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Studio artists

a landscape image of a group of people standing in a warmly lit studio space filled with prints and shelves of books. Some of the people look at prints hanging on the walls and displayed on wooden tables, others are having lively conversations. The image is taken through a doorway, which frames the scene.

June Digbeth First Friday Open Studios Event, Grand Union, Birmingham. Image by Nina Baillie, 2023.

Studio Artists

Modern Clay is a co-operative clay studio run by artist members that produce ceramics, run public workshops and design bespoke projects with charitable organisations.

You can visit Modern Clay’s website here: https://www.modernclay.org/

You can visit Contemporary Other’s website here: https://contemporaryother.org/ 

A landscape image of two twins standing within a full and colourful studio space. The two people wear hats and glasses and stand behind a table covered in silver cans that have been painted, colourful paint, and paper. Shelves of books are visible against the far wall, and to the right circular paintings are hung on the wall woodchip wall. Various colourful strands hang from a fluorescent light on the ceiling.

Simon & Tom Bloor are artists who make works for and about public space, addressing the histories and fabric of the built environment and our social relationships to it.

You can visit Simon and Tom’s website here: http://www.simonandtombloor.com/

A square image of a person looking towards the camera. The person wears a ribbed green beanie over their dark, shoulder-length hair. They also wear large wire-frame glasses and a pale green fleece. Behind the person, a large green house plant is visible

Artist/researcher Roo Dhissou works with communities, diasporas, and her own histories. Using community-engaged practice, craft, cooking, performance, and installation she explores how communal and individual identities are formed.

Roo has worked with BMAG, New Art Gallery Walsall, The Bluecoat, Tate Liverpool, Primary, and internationally in Spain, Canada, and Poland.

You Can visit Roo’s website here: https://roodhissou.com/

A landscape image of a person looking off camera. The person has very short white hair and wears a dark coloured jumper. A large industrial studio space, with lots of windows, is visible behind the person.

Keith Dodds is a graphic designer specialising in book covers, editorial design for books and publications, and branding for cultural organisations. His work is found on bookshelves around the world, has appeared on the news at six, and was waved around by an angry Ted Cruz in the 2022 US Supreme Court confirmation hearing.

You can visit Keith’s website here: https://keithdodds.studio/

A landscape image of a person laughing in front of a pale, plain background. The person wears a simple black top, and their short dark hair brushes their shoulders.

Sarah Hamilton Baker is an artist specialising in performance, sensory exploration, food, and facilitation. She is the creator of touch screen and has worked on numerous directing, performing, and facilitation projects, with organisations such as Ikon, The Exchange, Grand Union, The Rep, and Flatpack.

You can visit Andrew Lacon’s website here: https://andrewlacon.co.uk/

A portrait image of a person sitting cross-legged, surrounded by intricately woven large-scale fabric works, which cover the walls, floor, and floor cushions. the person wears a green outfit and a grey-teal headscarf. There is a window behind the figure, through which green leaves are visible.

Farwa Moledina is an artist working primarily with textiles. Her work is inspired by art history, architecture, and her own cultural background. It is characterised by recurring patterns and delves into themes of faith, family, and the histories of Muslim women.

You can visit Farwa’s website here: https://www.farwamoledina.com/

A landscape image of a person standing in front of a light grey wall. The person has long straight brown hair and wears glasses, a light-coloured jumper with a quilted effect, and a bright red patterned scarf. Behind the person, hung on the wall, are several lit artworks that are comprised of small dark objects covered with a shiny, plastic film.⁠

Joanne Masding has a sculptural practice and makes work to⁠ think about how objects are known and absorbed by bodies and through technological interfaces. 

Making exhibitions, public artworks, and workshops, she’s worked with organisations including Bluecoat,⁠ Eastside Projects, Temple Bar Gallery, Dublin Natural History Museum, and Persimmon Homes. Joanne also runs Studio Outlet, which sells things made by artists.

You can visit Joanne’s website here: https://www.joannemasding.com/

A black and white image of a person standing with crossed arms, looking directly towards the camera. The person wears a dark, simple outfit and a black beanie. They have a dark coloured beard and their hair is covered by the hat.

Greg Milner is a portrait and lifestyle photographer based in Birmingham. His portfolio spans arts, culture, heritage, higher education, government, and commercial sectors and his work can be seen on buildings, buses, and billboards across the West Midlands. His portraiture is currently on display at The Exchange as part of CREDiBLE.

