International Artist Day

International Artist Day; 25th October.

“To create one’s own world takes courage.”

Georgia O’Keeffe

Each year, International Artist Day celebrates the world of art and the creative work that artists produce in both our physical and digital environment. Art is all-encompassing, it takes a variety of forms and explores a vast array of subjects, with inspiration found everywhere. Art can educate through narrative, reproduce the real, make visible that which is invisible and question our perception.

“There is no must in art because art is free.”
Wassily Kandinsky

International Artist Day aims to encourage all of us to reflect on the role that art plays in our lives. From illustrations in the picture books of our childhood to paintings that speak to us from the hallowed walls of our national museums. An artist’s work can transfix us and leave a lasting imprint on our minds. A personal example, in 2019 I visited Chiharu Shiota’s exhibition at BlainSouthern and echoing the work itself, was rooted to the spot by Me Somewhere Else. A heavy bronze cast of the artist’s feet stand firmly on the ground whilst above blood-red threads form an intricate woven net that spreads to the ceiling and across the room. Shiota writes ‘my bronze feet stand grounded in the centre of the room, connecting me to the earth, but my mind remains somewhere else’.[i] The work reflects on our lived experience and prompts us to consider whether consciousness exists independently from our bodies.

Image art by CHIHARU SHIOTA–塩田千春 (chiharu-shiota.com) called, Me Somewhere Else, 2018, Blain | Southern, London, UK, photo by Peter Mallet. Located from Aesthetica Magazine online.

Image: CHIHARU SHIOTA–塩田千春 (chiharu-shiota.com) Me Somewhere Else, 2018, Blain | Southern, London, UK, photo by Peter Mallet. Aesthetica magazine online. 2024

How can you celebrate International Artist Day?

Support your local artists
Find out more about Canterbury Christ Church Creatives, explore the Canterbury Makers Shop or visit an Artist’s Open House.

Get creative
Start a new craft, pick up a pencil or take a camera out for a walk.

“To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow. So do it.”

Kurt Vonnegut

Take time to learn about famous artists

The V&A National Art Library has listed a number of recommended art & design websites including Google Art Project which features art-themed games.

Visit a gallery or museum

Find a comprehensive list of current exhibitions at Calendar – New Exhibitions or on the ArtFund website. Local museums include the Beaney in Canterbury or the Horsebridge in Whitsable, further afield is Towner Eastbourne and Hastings Contemporary. For something a little different, visit Folkestone Artworks; the UK’s largest outdoor urban art exhibition.

Find out more about Canterbury Christ Church Creatives, explore the Canterbury Makers Shop or visit an Artist’s Open House.

Find out more about artists that have work on permanent display in Folkestone at the pod on the third floor of Augustine House.

Books: Art and artists can be found between 700 – 799 on the third floor in the library, in the 7 day loans and 4 week loans shelving.

Students and staff can access several specialist databases via LibrarySearch too, some of which are listed below:

a-n Artists Information Company: Online access to a-n Magazine and information for and about visual artists and their professional practice, including job opportunities and details about professional organisations.

Art Full Text: An index of art journal articles from periodicals published throughout the world.

Oxford Art Online/ Grove Art Online: Provides web access to the entire text of the Grove Dictionary of Art with quarterly additions to new material and updates to the text, plus extensive image links.

Project MUSE: Databases providing full-text access to high quality journals. Good for art and architecture, animation, graphic design, illustration and other topics.