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On BBC Radio 4, artist Susan Aldworth presented a radio programme ‘A Room for a View: The Artist’s Studio’. She visited the studio of artist Tony Bevan to find out how he uses the space to create his art, heard from Jonathan Harvey, executive director of legendary studio co-operative ACME, who are currently building new studios for the future, and talked with Hossein Amirsadeghi who has just visited over 100 British artists in their studios, resulting in an encyclopaedic photographic record, ‘Sanctuary’ – all exploring the idea of what makes a great studio.

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Whilst in the Guardian travel section, Paul Cézanne's studio in Aix-en-Provence was this week's chosen destination. It is one of the most remarkable studios in the world preserved exactly as he left it, with his hat still sitting on its peg and a glass of wine on the table. Check out this great little Guardian video of the visit. 

The artist’s studio is a fascinating subject so watch this space for our exploration of artrepublic artist’s studios…

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The animation follows the journey of a piece of paper which was crumpled up and thrown away. As this paper falls, it becomes a small part of the many other neglected ideas and the debris piles up. This story follows the paper and the abandoned idea.

Creating the animation involved also creating the largest mural in the UK to be painted by an individual artist using a 5 story building, a shipping container and a double decker bus as a canvas.  In the freezing weather we had this march Jo Peel and her dedicated team spent three weeks battling adverse conditions to paint and record the animation frame by frame to create the 3 minute film.

Images © Owen Richards

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Broken Crow is a stencil-based artistic collaboration between Mike Fitzsimmons and John Grider. The two artists began creating and showing art together in 2003. Since then, Broken Crow has attained global recognition for their pioneering use of large-scale stencils in the increasingly established arena of street art. Their collaborative mission is to create the largest stencils possible.

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Through painting, Broken Crow seeks to reintroduce wild animals back into the urban habitats that we humans live in, writing their own mythology as they go. Their art features various animals and anthropomorphic humanoids in crazy colours and, of course, extraordinarily large size. To date, they have painted 92 murals around the world. A version of the lamb seen in the Mini commercial has been re-created in print as “Untitled” available in the Brighton gallery now. 

Click here to watch the new Mini Paceman commercial featuring Broken Crow

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Thursday to Sunday all through May you can see all five artists work on show in various locations around Brighton. Lead artist Mariele Neudecker was on radio 4’s start the week this week taking about her work in the Regency Town House. There is also work by regional artists Andrew Kötting with Anonymous Bosch, David Wightman, Emma Critchley and artist collaborators Dylan Shipton & Ben Fitton. It’s a great series of works and well worth checking out during the Brighton Festival.

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The diverse shortlist includes a decorative depiction of Brighton bandstand by Bella Comaschi, an Obama twist on a classic Marvel Comic by Scott Salvage, an enchanting portrait of a rabbit by Emily Reader, an enigmatic landscape with swans by Susan Keshet, a powerful figurative piece by Miguel Sopena and an intriguing mix media work by Jade Hylton. 

The winning artist will receive an artrepublic voucher worth £250, a cash prize of £250, free registration to the 2014 Brighton Fringe and the chance to design the cover art for ‘Viva Brighton’ magazine. The winner is determined by public vote so check out the shortlisted work in our facebook album below and don’t forget to cast your vote by ‘liking’ your favourite:

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The original works can be seen at the artrepublic visual arts fair on the 1st of June in Brighton Unitarian Church. 

Dave White, ‘Butterfly’ art print:  “These prints are insanely good. The quality is amazing, it looks like original. This was taken from a watercolour from a show called Natural Selection that we did last summer… It’s signed in pencil and numbered in pencil out of 50. It’s on a really nice heavy art stock paper so looks and has the feel of the original watercolour.”

Magnus Gjoen, ‘Roses are Dead’ lenticular on acrylic: “This work is by London born Norwegian artist Magnus Gjoen… His background is in print design; he worked in the fashion industry with Vivienne Westwood so his work has a very macabre element to it. This lenticular, which is his first foray into 3D work, is gearing up to what will be his first original solo exhibition which is forthcoming this May.”

