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Artist Influence: Samuel J H Froggatt

I first met Samuel when I was on my foundation at Falmouth University last year. At first I could not have felt more intimidated by a person because of their technical ability and creativity. Who know that we would bond over a trip to Iceland (the food shop not the country unfortunately). Since then I have constantly been motivated by his way of working. He is someone who I have always been envious of because of his ability to combine media in a particular way. Sam's work grounds me and makes me feel calm. It does this in the same way that I use repetitive mark-making to calm down.Our work could not be any more different in the terms of how we create and process but on the foundation we connected for our love of collage.  At the time this was also motivated by the work of my other pal Sophie Eliza who has recently graduated from Falmouth University. 



From the start of the foundation Sam's dedication to his practice was clear. He is someone who works very hard to achieve what is in his eyes 'perfection'. He has a real way with composition and colour and this can be seen in the work above. The use of drawing elements which have been beautifully created make me want to push my representational drawing to a higher level. I am still very envious of the fact he found some of the best collage material at the local junk shop 'dig and delve' which has been used in these pieces. The striking use of red juxtaposes with the soft features of the face which is then distorted further by the introduction of line. 


This piece is probably one of my favourites Samuel has created because of the intricacy of the drawing and use of colour.  Sam would often joke about how he used circles in his work just for me, despite at the time him not really having a liking for circles within compositions. However I think it is the little details like that within the piece like the circle that draw the viewer in. Although his work has a lot of dramatic qualities it is the intimacy of this one that I love and it actually moves me because of the colours and overall feel of the piece. 

The next photograph document Samuel's work from his first semester at Edinburgh University where he is currently studying an MA in Fine Art and History of Art. It has been so great to see how his work has developed in such a short space of time. Although at Foundation his work was particular and precise it still had so much beauty and clarity. He sent me these photos of recent works and it has been great to see how he is now considering how space and presentation can have direct impact on how work can be taken. He is continuing to expand on the idea of how materials can convey meaning to a piece. I am also fascinated with how he is including text within his work to add another dimension to his piece. 






Still creating beautiful drawings but I really love the geometric, structured quality of this drawing. I want to get to this stage with the way I record and document the world around me. Sam will always motivate me to do that. 


Sam has a blog which he has recently started. It is worth reading, as he is someone who has a real way with words. His writing style has so much rhythm and warmth that it makes me appreciate art on another level. 


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