You can visit Greg’s website here: https://gregmilnerphotography.co.uk/

A black and white, landscape image of a person wearing a cap and dark-framed glasses standing behind a large camera. The person is in half profile, facing off to the side of the image. They have a short beard and wear an open shirt over a striped t-shirt.⁠

David Rowan is a visual artist based in Birmingham, U.K. Working professionally for over twenty years in the cultural heritage sector, David has produced thousands of artworks for art galleries, universities, advertising agencies, and private clients. His work is regularly published in national and international press, news media, journals, and digital channels.

You can visit David’s website here: http://www.davidrowan.org/

A square image of a blonde person sitting in a studio space. The person wears a blue jacket with lighter blue and red embroidery on the front and looks directly at the camera. The walls of the studio are covered in pastel-coloured paintings and drawings, then there is a shelving unit and desk holding various ceramics, books, and art equipment.⁠

Sarah Taylor Silverwood works with drawing, often in collaboration with other people. Taking the form of public artworks, animations, ceramics, books, and textiles, her work combines her interests in making, storytelling, and participatory practice.

Sarah joined Grand Union studios in 2017 and is also a co-director member of Modern Clay, a cooperative ceramics studio also located in Minerva Works.

You can visit Sarah’s website here: https://www.sarahsilverwood.com/

A landscape image of a person standing in front of a woodchip wall covered in bright photographs. The person wears a colourful scarf wrapped around their hair, a black shirt with orange and white accents, and bold earrings.⁠ ⁠

Nilupa Yasmin is an artist and educator working with a primarily lens-based practice. She explores the principles of art and craft, and the expanded materiality within photography, and is interested in the notion of culture, self-identity, and anthropology in her practice.

Yasmin’s work is included in many permanent and private collections including Government Art Collection, The New Art Gallery Walsall, and Birmingham Museums Collection.

Nilupa’s website can be found here: https://www.nilupayasmin.com/

A square image of a smiling person, stood in front of a graphic red, blue, white, and yellow backdrop. The person looks directly at the camera. They wear a dark, navy blue button-up shirt, and glasses. They have a gingery-brown beard and short, spiky gingery-brown hair

Matt Westbrook is an artist, educator, and founding member of Grand Union Studios & Gallery. He’s had a studio at Grand Union since 2009. He is course leader for the Foundation Diploma Art and Design course at Dudley College and a visiting lecturer at Loughborough University. His work is in the Deutschebank, Bruntwood, and University of Birmingham collections.

Westbrook is interested in heterotopic space and he employs parameters in his collage-making process to force connections between imagery. Works are often made from a single image source in an attempt to unlock hidden imagery within the original material.

Matt’s website can be found here: https://mattwestbrook.co.uk/ 

A landscape image of a person in a white t-shirt and glasses, with short dark hair and a beard, standing next to a projector. The person raises their arms, and looks in the direction of the projector beam, as if adjusting the equipment they are standing next to. Out of focus people are visible in the background, watching the person at the centre.

Stuart Whipps often makes work about things he doesn’t understand and doesn’t know how to do. Recently this includes restoring a 1979 Mini with the assistance of former British Leyland workers, training to make geological thin sections at the University of Birmingham, and propagating Begonias at West Dean in Sussex.

He has exhibited his work across the UK and internationally and is the recipient of a number of awards. He works predominantly with photography and video with occasional forays into sculpture.

You can visit Stuart’s website here: https://stuartwhipps.studio/

Past studio artists

An Endless Supply
Betsy Bradley
Helen Brown (GU Founder)
Dan Cippico
Michael Dring
Kirsty Clarke
Nuala Clooney
Ian England (GU Founder)
Aly Grimes
Emily Hawes

Amelia Hawk
Fred Hubble
Sophie Huckfield
Harminder Judge (GU Founder)
Juneau Projects (GU Founder)
Infinite Opera
Navi Kaur
James Langdon (GU Founder)
Mengxia Liu
Lucy Lopez

Maral Mamaghanizadeh
David Miller (GU Founder)
Adam Neal
David Poole
Chris Poolman
Elizabeth Rowe
Larissa Shaw
Amarah Spence
Kaye Winwood