Justine Smith, ‘Time is Money’ art print: “Justine Smith is an interesting artist because when studying at art she left and went to work in the currency market in the city for a number of years before returning back to her art. That’s primarily the focus for a lot of her work, it’s all currency based. This print is taken from an original using the real currency. This print is particularly nice because of the metallic backing.”

To find out more about any of these pieces either drop in to our Soho gallery or contact them on +44 (020) 7240 7909 email soho@artrepublic.com

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The print is made up of really colourful letters that are the lyrics to Pink Floyd’s track “Brain Damage” from the Dark Side of the Moon album that was released 40 years ago. In the centre is a perfect black circle of diamond dust to draw you in to this appropriately psychedelic print.

We managed to get a few snaps of the camera-shy artist at work as he carefully applied the glue and the black glitter to the circle in the centre of each print before signing and numbering each one. 

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Following a five-day workshop led by Graffiti Life, 60 young people from Southwark and Lambeth aged between 16 and 25, who are not in work, education or training, created a large-scale outdoor mural. The graffiti artwork is due to be unveiled on 2 May at the Bankside Open Spaces Trust.

“London is famous throughout the world for being a bustling hub for the arts, and it’s an immensely important part of our economy,” said Boris Johnson, Mayor of London. “If we are to preserve that heritage, Londoners must have the opportunity to participate and engage in the exciting art and cultural opportunities that our city has to offer.”

We certainly hope the bankers and Boris keep up this enthusiasm for urban art!

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This year the eccentric double-decker returns to Brighton as part of the city’s Fringe Festival celebrations, which artrepublic is very proud to be sponsoring again. It can be flagged down in New Road in the centre of Brighton on Saturday 4th May from 1pm - 4pm. It’s a free, non ticketed event so jump on the bus and let the godfather of British Pop art take you on a magical mystery tour!

Can't wait? Check out this great Guardian video of Peter Blake giving a tour of pop cultural landmarks around London on his marvellous Art Bus…

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Russell Young is familiar with a celeb or two, having photographed the likes of Morrisey, Bjork, REM, Diana Ross and Paul Newman. Now an internationally acclaimed Pop artist, he has transformed classic mug shots into larger than life images documenting history and popular culture. Young has said that his idea to create “anti-celebrity” portraits was probably a reaction to his former career.

Artist Russell Marshall has similarly appropriated the criminal snap shot. Having worked in the tabloid newspaper industry for over 20 years, his mug shot masterpieces reflect his interest in the public’s obsession with celebrity. 

Both Young and Marshall have created art works featuring the identification photos of Jane Fonda, Al Pacino and Elvis, besides numerous other popular culture figures. We’ll keep our eyes peeled for a Reese Witherspoon edition!

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Emin describes Vermeer as “one of the first feminists”, because of the unusual way he depicted women. “He showed that women had singular thoughts that were away from their husbands.”

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‘Cultural Exchange’ is Radio 4’s major new arts project. It will see 75 leading creative figures choose a favourite cultural work to share with listeners – from paintings, writing, films, music and poetry, to inspiring buildings. The other people taking part include PD James, Nigel Kennedy, Meera Syal, Jeanette Winterson, Paul Weller and film director Bernardo Bertolucci. 

Emin’s 17th Century Dutch masterpiece, a sexually forthright movie from the 70s, a pioneering science-fiction novel and a ground-breaking ballet from Sweden are among the artworks chosen by the diverse range of high-profile figures. We’re looking forward to a summer of cultural conversation!

It shows artrepublic favourite Sir Peter Blake hard at work creating his cutting edge prints and reveals some of the technology behind his latest work. It's fascinating hearing Blake describe his print making journey and how he’s involved in “pushing the frontiers” with embossing, diamond dusting and collage.

Don’t miss shots of the studio creating a Dan Baldwin print too!

