The HappeningInMCR Community Micro-Gallery is back with a fresh selection of artworks from 14 talented local artists
After carefully reviewing the submissions, the team is excited to present the 17 captivating artworks chosen from 14 emerging local artists.
The exhibition showcases a diverse range of mediums including acrylic paintings, drawings, lino prints, photography, and digital illustration. It will be open from September 16th to mid-December
Below, you can read the featured artists’ information and statements.
If you are interested in purchasing any works which are for sale, please contact the artist or happeninginmcr@gmail.com. Both HappeningInMCR and Afflecks take no commision so all proceeds go towards the artist and their practice.
Stone Thro
Imminent , 2024, Acrylic on Canvas , 40.5cm X 30.5cm, £250
Stone Thro started back in 2023, working on paintings, murals and more. Throughout his work, rocks and natural forms are used to express communication, community and identity. Why rocks? Well, similar to people, no two are the same. Finding the beauty in individualism is what Stone Thro is about.
Leeham The Wizard
Spellbook - Self-Portrait. 1st August 2024, 2024, Fine-liner and coloured with Posca Pens, 44.5cm X 32cm, Not for Sale.
Originally from Stoke-on-Trent, Leeham The Wizard has lived in Manchester for ten years. During this time, Afflecks has been a valuable source of community to Leeham, a celebration of the weird and wonderful. As a young teen, he would travel from his hometown to Afflecks and get inspired by the creativity of the building. Leeham is honoured to have the opportunity to collaborate with Afflecks: it’s a small dream come true.
“Spellbook - Self-Portrait. 1st August 2024” represents Leeham The Wizard working furiously in his sketchbook, making a mess, getting as many ideas down, working out puzzles and casting spells.
Matt Macaw (he/him)
Crows, 2023, Lino print ink on paper, 22cm X x30cm, £20
Matt Macaw is a queer printmaker and artist specialising in relief and screen printing, with a focus on a bold graphic style. Studying graphic design at Salford University and pursuing a career in UX design, Matt has since transitioned to full-time printmaking. His work embodies an organised chaos, with a deep sense of heart—a good fit for the atmosphere of Afflecks.
Marcia Bridgman (she/her)
middle-of-the-road, 2023, paint pens, fine liners, coloured pencils 23.5cm x 33.2cm Not for Sale.
Dad Hates Photos, 2024, coloured pencils on cartridge paper, 32.4cm x 44.7cm, Not for Sale.
Marcia is a 15-year-old from Manchester. Art is her escape; it’s what she looks out for all the time. She loves finding artistic potential in ordinary moments – that’s why she loves Manchester so much: wherever you go, you can find art disguised in the surroundings. Currently, oil pastels are her favourite medium, and she loves making colourful portraits exploring the themes of individuality and self-pride. Once she leaves school, Marcia plans to start taking commissions and selling her artwork, so she’s trying her best to build a platform for herself.
Der Fotoautomat (he/him)
Florian of Moth Slut, 2024, Digital Photography, 25cm X 33cm, £60 (including frame) Der Fotoautomat is a Manchester-based music photographer, often found documenting the city's grassroots alternative music scenes, the spirit of which has always had a home in Afflecks.
Beeve (they/them)
Slowly but surely, 2024, Digital Print, 21.2cm X 21.2cm , £10
Guts, 2024, Digital Print, 21.2cm X 21.2cm, £10
Beeve grew up in Manchester, with Afflecks being a place of individuality, excitement and acceptance in their teens. Beeve's work, like Afflecks’ ethos, aims to offer a safe space for those working towards finding themselves and supporting the queer alternative community of Manchester.
Frogbulous Art (she/her)
Pepe in a Hat, 2021, Print of Acrylic Painting, 33cm X 24.5cm, £12
As a lover of both traditional art and meme culture, Frogbulous Art couldn't resist the chance to blend these two worlds in a unique way. Afflecks, known for its vibrant diversity and eclectic mix of art, fashion and culture, is the perfect place to showcase her work. Her submission aims to celebrate the juxtaposition of classic artistic techniques with the playful, relatable nature of internet memes, creating pieces that resonate with both nostalgia and modern humour. Afflecks' spirit of inclusivity and creativity makes it the ideal setting to share this fusion of past and present.
