Ortelius Drew DOES Mail & Female
27 May – 26 June 2016
Amsterdam, The Netherlands

We had the unique opportunity to create new work from the inventory of the adult toy shop Mail & Female in Amsterdam. Inspired by the various sex toys, which on their own are objects of art, we made cutouts and stencils repeating them with drawing and collage. In total, we made 31 drawings for the exhibition Sexplosion. This series, entitled Ortelius Drew DOES Mail & Female was on display in one of the shop windows during the exhibition from 27 May – 26 June, 2016. A big thank you to Mail & Female for supporting this project which allowed Ilga to visit Amsterdam in order to create the work together with Doreen.

Ortelius Drew launch European Tour
12-17 November 2015
Madrid, Spain

Drawing from places of leisure is what we do (best). We have therefore decided to pack our pencils once in a while and embark on some travels, discovering the sights, tastes and sounds of other cities and then draw, draw, draw along the way! We’re not tired of our respective cities, Amsterdam & London..it’s just that we want to expand our repertoire and be inspired by other exciting places around the world.

In 2015, we kicked off the Ortelius Drew European Tour in Madrid for a whirlwind few days’ drawing at Retiro Park, from the collections of The Reina Sofia and The Prado Museums, at The Royal Botanic Gardens, among other locations in the city.

At this point, we are self-funding this project and don’t know where the next stop will be, but please stay tuned…if you have ideas and tips for future travels or want to help fund our project, please drop us a line at od[at]orteliusdrew.com

popUP & popOFF
private view Saturday, 3 May 2014, 3-5pm.
flutter_ Grange Walk Studios, Mabel Goodwin House, 49 Grange Walk, level 4, London SE1 3DY

Ortelius Drew presents new work made on site, over two days at flutter_.

We are thrilled to attempt large drawings, inspired by the transitory space, its history and views, neighbourhood and context: an urban area, Bermondsey, which is changing so quickly, so sadly. Flutter_ is a temporary, makeshift gallery, which awaits redevelopment into private flats later this year.

Come join us for cocktails, Saturday 3 May 3-5pm. Doreen will be in London. We look forward to seeing you!

flutter_ is an independent project space in Bermondsey that promotes collaboration as a means to support artistic exchange between local artists, communities and creatives. flutter_ is run by Teresa Paiva.

Another Plotted Affair
A Collaboration between Ortelius Drew, Rochelle Fry and Astrida Neimanis, 26-29 March 2014, ZsaZsa Zine, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

As part of Five Years publishing season Rochelle Fry invited Ortelius Drew to collaborate with her on a drawing project in Five Years’ Gallery in London. They worked together in November 2012 to create wall drawings and prints inspired by ideas of mapping: the space, the building and its views, referencing Abraham Ortelius who is recognised as the creator of the first modern atlas.

Another Plotted Affair picks up where we left off … this time at ZsaZsa Zine in the Amsterdam bookshop Fort van Sjakoo. Reviewing and reworking the prints and drawings made during our initial meeting in London with Rochelle Fry and Ortelius Drew, our collaborative conversation continues. Working our way towards an atlas, the final work will include a textual contribution by Astrida Neimanis and will be published by Five Years.

ZsaZsa Zine will be open on Saturday 29 March from 15:00-17:00 for a public viewing of the work in progress. Join us for vegan cake, coffee & tea. Under Fort van Sjakoo, Jodenbreestraat 24, 1011NK Amsterdam

Rochelle Fry is an artist who makes intricately balanced sculptures and 2d work. As a member of Five Years she has worked on many collaborative projects including the show Bronzed with musicians Squares and Triangles.

Astrida Neimanis is a Canadian-based writer, teacher, and researcher affiliated with the Posthumanities Hub at Linkoping University, Sweden. Projects include scholarly and creative collaborations on feminism, sexuality, water, climate change, and more-than-human bodies with writers and artists in Europe, North America, and Australia. Her co-edited collected, Thinking with Water was published in 2013. Contact her at astrida.neimanis[at]gmail.com.

Five Years is an unfunded collaborative artists’ project. Founded in 1998, Five Years’ initial aim was to set up a gallery which was artist-run and where programming would maintain a direct relationship to practice. Five Years continues to develop this aim of maintaining close links between the production and exhibition of work, and the discourse which informs it.

ZsaZsa Zine is a zine+comic archive center seeking to collect feminist, queer and poc zines and comic

A Plotted Affair
A Collaboration between Ortelius Drew and Rochelle Fry
22-25 November 2012, Five Years, London, UK

As part of the Five Years publishing season Rochelle Fry invited Ortelius Drew to collaborate with her on a drawing project in Five Years’ Gallery. They worked together in the space for four days to create wall drawings and prints inspired by ideas of mapping: the space, the building and its views, referencing Abraham Ortelius who is recognised as the creator of the first modern atlas Theatre of the World (Theatrum Orbis Terrarum). During the time spent in the gallery they produced a hand printed atlas based on their work in the space.