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The art world’s response to the political leader demonstrates how influential and divisive she was; from Pure Evil’s terrifying street art piece depicting Thatcher grinning, arms out stretched above the words ‘Not You Again’, to conservative conceptualists Gilbert and George’s outspoken support, “We admire Margaret Thatcher greatly. She did a lot for art. Socialism wants everyone to be equal. We want to be different.”

She won few friends in the art world because of her severe cuts to arts funding, but in an article yesterday The Art Newspaper argued “Margaret Thatcher made UK museums into world leaders,” because her reforms to public funding gave museums the freedom to manage their own financial affairs. The BBC’s arts editor Will Gompertz has concluded “She certainly wasn’t a champion of the arts but, whether she meant to or not, she probably did contribute more than she is credited for.”

No doubt the post-war politician will continue to provoke artistic output as artists respond to her legacy.

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The year before, to mark his 90th birthday the Louvre Museum in Paris staged a Picasso retrospective. It was the first time the work of a living artist had been exhibited.

Born in Spain in 1881, Picasso exhibited his first paintings in Barcelona at the age of 12. During his life time he is said to have created approximately 20,000 paintings, sculptures and drawings. Arguably his best known painting was ‘Guernica’, inspired by his outrage at the destruction of a small Basque town during the Spanish civil war. 

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Pasha P183 was known for leaving artistic installations and politically fuelled murals across Moscow. Like Banksy, and late US artist Keith Haring, Pasha P183 began painting graffiti in the dead of night, and was detained numerous times by Moscow police. Several of his street works made an apparent reference to a recent wave of massive street protests in Moscow against President Vladimir Putin. One showed a protestor lighting a glare and another riot police on a subway station’s doors.

Little was known about the street artist, including his identity, although he did film himself at work and gave interviews explaining his ‘anarchist’ art. While wearing a black balaclava he told Russia Today, “Put simply, I want to teach people in this country to tell lies from the truth and to tell bad from good. This is what our people still cannot do.”

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The word ‘mandala’ comes from the classical Indian language of Sanskrit and loosely translated means ‘circle’. It has become a generic term for any geometrical pattern that represents the cosmos metaphysically, presenting a plan of the universe from an enlightened perspective. The mandala pattern is used in many spiritual traditions, such as Hinduism and Buddhism, as a spiritual teaching tool, for establishing a sacred space, and as an aid to meditation. 

In ancient Tibet, as part of a spiritual practice, monks created intricate mandalas with coloured sand made of crushed semiprecious stones. They are still commonly used by tantric Buddhists today. Now mandalas are being appropriated by modern artists, such as Mandalaman, to create colourful contemporary art pieces like ‘Brighton Pier’ and ‘Brighton Pavilion’. Psychiatrist Carl Jung said that a mandala symbolizes “a safe refuge of inner reconciliation and wholeness,” perfect for artistic contemplation!

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A series of roadshows will be held in Dublin, Cardiff, Glasgow and London over the summer. Artists aged 16 and over, amateur or professional, have been invited to apply. In the heats competitors will be challenged to portray one of three sitters, at least one of whom will be a public figure. It will be judged by portrait artist Tai-Shan Schierenberg and experts from the Royal Academy of Arts and The Fine Art Society. The winner will land a £10,000 commission to paint Booker Prize winning author Hilary Mantel and all of the finalists in the competition will be displayed at the National Portrait Gallery.

James Hunt, channel director of Sky Arts, said of the show: “It seeks to discover and engage with established and undiscovered talent, both on and off screen, and aims to inspire artists of all capabilities across the UK and Ireland.” The six part series will be screened from November. 

Charming Baker, ‘Being Yourself is Easier When You’re Not Being Someone Else’ art print: “Classic Charming title, signed limited edition of 145, signed in pencil, numbered in pencil, it’s got the Charming stamp. It features sketches of some mice which were done for a sculpture at the Victoria & Albert museum last summer with Paul Smith, featuring a tiny mouse holding up a big racing bike…”

Sir Peter Blake, ‘James Dean at the Albert Hall’ art lenticular print: “This is his latest release. It’s a 3D lenticular, his first forary into 3D work… It was produced especially to be a lenticular which makes all the difference. The composition suits being a lenticular, Peter Blake designed it like that.”

