Exhibition news!
Saturday 6th June, 2 - 4pm.
(I’ve been wanting to do this project for so long and I’m very fortunate to have found two willing collaborators)
Please come and join us at Ebor Studio for the launch of Secret Geometries: Other Worlds & Evocations.
Secret Geometries: Other Worlds & Evocations is a group show bringing together three artists/makers working across a range of media and materials. They share a compulsion for geometry; either as a source of content or as an essential element of their discipline.
Secret Geometries: Other Worlds & Evocations is a moment for conversion and reflection around the use and manipulation of geometric organisation and structures.
Secret Geometries: Other Worlds & Evocations: fantastical worlds presented as sacred art. Playing with geometry to alter perceptions of depth and space.
The exhibition will showcase three distinct approaches but is also an opportunity for each exhibitor to work with an unfamiliar medium (sound/light/space) to produce collaborative works for this particular project.
See and hear the work of @just_arrived_jack@lauragmoxongroves and @procranstonation (hello)
Please join us for the opening Saturday 6th June, 2 - 4pm, at Ebor Studio, William Street, Littleborough OL15 8JP
Also, all three artists will be making presentations about the work and the themes behind the exhibition at Ebor Studio, Friday 26th June, 7:30 til 9:30pm.
#artexhibition #manchesterevents #contemporaryart #soundart #visualarts
Something new for me. I’ve recorded music before, but I’ve never taken field recordings. I was awarded a small grant last month - half of which was to get some work framed, the other half to spend on some recording equipment and a 1-to-1 practical how-to workshop with fellow Eborite @magpahi .
I walked it to Todmorden along the canal, scoffed some cheese butties, and then Alison picked me up for a drive up to Bridestones. We knew it was going to be windy and so my first recording session was something of a baptism of fire - my ‘dead cat’ proved to be a hero, cutting out the wind distortion so I could better capture the sound of skylarks. I thoroughly enjoyed it and the more I learnt from Alison the more the ideas came.
I’ve wanted to do this for so long and I’m very excited with my future adventures in sound.
Then, in the evening I joined three other artists to give a short presentation followed by a Q&A about our efforts currently on display at the Ouroboros exhibition at Ebor Studio. A good day was had!
You’ll be able to hear my efforts at the Secret Geometries: Other Worlds & Evocations exhibition at @eborstudio from June 6th.
Thank you @magpahi !
#fieldrecording #bridestones #skylark #soundart #artist
Some photos of OUROBOROS - the current exhibition at @eborstudio , Littleborough, Rochdale. I didn’t get round to taking any photos at the opening last Saturday, but took advantage of a quiet but well-lit gallery last night.
There is work by @procranstonation (hello), @johnvbonner , @chris__leach , @angelataitartist , @esthertowler_photographer , @nat__sharp , @cat.lee23 , @maryanneroyle , @babssmithart , @helendavies_yarnartist , @rahelas_arts , and @abijblack .
The exhibition can be viewed (and heard) by appointment until 26th April.
On 22nd April 7 - 9pm we have ARTIST SNAPSHOTS - an open evening for visitors to learn a little more about the work, presented by the artists themselves. Please join us - you are all welcome! You’ll also have an opportunity to purchase a copy of the Ebor Billboard Project book which covers the years 2020 - 2025!
Maybe catch you down there.
#artexhibition #groupshow #artgallery #manchesterart #rochdaleevents
Exhibition news!
The next show at Ebor Studio is OUROBOROS and features work by Ste Cranston, Abi Black, Rob Lycett, Esther Towler, Helen Davies, Angela Tait, Babs Smith, Chris Leach, Maryanne Royle, Rahela Khan, Nat Sharp, Cat Lee, and John Bonner.
Join us for the opening from 12 til 3pm on Saturday 11th April at @eborstudio
William Street, Littleborough, OL15 8JP.
*22.04 Artist Snapshots : A talking tour of each artwork.
*After the opening event the exhibition runs until 26th April and can be viewed by appointment. Please contact @eborstudio for more details.
#manchesterart #artexhibition #openstudios #groupshow #whatsonmanchester
These have been stored in an envelope since 2017.
They are going in an exhibition in June and I’ve been awarded a grant to get them framed!
