Dear good people,

It's been an age since I sent a newsletter but there has been a lot going behind the scenes...as you will see. I've been making, applying to opportunities, delivering workshops, researching and organise exhibitions and so here is a lowdown of what I've been working up to over the last months...

What's happening in Spring/Summer

Next week:

• Creativity Continues exhibition at Colonnade House - Opens 23rd March
• This Must Be The Place exhibition at Puck, Brighton - Opens 27th March

April:

• Tide & Place exhibition, WRAP in partnership with Sussex Bay
• Influence - Seafront Gallery, Worthing - DTBC

May:

• Artcore Old School Studios exhibition - Brighton

June:

• JOYA AiR Art Ecolgica residency in Almeria, Spain

Exciting New Program Cyanotype Workshops for Spring/Summer at Phoenix Art Space, Brighton

Colonnade House have invited artists to contribute artworks to Creativity Continues 2026, this is a fundraising exhibition & a celebration of local artists.

Each artwork submitted will be a 12″x12″ inch square, and will be sold for £30 – £100. Artists’ work will be anonymous - names and details will be revealed after works are purchased. As this is a fundraiser, when artwork is sold, the artist will receive 40% and Adur & Worthing Trust will receive 60%. 

This contributes to our annual fundraising target, ensuring we can continue to support and create opportunities for artists.

So pop along if you are in Worthing and check out the 160 pieces of artwork for sale for this worthy cause. https://colonnadehouse.co.uk/contact/

I also have some work in Puck's first exhibition celebrating local artists talent, they also serve exquisite coffee & food as well as being a fabulous record shop. Pop along from 27th March to feast your body & mind. https://www.gettopuck.co.uk/ they are located in Seven Dials Brighton.

Tide & Place at WRAP Space in partnership with Sussex Bay is an exhibition of Sussex Artist's reflecting a shift in climate consciousness, our relationship with the sea and its incredibly complex biome is changing. How do we interact, inhabit, narrate and think of the marine environment, both individually and on a collective scale? In the middle of the Anthropocene crisis, how can we reinforce our position as part of nature, rather than apart from it?

After the success of Sussex Bay Creates: Living Sea I have been working closely with WRAP and environmentally inspired artists to realise this second show. Sussex Bay is a regional collaboration working to restore our ocean while supporting thriving coastal communities and sustainable local economies. WRAP is a co-working, arts and events space committing 1% of their yearly profit to Sussex Bay.

I would like to invite you to the private view night on the 24th April 6-9. It is free to come but booking is a good idea as there is limited capacity. WRAP always put on a good night and you will be the first to see the show and to meet the artists. Enjoy some refreshments whilst enjoying a spectacular view of Brighton city & coast from the terrace.

Click Here to reserve a spot

Still waiting on a date to be confirmed but will be soon...

The 2026 Seafront Gallery exhibition is the next part in our ongoing partnership with Sussex Bay and sees artists responding to the theme of “Influence” – Influenced by our shared coastline, by the sea and the back and forth relationship that shapes the communities who inhabit this particular 100 miles of coastline. 

May Festival - Old School Studios Exhibition

I have been asked to exhibit as part of the open house exhibition at the Old School Studios as part of the Brighton Festival. It's a great space at the end of Kemp Town/bottom of Whitehawk.

Open each weekend throughout May where you can explore the vibrant studios, meet resident artists and discover a wide range of work from members of Artcore and Mutoid Waste Company alongside guest artists work, including painting, printmaking, and sculpture. They will also have installations in the grounds, hands-on workshops, a bar, and delicious food & cocktails from La Cantina. More on this nearing the time.

Im thrilled to be selected for Joya + Ecologia AiR residency in June. Located in the Parque Natural Sierra María-Los Vélez in the province of Almería, Andalusia, Spain. It is an off-grid arts residency situated in a rural, mountainous area at 1,000 meters altitude. "Climate-positive since 2006, Joya: AiR functions as a generative space for the emergence of climate culture, where artistic exploration contributes to reimagining human-nonhuman relations through the lenses of sustainability, rewilding, and deep ecological thinking".

New Workshop Dates + New Advanced Classes

Sunday 19th April - One day taster booking page

NEW! Saturday 9th May Advanced Cyanotype: Photographic Image

Saturday 30th May - One day taster booking page 

NEW! Sunday 14th June Advanced Cyanotype: Fabric & Alternative Surfaces

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Discover the art of cyanotype printing in one day

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Cyanotype printing is a painterly, low-toxic way to produce unique photographic prints using light-sensitive cyanotype fluid, light, and water.

This one-day workshop includes an introduction to the history and science of cyanotypes, along with a hands-on exploration of the materials and techniques involved. Learn how to prepare paper or fabric, expose and develop images using both objects and photographic negatives, and experiment with methods such as wet-on-wet application and layered compositions.

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Most materials and equipment will be provided including a range of materials and negatives to experiment with. Students are welcome to bring their own objects to use in the exposure process, e.g. flowers, leaves, utensils, semi-transparent materials, as well as any fabric to print onto.

At the end of the day everyone will have a series of prints to take home.

This course is suitable for all levels.

Advanced Cyanotype: Photographic Image 

Learn how to create cyanotype prints using photographic imagery.

This session focuses on achieving precision, control, and tonal richness when working from photographic imagery.

Students will:

• Learn how to translate a photographic image into a high-quality transparency negative.
• Develop crisp, controlled prints through careful exposure and processing.
• Trial different papers and chemical variations to explore tonal range and surface effects.
• Spend focused time refining a single image through contact sheets and tonal test exposures.
• Explore montage techniques using both physical negatives and digital methods in Photoshop.
• Learn advanced layering strategies, including foreground, mid-ground, and background construction, as well as multiple exposure techniques.
• Experiment with bleaching and a range of dyeing techniques to extend the visual language of the print.

Materials will be provided, but anyone who knows how to print their own negatives is welcome to bring some. Students can also bring any paper to experiment with.

Costs: £80

Times: 10.30 – 16.30

Date: Saturday 9 May

Advanced Cyanotype: Fabric & Alternative Surfaces

Explore the creative possibilities of cyanotype printing on a variety of surfaces.

This session expands cyanotype beyond paper, exploring how the process behaves across textiles, objects, and unconventional materials.

Students will:

• Work with a variety of fabrics and surfaces suitable for both functional and decorative outcomes.
• Learn processes for printing onto materials such as cotton, canvas, denim and any other natural fabrics.
• Explore applications for cushion covers, T-shirts, jeans, and create wall hangings.
• Experiment with printing onto objects including glass, stone, and wood.
• Use bleaching and dyeing techniques to alter tone, colour, and surface character.

Please do bring any items of clothing or cushion covers or articles that you want to experiment with (must be 100% natural fibres)

Costs: £80

Times: 10.30 – 16.30

Date: Sunday 14 June

For more info & booking click Here!

A lot to take in here but in the next newsletters there will be more on whats happening in the studio & detail of individual events as they come up.

Do get in touch if you have any questions about any of this, would be lovely to hear from you.

All the very best to you on this glorious day.

Nina x

https://www.ninajosephinegarstang.com/