Blog: Adam Crown and Pia Bramley British Museum Drawing Project

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ActionSpace artist Adam Crown and artist Pia Bramley are undertaking a drawing project at the British Museum, funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation. The collaborative project will see the artists gather new ideas, draw in new environments and explore the work of other artists throughout time, including objects and artworks from the British Museum print collection. The two artists will spend time together at the museum exploring processes and materials, with the aim of developing and delivering a participatory workshop.

Week 1

Adam Crown

Pia Bramley

Adam Crown

Pia Bramley

Adam Crown

Pia shares more about their first week:

Myself and Adam Crown spend one day a week drawing at the British Museum. It’s a simple starting point, but with an ambitious outlook. Adam’s drawing work is sensitive and thoughtful and whilst he’s made lots of drawings in the Friday studio group Adam can expand his practice across the week, gathering ideas in his sketchbook that can be developed and explored in the studio. This project enables Adam to have more time, space and encouragement to develop his practice and for him to feel ambitious and excited about future collaborations and opportunities.

On our first day at the museum Adam was keen to get stuck straight into drawing, noticing a large stone Sphynx which he drew throughout a morning with his characteristic emphatic line. If you’ve drawn at a London museum you’ll know that bumbling crowds bump into you, loom over your shoulder to gawp at your drawing. It’s not the easiest environment to focus and feel creative, yet Adam has been completely unphased, absorbing himself in the act of looking and recording, filling pages of his new sketchbook with amphorae, mythical creatures and hieroglyphs.

We ask the guards to use the Easy Access Route (useful tip if your visiting with someone who might struggle with a crowded entrance), borrow some of the museum’s folding stools and then wander around the rooms until Adam notices something interesting.

I have spent a bit of time drawing at the museum before and now know the quieter rooms to draw in. Whilst Adam draws his chosen object I choose something in the same room and make drawings, too. Every so often we discuss what we’re looking at and the challenges of drawing and then get back to work. After lunch we both made memory drawings of objects we’d spent the morning looking at which was challenging and hilarious.

Next week we’re going to stop at the treasure trove that is Cornellison’s Art Shop and buy a few artists quality drawing pencils and admire the jars of pigment and cabinets of pastels before making our way into the Museum for another day of looking and drawing.

Week 2

Adam and Pia continued to focus on drawing objects and art from the Egyptian collection in the museum. Both artists explored making slow pencil drawings, trying to notice all the small details of each object.