Katara's Residency Programme with British Artist Starts Today

Doha, February 4 (QNA) - The Katara Education Department's residency progamme, led by British artist Richard Deacon, opens Monday at 6pm at Katara Art Studios. This programme is part of the Katara Galleries current 'Encounter' exhibition, co-curated with UK's Royal Academy (RA). Deacon, a RA artist and a Commander of the British Empire (CBE, 1999), will be orienting and guiding Qatari artists keen on improving their artistic practice and skills from today up to February 9, a Katara bulletin said. "In the spirit of knowledge sharing and exchange between Katara and the Royal Academy, and between Qatar and the UK, we start our Richard Deacon Residency programme with a public talk where the artist will present himself to the Qatari audience and give us an overview of his work and career to date," Katara said. The programme starts today with Artist Talk at 6pm, at Katara Building 15, followed by a Richard Deacon in Conversation Session with one of the 'Encounter' exhibition Curators, Sa'id Costa and Qatari artists Faraj Daham and Mubarak Al Malik, both with artwork featured in the exhibition. There will a question and answer session for the audience. Born in Bangor, Wales and a Plymouth, Somerset College of Art and Royal College of Art alumni, Deacon's work is abstract, but often alludes to anatomical functions. His works are often constructed from a huge variety of different materials, from wood and steel to cloth and plastic, and he calls himself a 'fabricator' rather than a 'sculptor'. His early pieces are typically made up of sleek curved forms, with later works sometimes more bulky. (QNA)