Stanley Donwood, ‘Apocalypse 101’ art print: “Apocalypse LA, you’ve got all the landmarks and, really nice, the classic Donwood black and white… Best thing about this? Probably the fact that Donwood and Radiohead have separate collector bases so there’s lots of interest in this. It’s very collectible.”

To find out more about any of these pieces either drop in to our Soho gallery or contact them on +44 (020) 7240 7909 email soho@artrepublic.com.

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The ‘Assumption of the Virgin’ is an Italian Renaissance masterpiece by Titian, executed in 1516-1518. The large oil painting was Titian’s first major commission in Venice and is the largest altarpiece in the city. Titian’s painting commemorates the story of the Virgin Mary’s assumption into heaven. It is based on apocryphal legends, which told how the body and soul of Jesus’ mother were taken up to heaven by angels, three days after her death. 

In his latest release, Magnus molds a religious painting of the assumption onto a grenade, a stark and uncompromising image of warfare. In classic Magnus style, the piece handsomely and succinctly represents the beauty and destruction created in the name of religion. The giclee print is from a limited edition of 200 and printed on Enhanced Matt 189 gsm fine art paper.

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It’s not Swinton’s first contemporary art performance. The live sleeping work, which is a collaboration with artist and friend Cornelia Parker, debuted at the Serpentine Gallery in London in 1995 and was repeated at the Museo Baracco in Rome a year later. 

Titled ‘The Maybe’, the piece consists of Tilda Swinton remaining in a glass box for some six-and-a-half hours. She wore the same combination of light blue shirt and jeans as she did 18 years ago. The only notable difference was the addition of a pair of glasses on the mattress beside her. The performance will be an occasional feature at MoMA in the coming weeks. 

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The Vladimir Tretchikoff painting reached nearly double its estimated price in a sale at Bonhams auction house. Tretchikoff was a Russian émigré who settled in South Africa and went on to become one of the wealthiest artists in the world. Giles Peppiatt, director of South African art at Bonhams, said: “This was an exceptional price for a work of art which really does merit the word ‘iconic’. And it’s very happy news to hear that it is going home.”

It has been reported that that blue-hued beauty was bought by British diamond jewellery magnate Laurence Graff, who owns the Delaire Gaff estate near Stellenbosch, in South Africa, where the painting will join the rest of his art collection on display.

Prints of the Chinese Girl were available from Woolworths in the 1950s but can now be bought at artrepublic!

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Amanda Marie is known for drawing upon illustrations and characters reminiscent of mid 20th century children’s books. With her well-groomed boys and girls “she plays on the sameness and ubiquity of this instantly recognizable representation of wholesome American innocence.” 

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In this latest work her brigade of blonde school girls come face to face with a delicate flock of birds. The contrast of these chaste and playful motifs with the gritty New York wall is intriguing and surreal. We love how Amanda Marie is subverting street art stereotypes.   

It’s amazing to the see the image emerge from the page as he uses a photo of a forest scene as inspiration, the female figure and the natural flora merge to become one.

If you like what you see then take a look at the gorgeous new prints we have in the Brighton gallery “Bauhinia” and “Unity”.

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We are expecting the art world to go Charming Baker crazy in the next few weeks as he wows us with his newest work including paintings, sculptures, installations and limited edition prints... three of which we have available online now! ... the delicate “Bird III”, third in a series of very popular bird prints, the charming “Let’s Not Make Life More Difficult Than It Already Is” featuring a super cute king charles spaniel, and the beautiful but unnerving  upside-down aeroplane in “Try Not To Always Think the Worst”.

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His last shows in London and New York sold out before opening, with prestigious buyers including Damien Hirst, Frank Cohen and Alberto Mugrabi. He has been featured on BBC London News, in the Daily Telegraph, Evening Standard and Elle and GQ magazines, and now recently signed to a music management company; Charming Baker is gaining profile day by day and is tipped to go far.

