Biography

Training: 
1977 - 1980
   University of Newcastle Upon Tyne   (Fine Art)                               
1983 - 1988
    St. Martin's College of Art, London. 

Career Path   
1984 - present:
Lead artist posts managing budgets up to £300,000.
Residencies and commissions creating art in the public realm, project management, educational and community engagement, consultancy and studio work.

Recent Work in the Public Realm

2010 Signature sculpture for new science block Portsmouth Grammar School.

2009/10  Series of interactive play sculptures in Littlehampton for arts and regeneration project with Arun District Council.

2007/9  Collaboration with New Deal for Communities team and the city council highways engineers of Newcastle upon Tyne as lead artist on the regeneration of the Arthur’s Hill area of the city.

2007   Sculpture for Artpoint on a PFI scheme within new build school in Swindon.

2006/7   Southampton University Hospitals Trust for sculpture in courtyard of new North Block building.
Taylor Woodrow and Cherwell District Council for landmark sculpture on traffic roundabout.

2005   Portsmouth City Council for “Performance Space”on Commercial Road.
Soho Parish School, Westminster, to redevelop and renew playground scheme originally created in 1986
Andover Borough Council for shopping arcade scheme.

2004   New Forest District Council for teenage hangout area
Portsmouth City Council for “Five Senses” Sculpture.

2003  Oxfordshire County Council for enamelled glass, carpet and mosaic paving for entrance to Kidlington public library.

1998-2003       Hampshire County Council : Lead artist at Horndean Technology       College Hampshire.  Responsibilities included: Development of commissioning programme. Management of  budgets, works programmes, contracts, health and safety, engineering requirements. Researching and commissioning other artists to undertake commissions and outreach work. Liaising between commissioned artists and the architects, engineers, surveyors, county council officers, clients and site users on the project team. Developing an engagement programme and mentoring artists in its delivery

 

GRANTS:

2006    Arts Council of England: Professional Development Grant
                        Farnham Maltings: marketing grant
                       Creative Graduate into Companies Initiative: training grant
                        Hampshire Broadband: business development grant
1986-1999       Hampshire County Council, Westminster City Council Arts Unit, London Arts Board
           
 SHORT COURSE TRAINING:
           
2006   Training in the use of “Form Z” CAD software using Arts Council    
            grant.

1999     IOSH certificated “Managing Safely” course.

1999     Space Craft - Southern Makers on the Net. (Training in use of Adobe   Photoshop and web site design.)

 1997:              Southern/ South West Arts: Managing Public Art Projects
                        Arts Training  South: "WordPower " Writing skills

 

GROUP EXHIBITIONS

1982                Cubertou arts centre, Lot, France.
1983                The Pleasance, Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
1986                St, Martin's College of Art, Fine Art and Critical Studies placement show.
1988                St. Martin's Final Degree Show.
1990                North Westminster Community School, artists in Westminster show.
1993                Kingston village hall.
2000                Dragon Street Gallery, Petersfield
2003,4,5          Petersfield Artists in the Town

 

ARTIST'S STATEMENT

I have over twenty years’ experience as a maker, project manager and lead artist on creative, site-specific schemes in the public realm.  I am in my element on projects that require a broad vision using art, architecture and landscaping to create work that is a unique expression of a place and its community. I have frequently orchestrated series of related works by myself and others to create coherence within an environment. My work has played an important part in the regeneration of many degraded environments.

My practice is inclusive; engaging stake holders in the concept and design process, and collaborative; interacting with other artists, design professionals and fabricators.

Problem solving and lateral thinking lie at the heart of my design work. I explore new uses for materials and techniques (often using industrial processes and new technologies) to create high quality but affordable design solutions that address the specific spatial and social demands of the site.

Alongside commissioning programmes I can develop community outreach work and mentor other artists in its delivery.

As a project manager I:

  • ensure contractual responsibilities are understood and agreed by all parties
  • manage budgets and work programmes
  • maintain clear communication and reporting procedures
  • ensure both working practices and finished installations comply with health and safety requirements.

Through a professional approach I establish trust between artists and other project partners, while understanding the nature of the creative process from the artists’ perspective.  I deliver high quality creative projects on time and within budget.

