The Creative Dimension Trust Alumni Interview: Luke Silva
Luke SilvaLuke Silva is an alumni of The Creative Dimension Trust. He has just been accepted on a Foundation Art course at Central Saint Martins, and won a Painters’ Company Scholarship. Luke will be giving back to the Trust by helping as a workshop assistant.
What course(s) have you attended at The Creative Dimension?
Five in total — Glass Blowing, Marquetry and Gilding, Mural painting, Hand Engraving, and Etching and Printmaking
How has it helped you within your career development?
I want to become an artist. The courses allow me to further express my ideas with new techniques. The biggest help has been in building and improving my art portfolio. This was important to getting into my course and being awarded a scholarship.
”The courses are so exciting to me -- I’m always interested in trying something new. I can’t afford to pay for expensive courses so The Creative Dimension Trust opportunities are truly amazing. I love the feedback I get from the tutors -- they are so in love with their field of work and make sure I learn so much from them.
Blown glass sculpture, 2017.What skills have you strengthened whilst going to our workshops?
Planning and figuring out what something will look like, so I know how to approach it before I start. Also, teamwork. Some of the courses – like glassblowing – require help from and working with other students.
Do you have a maker who inspires you to progress?
Laura from the etching course was really inspiring and amazing. By the last few days I had my head down really wanting to work. It was intriguing to learn a skill and then see her artwork using the same things we learnt. She showed us what’s possible with persistence.
Detail of Mural, 2016
What particular area of art / craft do you feel you want to go into, and why?
I want to go into the art world as an artist.
I have been to many art fairs, private views and galleries, so I have some understanding of how that world works. But I want to be the one producing the artwork. It is my passion and what I aspire to do.
Where do you see yourself in five years’ time?
In five years I expect to be a recently graduated student from an art university. Hopefully, I will be able to support myself as an artist. Maybe I’ll working with galleries by that point.
What are you working on at the moment?
I’m currently working on photography, with Polaroids in particular. I tried to figure out how to apply techniques from the gilding course — and did!
You can follow Luke on Instagram here