The gallery was open on Saturday 24 November 11am-1pm for an informal drawing group with the artists and on Sunday 25 November 5-8pm for a public viewing of the work.

Rochelle Fry is an artist who makes intricately balanced sculptures and 2d work. As a member of Five Years she has worked on many collaborative projects including the show Bronzed with musicians Squares and Triangles.

Walk and Draw Tour: King’s Cross
7 November 2012, University College London, UK

This guided walk for the 1st International Conference on Urban Sustainability and Resilience stopped at key points of interest in the transformative geography of the city, near the King’s Cross area of London. Key landmarks, buildings, intersections, junctures and other miscellaneous points of social, architectural and historical significance provide the setting for impromptu drawing sessions led by Ilga Leimanis, of the collaborative, mobile and performative drawing duo Ortelius Drew. This tour will encourage participants to see how the act of drawing with others demonstrates the extent to which each individual sees something different whilst exploring the same scene. Each drawing is unique, thus representing a diversity of viewpoints and understandings of urban change. No previous drawing skills are required and drawing materials will be provided. The emphasis of this tour is on the sharing of ideas, reflections, interpretations and meanings embodied in the urban transformations affecting our shared local community and about using drawing as a tool for communication and sharing ideas and concerns.

Big Draw: Ortelius Drew
6 October 2012, Pump House Gallery, Battersea Park, London, UK

The Big Draw is the world’s biggest celebration of drawing. It has grown into a month-long festival throughout October. As part of the Pump House Gallery‘s Associates programme – an opportunity for artists and creative organisations to use the Project Room for self initiated events, Ortelius Drew ran a drawing session in Battersea Park for the Big Draw 2012.

Late Night Live: Draw
24 August 2012, Turner Contemporary, Margate, Kent, UK

Artist duo boyleANDshaw curate a night of live art and music at the Turner Contemporary inspired by the act of drawing bringing together a vibrant mix of live music, performance and talks in response to the Tracey Emin’s new body of work.

Exploring themes of drawing, love, sensuality and the sea, expect mellifluous summer vibes from the legendary DJ Chris Coco, a bespoke quirky track-list of mood music from the consistently intriguing Jonny Trunk and a sensory sound installation from boyleANDshaw with actors Malachy Orozco and Keeley Forstyth.

Plus a sound intervention by microtonal musician Donald Bousted, a light sculpture by artist Blanca Perez-Bustamante and films by Claudia Molitor and Alan Dickinson.

There will also be a chance to get involved in with drop-in drawing activities, including the collaborative, mobile and performative drawing project Ortelius Drew, a large-scale participatory live drawing performance with boyleANDshaw and an intervention from artist Kevin O’Connor.

Supernormal
10-12 August 2012, Braziers Park, Ipsden, Oxfordshire, UK

Ortelius Drew took part in SUPERNORMAL where we ran a drawing group during the festival as well as drew pretty much continuously together throughout the weekend, recording the performers, stages and temporary structures, Braziers buildings and gardens, installations, art and the public. For more information about the festival: www.supernormalfestival.co.uk/

Ortelius Drew Sketchbook Prize Launch
27 May 2011, Amsterdam, NL

Congratulations to Lotte Klaver winner of the ORTELIUS DREW SKETCHBOOK PRIZE 2011! Tied for second place Honourable Mention: Anja Sijben & Mari Stoel. Thanks to everyone who participated! We hope to make this an anual event.

On 27 May 2011 the Ortelius Drew drawing group (AMSTERDAM) held their monthly drawing session on the 7th floor of the Volkskrantgebouw at restaurant Canvas op de 7e. People working in the building as well as the neighboring public were also invited to come out and draw. From this view from the top, this diverse group of artists, illustrators and architects drew from the transforming area below surrounding the Wibautstraat.

The drawings from this session were exhibited in the lobby of the Volkskrantgebouw in conjunction with the TRANSVORMERS festival on 3 June 2011.

The judges for the Ortelius Drew Sketchbook Prize are:
Hein de Haan, HEIN DE HAAN ARCHITECTUUR STEDENBOUW
Jasper Eustace, EUSTACE DESIGN
UNFOLD Amsterdam magazine

Drawing DiverCITIES
October 2010, London, UK

Drawing DiverCITIES is a Walk-Talk- and -Draw event that took place on Friday the 29th October 2010 from 10am-3pm. It encouraged new MSc. Urban Regeneration students from the Bartlett School of Planning and local community groups to share perspectives on the transformation of the King’s Cross area through the communicative act of drawing. Dr Susan Moore and Dr Nikos Karadimitriou from The Bartlett School of Planning have organised this event.

The event began at Wates House, UCL, where a group of 30 participants embarked on a 2.5-hour guided walk through the King’s Cross regeneration area stopping at key points of interest in the transformative geography of this part of the city. Key landmarks, buildings, intersections, junctures and other miscellaneous points of soc