Etc. Artist Talk: Alvin Kofi

In this talk, recorded from a live Zoom on the 17th January 2025, I spoke to artist Alvin Kofi about is work and how it has developed over his career. This talk is the first in our Winter Oil Paint Term, where we focus on a different artist who works in oil paint each month.

• You can follow Kofi's on Instagram HERE

• Kofi will be teaching a weekend course in-person at our Brighton studio on the 15th & 16th Feb, details HERE.

About
A second-generation West Indian, based in UK, Alvin Kofi’s career has been strongly associated with the Black UK arts movement. His creative perspective is very much African-centred through which the Black body becomes his muses as he explores traditional notions of African culture and their place in the historical narrative of the Diaspora.

Kofi's paintings re-examine universal themes drawing from those ancient mythological stories that he feels still have relevance today. Exploring these themes he plays with the representation of ideas repositioning and replacing black bodies in the conversation of how we tell stories our history past and present.

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Upcoming talks

All Draw Patreon followers and supporters will receive links to all of these upcoming talks without needing to sign up - please feel free to share links to the talks as widely as you like. Thank you to our paid supporters who help us to fund the Zoom account and artist's fee for these talks.

• 31st Jan '25 / 7-8pm / Wendy Barratt (Oil paint term)

• 28th Feb '25 / 7-8pm / Laura Smith (Oil paint term)

• 28th March '25 / 7-8pm / Jemma Gunning (Planographic print term)

• 25th April '25 / 7-8pm / Brian Wagner (Planographic print term)

• 23rd May '25 / 7-8pm / Scarlett Rebecca (Planographic print term)

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Past ETC Talks

We have a whole series of 1-hour ETC talks on our YouTube Channel HERE, from our Art/Work series where we explored the working lives and career progressions of 6 very different artists to our broader ETC series of artist interviews. These talks are great if you are looking for a little inspiration, need to hear more about how other artists have navigated a career in the artist or if you want something to listen to while you draw! You can find links below - I've added a few extra notes on the themes to help you pick between them.

2024/25 ETC Artist Talks:

•  Sena Adjovi (Graphite term)

• Leggy Gordon (Graphite term)

•  Meg Buick (Graphite term)

ETC Art/Work series:

• Anita Taylor (Fine art drawing, The trinity Buoy Warf Drawing Prize)

• Peter James Field (Illustration, portrait painting, career transitions)

• Wuon-Gean Ho (Fine art printmaking, artists residencies)

• Chris Riddell (Illustration, includes live drawing!)

• Simon Martin (Director of Pallant House Gallery, curation)

• Eleanor Crook (Sculpture, studying & teaching human anatomy)

ETC Artist talks:

• Chloe Briggs (Drawing)

• Roy Eastland (Drawing)

• Amy Dury (Painting)

• Jeanette Barnes (City sketching)

• Caragh Savage  (Portrait drawing, charcoal & teaching)

• Philip Tyler (Sky Portrait Artist, painting, printmaking & teaching)

• Hattie Malcomson (Painting, printmaking, feminism in art, body taboos)

• This is Where We Meet (art collective, figure painting, exhibiting together)

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If you have suggestions of artists you'd like to here speak next year, let us know in the comments below!

All the best,

Jake