Learning to Talk Painting

Since 2010, LJMU has hosted a biennial painting residency programme in partnership with the John Moores Painting Prize China, welcoming prize-winning artists from China to Liverpool to create new work in our Fine Art studios and exhibit their outcomes to the public. This initiative has fostered rich artistic exchange and dialogue across our art school, city, and between artists working in China and the UK.

The Learning to Talk Painting: Exploring Residency Models and Cross-Cultural Exchange in Contemporary Painting symposium aims to open this residency programme to a broader community of artists, educators, and researchers. Together, we will explore diverse residency models, examine best practices, and discuss the dissemination of artistic outcomes to local and broader publics.

A key focus will be the development of an expanded residency structure for 2027, envisioning collaborative opportunities for UK and Chinese artists to work side-by-side, share knowledge through the language of painting, and innovate new forms of practice-based research, artistic exchange and collaboration.

Further details

Date: Tuesday, 2nd September 2025.

Location: LJMU Fine Art Studios, Liverpool John Moores University

11.00 Welcome and Introduction to JMPPC and the LJMU Residency with Professor Juan Cruz (Principal Edinburgh College of Art) and Hana Leaper (LJMU)

11.20 Models of Residency Practice 1 – Dirty Practice with Maggie Aycliffe (Principal Lecturer in Fine Art, LJMU)

11.40 Models of Residency Practice 2 – The Summer Lodge with Danica Maeir, (Associate Professor in Fine Art, Nottingham Trent University)

11.40 Models of Residency Practice 3 – Nadia Hebson (Associate Professor, Slade School of Fine Art)

12.00 Feedback and questions

12.30 – 1.30 lunch

1.30 Overview of models: Round table – Developing the model

3.00 Introduction to the John Moores Painting Prize, China winning artists and tour of the 2025 exhibition

4.00 Drinks reception and networking

Speaker: Dr Danica Maier, Associate Professor in Fine Art, Nottingham Trent University

Title: The Summer Lodge

The Summer Lodge (2009–2019) was a ten-day artist residency held within the Fine Art studios of Nottingham Trent University. Focusing on process rather than outcome, it offered an opportunity to think through making by working for a while without many of the usual constraints and distractions. It was a collective space in which participants undertook experiments, pursued new ideas, and allowed unexpected leaps of imagination. The Lodge brought together NTU staff and PhD researchers, selected national and international artists, and studio assistants drawn from NTU's UG and PG courses—around 40 individuals engaged in critical exchange and dialogue through this period of sustained studio practice.

In this talk, Dr Maier will reflect on the ethos and structure of the Summer Lodge, share examples of how it supported creative risk-taking and dialogue, and consider its impact as a model for studio-based artistic research and collaboration.