ArtShack Founder
Maggie Allmark
Maggie Allmark is an arts practitioner with many years of experience. She holds a degree in ceramics and a post graduate Art Teachers certificate, and she taught Art and Design at secondary level for 15 years. More recently Maggie has been delivering creative workshops to many schools and communities in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin, Staffordshire and the Midlands.
She has been involved in community arts projects working with partner organisations such as Shropshire Council, English Heritage, The Crafts Council, and The Hive, Shrewsbury. Maggie also delivered a very successful Young Curators project for Shrewsbury Museum and Art gallery for 12 years. Her own work is textile based, and she has exhibited in many galleries across the country. At the Artshack Maggie can teach a range of creative skills including textiles, machine embroidery, ceramics, painting and drawing, design and printmaking.
SUPPORTING ARTISTS & TEAM
Jacob Gourley
Jacob Gourley is an award-winning professional artist who specialises in representational oil painting and large scale mural work. To date he has exhibited in a number of group and solo shows, and was awarded 1st prize in The Wirral Society of Arts Open Exhibition 2019 for his painting ‘82- St John’s to Toxteth’.
During his Fine Art studies at the University of Gloucestershire, Jacob received a scholarship to study at the British School in Rome in 2016. In addition to this, from 2015 to 2018, Jacob worked for a month each summer in Verrochio Art Centre in Tuscany. During his visits, he attended demonstrations and artist talks from a number of visiting professional artists. Naturally, at this time, he became enamoured with plein air painting, which to date still forms a key component in his practice. Today his largely oil based practice covers a broad territory, including portraiture/figure, landscape, and still life.
Linzi McGivern
Linzi McGivern is an independent freelance artist and designer, working since graduating from de Montfort University with a BA(Hons) degree in Fashion and Textiles (surface decoration)
She has spent 30 years practising art and creating pattern and print designs for social stationary and homeware.
Her work is a combination of hand painting, craft techniques and illustration with computer compilations in Photoshop and Illustrator. Her work has been published in UK , Europe and America as greetings cards, giftwrap, homeware products and fabrics.
Sam Johnson Squire
Illustrator, photographer, editor with a degree in graphic design and illustration from the University of De Montfort, he works in multiple techniques including printmaking, lino cuts, stencils, line drawing, and animation.
Samuel is inspired by his world travels and documents his adventures in photography, detailed drawings, and prints. He has worked on design and video projects for Network Rail, MIND, Majestic Films, Young Curators and CAST performing arts.
David Bannister
David Bannister is a contemporary visual artist known for his captivating explorations of light, colour, and emotion. David’s work offers an interplay between realism and abstraction, inviting viewers to step into his world where reality and imagination converge. His inspiration is drawn from a multitude of sources – from the subtle energies of nature to the complex emotions that define human personality and essence.
With a body of work that spans various mediums including oil, acrylic, and mixed media, David continues to push the boundaries to his artistic expression. His portfolio displays a diverse range of subjects, from evocative portraits that seem to capture the essence of his subjects’ souls to sprawling landscapes that capture the fundamental elements of nature.
As both an artist and an art mentor, David strives to ignite the spark of creativity in others and guide them on their artistic journey.
ArtShack Partners
Audrey Whyle
Audrey Whyle is an amateur artist that has picked up her brushes again after time out raising a family. She studied fine art and art history whilst at college.
She has worked in education for over 30 years as a laboratory technician, where she has also been responsible for Health and Safety. Audrey is therefore our Health and Safety co-ordinator here at Artshack. She also runs her own online art gallery at www.audaciousartstudio.co.uk
Rachel Quilty
Rachel gained a degree in Interior Textiles and Floor Covering, specialising in surface pattern design. She went to work commercially as a surface pattern designer, exhibiting her work in the United States and in Frankfurt.
In 2012, Rachel became Artist in Residence at St Giles Primary School, an experience that further shaped her creative direction and community engagement. The following year, she established her own creative business, accepting commissions to design and paint bespoke murals and wallpapers. She later incorporated her love of lino printing into her practice, designing and hand-printing rolled lampshades that combine craftsmanship with distinctive surface design.
Inspired predominantly by nature, Rachel’s work explores shape, form and colour, often experimenting with texture and mixed media to create depth and character. Her artwork has been sold across the USA, Europe and Australia as well as locally and throughout the UK.
Paul Hutchinson
Paul Hutchinson owns Virtual Shropshire and is Artshack’s technical partner, providing support for the website, online promotion and video services. In addition he is a CAA Qualified commercial drone operator and runs www.DroneRangers.co.uk