Simon Ogden
I was a student during the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, graduating initially from Birmingham Polytechnic with a BFA in Sculpture and then four years later from Royal College of Art with a Masters in Painting.
My work draws from a long-held interest in European, English and American Modernism and Surrealism. In this I interweave my allegiance to the Arts and Crafts tradition, and the long-standing debate about the definition and role of the decorative in the fine arts. Combined together, these forces open the door to a varied dialogue which contains figuration of and symbolic references to the landscape and the body as well as the transformation of materials and the extension of functions.
As a student in London at the RCA I was studying next door to the V&A where I spent a great deal of time. The V&A collection is famous for its attention to the Arts and Crafts. The textiles department of the museum still remains one of my favourite areas of their vast and wonderful collection.
Keith Critchlowwas one of my MA supervisors during the three years I was a student there. He was also the Head of the Tapestry Design Department at the Royal College. I never had the chance to work in that area but I wish that I had.
Portfolio
