Clare Blatchford-Hanna
Chichester, West Sussex
My work considers memory as part real and part imagined, we use this to navigate and gain a sense of place and understanding of our enviroment
MessageClare Blatchford-Hanna is a multidisciplinary artist based in West Sussex. Her work explores transformation, memory and materiality through a research-led, intuitive practice. Often working with traditional and repurposed materials, she investigates the tension between permanence and impermanence, contrasts, fragility and strength.
With a background in economics and a successful earlier career, Clare brings a distinctive conceptual rigour to her artistic inquiry. Her practice spans painting, site-responsive installations and mixed-media works that reflect on contemporary image culture, the passing of time, and the way we inhabit and record space.
Clare studied at West Dean College of Arts and Conservation, completing both the Foundation Diploma in Art and Design and the Graduate Diploma in Fine Art. She has exhibited in West Sussex and has sold work to private collectors.
Whether through painting, drawing and sculptural interventions, Clare invites the viewer to slow down and consider the details of the everyday and the complex, poetic relationships we form with materials, real and imagined images and memory.
Statement
Clare Blatchford-Hanna's practice explores the contrasts and connections between reality and imagination, drawing on socio-economic culture and the metaphors for life found in everyday environments. Working across drawing, painting, printing and sculpture in a reciprocal, multimedia manner, she delves into themes of transformation, duality, and the unseen narratives embedded in both natural and constructed worlds.
Current projects investigate the juxtaposition of order and chaos within a building site, the harmony and conflict of natural geometry in perspective, and the shifting perception of waste as material or metaphor. These works highlight the oppositions and parallels that define human experience, emphasising micro-discoveries that reveal deeper socio-cultural dynamics.
Through extensive research and experimentation, her process evolves organically, shaped by the materiality of each medium. Her work is characterised by vibrant contrasts of marks, forms, and colors, that speak to the tension and balance inherent in life. Linear expressions, dynamic perspectives, and energetic compositions reflect her responsive and intuitive approach.
The artist's practice embodies the interplay of opposites, creating artworks that resonate with their own energy and character. Each piece becomes a metaphorical exploration, challenging perceptions and inviting viewers to navigate the layered realities of the contemporary world.
All works are subject to copyright of Clare Blatchford-Hanna