whilst also holding the answer for one to decipher.” – TTB

WHAT TIA IS CURRENTLY READING:
Hilma Af Klint, A biography By Julia Voss
Thought Forms. By Annie Besant and C. W. Leadbeater
World Receivers: Georgia Houghton, Hilma Af Klint and EmmaKunz (exhibition catalogue)