The prints are available to buy online now but will not be ready to send out until after the show in April.  Please call the Brighton gallery if you are interested in any of these prints or for further information on +44 (0)1273 724829

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A panoramic image of their college apartment was the first work that Kozy and Dan ever collaborated on, back in 2001. They have been, on and off, creating them ever since, expanding from their apartment, to the city around them and the wider world, as their careers progressed. Pulling out their collection, Dan explained how “Each stirs in us memories – they are bookmarks in our life together as a couple and as collaborating artists, and documents (for us at least) the changes in attitudes and hopes and our world view.”

‘Bathers Friday in the CBD – Sydney’ depicts Kozyndan’s imaginings of Sydney submerged in water with the locals taking advantage of the rising ocean levels to have a refreshing lunch time swim. It reflects the couple’s obsession with the ocean, “if only kozy and I had gills and could stay underwater forever!” ‘A Visit by the Visionaries to Victoria – Melbourne’ is a portrait of Melbourne taken over by psychedelic alien visionaries, and features a giant bunny. We love Kozyndan ♥

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Stik, who was homeless and struggling to make ends meet on the streets of London in 2011, told the BBC “I wanted to put the art in the hands of the homeless people… turn the art world on its head.” One of the capital’s most influential street artists, Stik once faced death when living rough but turned his life around by becoming a cult figure in the art world. His distinctive stick figures now sell for thousands and hang in the homes of Sir Elton John, Bono, Brian May, Tinie Tempah, and the Duke of Kent.

“This is street art and it makes sense that people who have dealership are on the streets” Stik explained. He hopes that the project will encourage people to interact with the homeless people and empower the Big Issue Vendors. Stephen Robertson, chief executive of the Big Issue Foundation, said it was “a terrifically generous act” and “a powerful statement from an artist.” 

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The striking work depicts Copyright’s take on the Queen of Hearts playing card, complete with his trademark roses and monochrome beauty. It is an inventive street art interpretation of the familiar English playing card, which legend states is a representation of Elizabeth of York, queen consort of Henry VI. Like a playing card, there is no top or bottom to this print. It is signed and numbered at both ends so can be hung either way up.

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‘Queen of Broken Hearts’ seems to explore the powerful, sometimes destructive force of a beautiful matriarch. It may refer to the Queen of Hearts, the foul-tempered monarch in Lewis Carroll’s masterpiece ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’, who settles difficulties with a quick death sentence, “Off with her head!” The work is the latest piece in Copyright’s ongoing examination of female roles, such as ‘Mother’ and ‘American Princess III’. 

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While his popularity continues to soar Mr Brainwash is becoming a more and more collectible artist. Not one to shy away from controversy, he was jettisoned into the public eye about 2 years ago following the Banksy film “Exit Through The Gift Shop”,  and since then has never looked back. 

If you are interested in this print or any other works by Mr Brainwash then please call the Brighton Gallery on +44 (0)1273 724829

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The complete set of 10 screenprints in Warhol's ‘Endangered Species’ series will go under the hammer at Sotheby’s in London later this month and are estimated to reach between £250,000 and £350,000. The series, produced in 1983, was born from Warhol’s increasing concerns over ecology. Séverine Nackers, Sotheby’s head of prints in Europe, told the Independent: “I think he was making a statement by representing these animals in the same way as Monroe, the Queen, and Muhammad Ali. He wanted to highlight the issue of them disappearing.”

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The plight of endangered species continues to be highlighted today by pop artist Dave White. His incredibly successful ‘Natural Selection’ collection features equally colourful and powerful pieces depicting rare and endangered wildlife such as the Amazonian Parrot, Tiger and Chameleon. 

Not only do these great works beautifully record a vanishing world but they also raise awareness of our responsibility to preserve the natural environment, our constant source of inspiration. 

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Carne is interested in how “we surround ourselves with floral pattern in print on clothes, textiles and tattoos, without realising that the connection we long for is actually much closer than we think.” 

Check out this fascinating video of Carne sketching; his organic shapes and flowing lines are hypnotic…