Artwork by Caitlin O' DOHERTY

Caitlin O' Doherty is a second year Fine Art with Contemporary Cultural Theory student at the University of Leeds who found creative ways to reuse scrap materials on Project Matters Website and the on-site transition trolley. Below Caitlin gives insights into her practice and her experience with Project Matter.

'A lot of my work is inspired by the concept of synesthesia and translating different sensations or feelings into different colours, shapes, words or symbols. I’ve started steering away from using sketches or preparatory works and not drawing directly from images or environments; instead, finding my source material within the process as it comes more naturally. I draw most of my inspiration from personal experiences, the world around me and the people in it and from exploring my almost unconscious imagination to translate my state of being and feelings in the moment of painting. I want to create a space for the viewer to step in to, sit with and feel. The notes app on my phone is filled with thoughts, realisations, poems and feelings so when I’m creating a piece I read through those reflections and am immediately inspired. I think I’ve always been interested in these themes but never really explored it as a form of art, instead it was just how I went about life and viewed the world. Reflecting on my own experiences through art has allowed me to fully translate my thoughts in a way that I couldn’t do before with just words. It doesn’t bother me that maybe only I will fully be able to understand exactly how my pieces are meant to be seen as I think it’s beautiful that different people will see different things, and feel differently towards each piece, maybe reminding them of their own experiences.

I found these 2 pieces of wood through Project Matter’s website one day before I went home for the Christmas holidays. I commented under the post saying I was interested and went to collect them within the next hour! The whole process was so easy. They used to be parts of a box displayed in the entrance of the fine art building but have now been repurposed.

I loved working on repurposed wood and will continue to do so in my future work. It’s something I never would have tried if I wasn’t able to find these pieces for free.

I also found a roll of paper and cool long paint brush from Project Matter’s transition trolley in Red Studio which I then used to create a spiral piece. I wouldn’t have been able to achieve this spiral effect if it wasn’t for the fun paint brush that I found!

Finally, I also found a giant roll of white fabric material in the same transition trolley which I then painted on and used as a curtain for part of my installation piece where I was developing the sensation of stepping into the space that the painting creates and translating abstract thoughts into reality through a live experience with sound.

Reusing materials is something that’s always been so important to me for many reasons. I hate waste and believe that anything has the potential to be used or turned into some sort of art. Especially as a student where a lot of the time, buying materials may not be a very accessible option to many of us because of money reasons. Being able to repurpose materials for free is an amazing opportunity that we should all take advantage of. The concept of using materials that I have found or that have turned up also fits in quite well with my practice as I don’t try to hard force myself to create something that’s not there or seek out specific materials, instead I go with the flow and see what ends up coming my way as the process is art within itself.

Reusing materials helps to reduce waste production and conserve resources. It expands your imagination by introducing you to new materials that you may not have thought of using before and it saves money that would normally be spent on new items, packaging and transportation.

As for the future direction of my practice, I think I will continue with painting but I’m also exploring video creation and installation art.

Project matter is an amazing community that is all about sharing, connecting and responsibility and I’m very excited to see what other materials will end up being turned into art'