Studios 11 - 20
Studio 11 John Lockwood (A hat and a beard)
"John is the Managing Director and founder of A4 Studios CIC and has worked for the last 7 years creating the company to bring together the community of artists and makers you now see before you. John studied art in Swansea, completing a foundation to art course in 1995, he is a worldwide multi award winning inventor and in a previous life was a very successful entrepreneur, he turned back to art 10 years ago after experiencing some major life traumas and has continued to grow since.
As a found artists, John’s strength lies in taking the unwanted and discarded objects of everyday life and transforming them into original and unique artworks, which he has sold throughout the world. John works in any medium from paint to steel and using his skills as a builder, welder, mechanic, engineer and electrical technician he creates and transform everything from small sculptures to entire commercial buildings and even building custom motorcycles.
John lives his life by 2 rules, “If you don’t ask you don’t get” and “No regrets”, all of life’s journeys are a lesson and the negatives and mistakes are simply part of the path that leads you to who you are."
Studio 12 Joanne Coulthard
"Jo studied art at Trafford college from 2001 to 2012, completing a range of various art courses and disciplines, Jo mainly works with acrylics and water colours, experimenting with a wide range of subject matters, from landscapes to wildlife and still life and enjoys nothing more than to travel around with her sketch book, formulating compositions and ideas. Jo Experiments with colour, perspective, sometime creating with mixed medias to add depth and originality to her work. Jo is a keen photographer, and this shows in the work submitted to this exhibition.
Jo has exhibited at Didsbury Parsonage Trust and many other local exhibitions. Jo is a member of the Altrincham Arts Society and has been a resident of A4 Studios on and off for 7 years."
Studio 13 Chris Messer
"Chris is our longest serving resident artist and produces intricate fan-based cosplay outfits and accessories primarily using foam. Chris’s studio practice has allowed him to expand the range of equipment and materials he works with to create movie quality props and outfits.
Chris has also experimented in producing other fan-based item and props to complement the broaden the range of pieces he can achieve."
Studio 14 Poppy Huxley
"Poppy is a young artist in full time education who loves to experiment with colour and technique using a wide variety of mediums. She often recycles canvases and rather than overpainting the original image in white to produce new work, she likes to experiment in totally transforming the existing image to create a whole new unique and original work.
Whether a commercial print or painting by another artist, Poppys’ vision is to create a new idea to enhance the artistic process, realise a new perspective and imagery which allows the viewer their own unique perspective of “What is art?”. She also likes to challenge norms and make the viewer question “What is the value of art in today’s society?”."
Studio 14 Robina (Robbie) Lockwood
"Robbie is the resident liaison director for A4 Studios CIC, she is also the head Chef and the driving force behind ‘The Waiting Room Café’. Which she has taken from a concept to a very lively and unique space, with amazing home cooked delights all crafted by her own fair hands.
She works incredibly hard to ensure all the resident artists and her customers at the café, experience the love that she pours into her food and The Waiting Room. In the little spare time she gets, Robbie loves to create, making original and unique greetings cards and gifts, but she also has a passion for painting.
Experimenting with different mediums and techniques, Robbie has enveloped a wide and varied range of subject matter, from still life to animals and landscapes, Robbie enjoys creating, whatever the subject matter. Not classically trained, Robbie is a newcomer to the art scene and is emerging into a very talented artist."
Studio 16 Jennifer Adgey & Alice Dewar
"Jen and Alice first worked together at The Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester in 2016. It was here with Jen as the in-house cutter and Alice as her freelance assistant that they struck up a friendship. As with many in the arts, covid had a devastating impact on their work and the pair saw an opportunity to tackle bigger projects together in a joint space whilst still having the freedom to work on film sets and arena tours.
They moved into studio 18 in 2023 and have sized up their space this summer to studio 16, to accommodate for the growing demand their work. Together they have made elf costumes for Lapland UK, costumes for ‘SIX’ the Musical and individually they have worked on A-list concert tours and major TV dramas."
Studio 18 Jemma Calvert
"Jemma Calvert is a fine artist originally from Morecambe, Lancashire. She is now based in Salford since completing a BA(Hons) Fine Art degree. Now working as a Teacher of Art, Photography and Textiles, Jemma paints in her spare time. With a fascination for portraiture and the figure, she produces large scale paintings exploring this, with her largest piece spanning fifteen meters."
Studio 19 Debbie Tomkies
"Debbie is a textile designer based at A4 studios where she writes, designs & runs dyeing, knitting, crochet & felting workshops. Debbie teaches dyeing and printing with synthetic and natural dyes, including indigo and woad vat dyeing. She runs a wide range of knitting, crochet and felting workshops for students at all levels.
Debbie is the author of 5 internationally published books; ‘Hand-Dyed Yarn Craft Projects’, ‘Complete Knitting Skills’, ‘250 Knitting Stitches’, ‘Knitting. Learn it Love it’ and ‘How to Knit’. Debbie’s 6th book, ‘Cable Knitting Stitch Dictionary’ will be published this autumn.
As the technical expert for Knit Now magazine, Debbie has published over 120 articles and designs.
Debbie is a director of Making Futures CIC, a social enterprise that aims to build confidence, wellbeing and self-esteem through creative activity. Making Futures works with community groups, schools, colleges and third sector organisations to deliver a wide range of workshops, classes, City & Guilds, Arts Award and Artsmark. When she’s not dyeing, designing, knitting or crocheting, you’ll find her in the garden, tending her dyeplants, enjoying a nice craft beer or hugging a big mug of builders’ tea. And if you’re out and about, she can often be found in the mosh pit at a gig or enjoying some indie folk music!"