CHARLOTTE

BISZEWSKI
Stemming from a foundation in print and illustration, my practice interweaves narrative
through multiple mediums. Playing with the industrial heritage of printmaking and
combining the handmade with contemporary technology. I have a particular interest in
the tools which printmakers use, adapt and appropriate, creating my own presses and
exposure units using their inherent limitations I investigate narrative, characters and
untold stories, seeking out the overlooked experiences. I am inspired by the potential of
public art and community participation, seeking settings outside traditional gallery.
Spike Print Studio - 40 Years
2016
Letterpress and Lasercut
35cm x 100cm
IN TYPE AND CYAN
2018
Residency
The Estonian Print and Paper Museum

An experimental exhibition investigating how stories

are told. During a two month residency at the Tartu
Print museum I explored collaborative storytelling
and visual art. Inspired by methods employed during
censorship I invited participants around Tartu to
participate through typing anonymous questions and
answers on typewriters and used these texts to
inspire a series of photographic work and an
interactive installation piece.

Bringing ancient techniques in carbon printing and

cyanotype, I was interested in how contemporary
tools alongside old processes can embed stories
within images.
In Type and Cyan
2018
An exhibition of
Cyanotype and Letterpress
Artist Book
Cyanotype, Sepia and Letterpress
12.5cm x 32cm
RODZINA
2017
RODZINA
2017
Digital Residency
Various Locations in Poland
Travelling through Poland, accompanied
by a homemade suitcase - exposure unit, I
collected the stories of the migration and
displacement of my family.
Using pre-silver forms of photography and
analogue tape recording, I wanted to
explore the ways in which a story can be
explored through both paper and digital
formats and how this affects the concept.
This took the form of both an online scroll
and traditional artist book.
Further information can be found here:
www.digitalartistresidency.org/charlottebis
zewski
WE CAN MAKE
2017

Artist Residency
Knowle West Media Centre, Bristol
For seven months I became resident within Knowle, a
deprived area of Bristol. During this time I worked with
residents, creating large Cyanotype prints out of objects
from their homes. I built an exposure unit on wheels
which I took to residents and created work out on the
street as a form of creative engagement.
The project continued when I was commissioned to
collaborate further with the community in creating work
for the interior of a micro-home. This was the first of its
kind, a working prototype into affordable housing. The
project became about my integration into an isolated
yet surprising community
More information here:.

More information here:

www.kwmc.org.uk
If These Walls Could Talk
2017

Exhibition of ‘We Can Make’

‘Wallpaper’ x 5
Cyanotype
10m x 30cm

Artist Books x 5
Letterpress and Cyanotype
15cm x 9cm
BRISTOL SET IN PRINT
2016
Spanning two years ‘Bristol Set in Print’ documented
the impact of letterpress print on the city of Bristol
and explored its significance to the contemporary
letterpress community.

The project arose from a personal discovery

of the industrial heritage of letterpress and quickly
spiralled into a multi-disciplinary research venture
with various creative and collaborative outputs.

It developed three primary goals; firstly, to explore

letterpress through the personal accounts of ex-
printers; secondly, to pass down the skills to a new
generation of practitioners; and finally, to evaluate
the role of letterpress within a contemporary setting.

Through forty individual interviews, the project

gathered a unique and previously unrecorded
understanding of the industry.

Interviews were supplemented by archival research,

exploring the local record held in the Central Library
and the Record Office. These strands of research
sought to develop a distinct picture of the industry,
using anecdotal interview and personal accounts to
give substance to and bring life to documentary
evidence.

The documentary can be found here:

http//vimeo.com/202373906
Over the summer of 2016 I ran six intergenerational workshops at Spike Print Studio that explored the
value of traditional letterpress print in a contemporary setting.

Uniting a new generation of printers, artists and designers with the ex-industry type-setters and
compositors, cultivated a unique learning environment. It not only passed on the skills of these men but
gave participants an immersive experience of a traditional print house.

Collaboratively the participants designed and printed a large map of the city, integrating the imagery of a
typesetter’s case with the names, dates and key facts from twenty-six Bristol print-firms.
MOTH
2016
Interactive Installation
2016

Worked as lead artist with the creative

technology group
The Rusty Squid on this
interactive arts piece. The Moth was
introduced as an integration of physical
art with digital interactive components.

As artistic lead on this project, I was

responsible for the artistic direction of
the project, its concept and the visual
elements. I worked with a team of
engineers and designers in its
realisation. It was taken to a number of
local and national arts festivals, such as
Bristol Open Doors and Roath Art
Festival.
The Circus of Disrepair
2015
Woodcut and letterpress children's book
35cm x 35cm

CIRCUS OF DESREPAIR
2015
Bird on a Wire
2015
Lead cast weights, with a hand-carved puppet and Arduino unicycle

The hand carved puppet balances on top of a teeny tiny unicycle, the two lead birds counter weight the
puppet and it hangs on the wire. Controlled by a remote control and Arduino it cycles backwards and
forwards at your command.

Part of a whole circus of interactive puppets, from the world of Herman Herr.
El Circ - Circle
2014
Etching and chine-colle, concertina book
25cm x 35cm
Campanology
2015
Interactive Installation
Producer and Lead Artist

Inspired by bell ringing, Campanology was a

collaboration between five artists from a
multitude of
disciplines. It incorporated a wide range of
practices, from fine art printmaking, traditional
casting and contemporary design. Having
been inspired by a trip to Prague and the
moving cuckoo clocks.

This installation interacted with the local

surroundings of the church of St Mary
Redcliffe. It would come to life and start
moving in conjunction with the
bell ringing.

Video of the Project Here:

https://vimeo.com/137180806