Cyrus Ho (he/him)
Untitled, 2024, Indian ink and pen on paper, 18cm X 25cm £55
Cyrus Ho is a creative based in Manchester. His work consists of drawings, primarily using pen on paper. Using surrealist methods, he explores themes of memories, the imagination, experiences and the subconscious. Working with intricate details, he encourages the act to find interest in the small things and the mundane.
Sophie Macdonall (she/her)
Intermission, 2024, Photography, 44cm X 31.7cm, £30 (including frame) Sophie Macdonald is a Fine Art Photographer based in Tameside, Greater Manchester. They studied Photography at The University of Salford and achieved a Bachelor of Arts with First Class Honours in 2022. For her Photography degree show, she explored the stereotypes and social constructs of femininity. This year, she has delved back into this project: the image ‘Intermission’ plays on the idea of taking a pause from feminine ideologies created by society and to create discussion.
Afflecks is known as a safe place that welcomes diversity and individualism. The image created is a representation of rejecting social constructs to be your authentic self. Sophie has taken an experimental, surreal approach to highlight this issue. Despite there still being stereotypes of femininity, we should be embracing who we are and express ourselves freely without having to fit into a box.
Charlie Collins (she/her)
Oil in your Eyes, 2023, Gouache, 24cm X 18cm, Not for Sale
Charlie Collins is an artist, creative producer and researcher. Charlie’s practice is interdisciplinary and intersectional, exploring key issues through gentle methods. Charlie creates work that encourages viewer-subject interaction.
Charlie is based in Manchester and practices from Milestone Studios in New Mills. Charlie is a director of No Jobs in the Arts CIC and the founder of Derbyshire Zine Library.
Trashman Alchemist (he/him)
Drunken Strolls , 2024, Colour C-Type Print (1/2), 22cm X 27cm, £50
Trashman Alchemist is a multidisciplinary artist, originally from Southern California, now living and working in Manchester. Trashman's artistic practice elicits sentiments of psychedelia, self-reflection and exploration of the duality between self-deprecation and addiction. Creating artwork from otherwise obsolete, discarded and found materials, Trashman encourages the viewer to consider how the artwork came into existence and why the objects were so readily disposed of. Trashman's artwork and practice fit within the ethos of Afflecks by using alternative processes and experimentation at its core.
Valena Yao
Iced soya matcha, 2024, Acrylic on canvas, 25cm X 29cm, Not for Sale Breakfast for aliens, 2024, Acrylic on canvas, 25cm X 29cm, Not for Sale
As a newly settled Chinese artist in Manchester, Valena is inspired by the city's rich cultural background. Her work primarily focuses on painting and digital media art, experimenting with integrating film photography and painting.
BotanicsbyGeorge (he/him)
Mackerel, 2023, Lino Print on Paper, 21cm X 14.8cm, £5
George is a Manchester-based, queer artist working with ethically sourced insects, creating original digital and lino prints. As Afflecks allows independent artists to get their work out there and sell to a diverse audience, George feels that his art and style would fit Afflecks' demographic and ethos well.
Caz Latham (she/her)
@cazlathamart | https://linktr.ee/cazlathamart
Smithy Lane, 2020, Fine point pen, sharpie, gel pens and watercolour on mixed media paper, 34cm x 25cm, £100 (including frame)
Caz Latham is an artist and illustrator based in Stockport. She loves to capture the colour, diversity and character of everyday life in the North West via urban landscapes, portraits and still life. Caz and her work deeply resonate with the ethos of Afflecks’, as she’s inspired by the sometimes-unrecognised beauty in the alternative, the seemingly neglected, decayed or forgotten. She strives to capture the world’s variety through an independent lens, always asking questions and viewing everything from a different angle. She works in several mediums: primarily acrylic for painted works, and fine point and felt tip pens for drawings. She is largely self-taught with no formal training. Caz’s paintings have been exhibited several times across the North, have been seen (briefly!) on TV and will feature in an upcoming book of Manchester art. Her illustration work was commissioned for use in a global advertising campaign for Amazon Music.
The HappeningInMCR Team are:
Jasmine, Admin and Coordinator, @sminspiring_art
Nahsa, Co-Curator, @nashacashart
Tom, Co-Curator and Gallery Technician, @tomkinlochart
Zhen, Graphic Designer, @shirotenzhen
Ella, Contributing Editor and Proofreader, @ellawarennn
