DACS catches up with multi-disciplinary fine artist, Cos Ahmet. He tells us why Payback is an important initiative supporting artists, and sheds light on some of his forthcoming projects.
Can you tell us a bit about your work?
My practice is a combination of disciplines that include: woven tapestry, collage, printmaking and object-making. I explore contemporary themes of sexuality, identity and the altered-ego through the human form and the suggested form, creating body dialogues and collecting gestures along the way. These gestures take on their own symbolism and appearance, but are implicit presences, traces or imprints of the self.
How long have you been receiving Payback royalties and what made you decide to apply?
I have been claiming for a few years now. I have to admit, I didn’t know about
Payback until a very good friend told me that I could claim for royalties, so I am extremely grateful to him!
What did you do with last year’s royalty?
I tend to put it back into my practice and new work, either in the form of materials or equipment. It is after all generated by the very work being published, so I think it is a nice gesture to make. I’m sure that as the royalties grow, I’d probably start treating myself!
What advice would you give to anyone applying to Payback for the first time?
Don’t hesitate. Go for it! It gave me a completely different focus on tracking how my work and practice is being exposed through publications. DACS are very supportive and accommodating, especially if it is your first time applying for Payback. Don’t be afraid to ask them questions, even the most obvious and silly ones. Believe me, I have asked them!
What projects do you have coming up that we should know about?
Well, plenty going on this summer and beyond. I have recently been approved as a member on the
Crafts Council Directory. I’m also exhibiting in
Heallreaf, curated by Margaret Jones at The Edward James Studios at West Dean College, and
le sort, le destin et l’auto-détermination, an ongoing International Tapestry Installation Project and Exhibition devised by Line Dufour. It's currently touring Canada and the US. I have also been shortlisted for the
Kate Derum Award for Small Tapestries and will be part of an exhibition of finalists at the Australian Tapestry Workshop in Melbourne.
This August and September, I will be Artist-in-Residence in a former textile mill in Manchester for a period of a month. The residency is run by
FABRIC Residency and
CDM UK, where I will be experimenting and creating new work in response to the mill and its past, ending with the work being exhibited on-site.
For the future, I have been invited to create a new body of work for
Upper Street Events and Twisted Thread, who are generously hosting a exhibition of my work at their Knit & Stitch Textile Shows in 2016.
Has your artwork or photography ever been published in a UK book, magazine or TV programme? You could be eligible for Payback royalties. Find out more and apply by 30 September.
#Payback15
Find out more about Cos Ahmet
Image: Collecting Gestures Series, 2014 (detail), by Cos Ahmet © Cos Ahmet. Image courtesy The Artist.