Artist in Residence | Allis Hamilton

During the residency, Allis would like to begin creating portraits of local people that capture not only how they look, but something of who they are.

The portraits will bring together painting, drawing and fragments of poems written in response to each person. Alongside each painting, a soundscape will be created using, with permission, pieces of conversation, stories or memories from the sitting, together with sounds connected to the sitter's life.

The idea for this project grew partly from the artist losing an uncle suddenly, and hearing her aunt say that she wished she had a recording of his voice. It made Allis think about how much a voice can hold — a person's character, memories and presence.

The residency will give Allis the opportunity to explore this idea, spend time developing the work, and begin to see where the project might lead.