Trimming them now feels like getting close to winning a long game of chess, but I’m not relaxing until they’re on the walls.
See (and hear) this work and that of my fellow artists @lauragmoxongroves@just_arrived_jack and @paul.haywood.771 at the SECRET GEOMETRIES: OTHER WORLDS & EVOCATIONS exhibition at @eborstudio this June
#secretgeometries #artexhibition #manchesterart #collage #contemporarycollagemagazine
New work!
‘Occupations & Pleasures’, w130 x h130mm. Analogue collage. Ste Cranston 2026.
The second of the two new efforts I made for the Topophilia exhibition at @pinkmcr_
I was originally going to call it The Wizard of Whitehall, after the dude and location visible in the closeup.
Similar to the previous work, this one has a double dose of nostalgia for me, where I used the same background for a collage from 2016 (and like before, this old piece will appear in the Secret Geometries exhibition at Ebor this June).
#topophilia #collage #contemporarycollagemagazine #impossiblegeometry #pentagram
New work!
‘Cradle Days and Gradations’, w190 x h115mm. Analogue collage. Ste Cranston 2026.
The first of two efforts I made for the Topophilia exhibition at @pinkmcr_
I’ve been mostly working with my own photography for the last twelve months, but for this project I went back to using photogravure landscapes from the 1950s.
Quite pleased with this one. There’s a double dose of nostalgia here, not only are the colours drenched in the timeworn tones of of a time before mine, the collage is also loosely based on a photo I took of an image I used before I cut away sections for another collage, as I was making it in 2016. I thought the WiP was worthy as a finished piece in its own right, and I have fond memories of my time working on the bigger piece.
(Funnily enough, the final piece will be shown for the first time in the Secret Geometries exhibition this June).
#topophilia #anemoia #contemporarycollagemagazine #nostalgia #analoguecollage
Some pics from a very lovely Topophilia exhibition opening at @pinkmcr_ last night.
Thank you very much to @chelsea_swan_is_artist for inviting me to exhibit alongside work by @isobel.robey@becciboo1980 and @lucymoyesart . I had some great conversations, and then met up with some old chums for a pint or three.
I had four pieces on the wall, two of which I made especially for the exhibition, which I’ll share on here later. The exhibition is on until March 23rd, at Pink Mcr, Hilton House, Lord Street, Stockport SK1 3NA
#artexhibition #topophilia #manchesterart #manchester #stockport
Our new billboard from @procranstonation is now up 🙌🏻
A1.2’ can be seen from the pavement outside Ebor Studio and will be on display until mid-April.
Head over to Ste’s website to discover more about the process and the story behind the piece — or click the link in today’s stories.
#PublicArt #BillboardArt #Littleborough
#ContemporaryArt #artexhibition ArtInTheWild
New work.
‘A1.2’, digital collage made entirely using photography by the artist. Stephen Cranston, 2026.
My second go at transferring my analogue process to digital. Compositionally it’s a few steps back from what I was able to achieve with my hand-cut efforts last year, but I’ve been advised to find a way of working at a larger scale, and using my slot on the Ebor billboard seemed like a good excuse to experiment with Photoshop.
It still required drawing, first in pencil, and then mucking about with PS. The more I do the better able I can jazz them up with the details from one photo leaking into another etc.
I’m contributing work to the Secret Geometries: Other Worlds & Evocations exhibition at Ebor, in June this year, and this piece is very on-brand with what I’ll be showing.
The model is my good friend Lee, who was kind enough to stand around in the freezing wind while he copied the pose of John the Baptist as seen in the Isenheim Altarpiece.
It was a good project, and while I may have lost even more hair through the stress of figuring out how to make it, I thoroughly enjoyed it.
My effort on the billboard is on display and can be viewed from the pavement outside Ebor Studio, William Street, Littleborough, from now until mid-April.
More info about this project and others, can be found on my website , link in bio.
#billboardart #impossiblegeometry #collage #contemporaryartist #contemporarycollagemagazine
‘Stockghyll’, pencil on paper. Stephen Cranston 2009.
17 years old now! I gave it away later that year, which I don’t regret doing, but I do now and again wonder how it’s doing.
BTW, there is somebody standing there.
#pencildrawing #lakedistrictart #ambleside #artist #stockghyllforce