 

 

 

TESTIMONIALS

 

Reference for Charles Carter, Artist

I worked with Charlie Carter for five years on an Arts Council for England Capital Project on Horndean Campus, valued at £1,318,000 of which £215,000 was exclusively for art works.  Charlie has taken the lead artist and a major co-ordination role for the whole of the site.  This has involved his leading a team of artists providing site specific pieces and considerable community involvement.  He has had to manage this complex brief as part of a wider steering team including the architect, construction company, Hampshire County Council, the Arts Council monitors and the Horndean Campus team.  There has been a very real interactive and co-ordination role in that he has had to manage the project whilst bringing it in within the designated budget, keeping a good record of his financial management, and produce the commissions to deadlines.

This has all been done, despite the considerable disruptions that have taken place for example, we had the wettest winter on record during the winter of 2000/2001 with a huge amount of flooding, so redesigning had to be carried out whilst waiting for the county to tackle the floods.  Charlie has also spent time working up contracts that met county guidelines for all of the artists and has had to observe some difficult health & safety constraints whilst working on a school site.

All of this has been achieved with a good degree of humour and adaptability to changing circumstances.  This project has produced some stunning visual work, transforming what was a bland and uninteresting site into a dynamic environment with a great ambience to work and learn in.  This has won a major International award for Charlie’s work in stained, coloured Perspex, which has certainly set new standards in the medium.

Linda Goodwin
Arts & Community Development Officer & Project Co-ordinator.
Horndean Campus, Barton Cross, Horndean PO8 9PQ

 

 

Charlie Carter

I was the ‘client’ for two City Centre Projects delivered by Charlie.  These projects were integral to the regeneration of the Heart of Portsmouth.  The projects took place within the City Centre.

In the first project Charlie worked with four other artists and each brought us one of the ‘Five Senses’.  Charlie’s artwork was smell.  Not at first thought a simple artwork however really well interpreted by Charlie.  His artwork not only delivered the idea of ‘Smell’ it also interacted well with children and to this day youngsters still enjoy that interaction.

The second project was ‘Performance Spaces’.  Charlie’s use of different materials and lighting clearly defined the areas to be used by performers and created icons and areas that could be used for events scaling from an orchestra to a busker.     

Charlie was professional, competent and controlled sub-contractors well.  His projects were delivered in a timely manner and without unexpected problems.

The artworks are in place today and remain to a good standard in the main due to Charlie’s choices of good quality materials.

Charlie combines the innovation of an artist with the professionalism of a contract manager.  He has a great determination to deliver yet undertakes this with a sense of fun.

He will be well suited to the project you are undertaking.

If you require further information please contact me.

Barry Walker
Portsmouth City Centre Manager

 

The Rockingham Estate Play Association is a registered charity and runs the adventure play facility in Dickens Square in the Elephant and Castle area, South London. In 1995, grants from the National Lottery and other sources enabled us to commission the re-building of our then derelict adventure playground and surrounding green space. Charlie and his company Handmade Spaces took on the project. It involved the following stages : Consultation with the local community (especially the children and young people who were able to contribute their ideas and designs for structures and playspace), designing and planning large wooden play structures for an area of roughly 2500 square metres, extensive landscaping of the site, as well as building the facility to stringent quality and safety standards.

As it happened, the transformation Charlie brought about was perhaps the single biggest factor in the ongoing success our provision enjoys. Within the space of a few months, he turned a derelict, unsafe playground dating back to the early 1970’s into a community facility owned and enjoyed by local young people and their families. Accordingly, the numbers of children using the playground rose from just a handful to up to 200 per day and has stayed at this level since. The playspace is safe, exciting and varied and its imaginative design has allowed for many extensions (in 1996, we commissioned Charlie to add an under-8’s play area, funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation). The structures feature many beautiful details and carvings, as well as many ingenious functional details (e.g. a ‘telephone system’ made from ‘hidden’ water pipes which the children use for communicating from the top of the central tree tower to the far corners of the playground). The quality of the materials and design has also meant that repair and maintenance costs have stayed very low.

There is also a strong environmental theme inherent in the playground design and landscaping, which has enabled us to establish an environmental education project, run by a full-time worker.

The whole project was delivered within the allocated budget (about £ 95,000 in total) and well ahead of our spectacular playground opening day in summer 1996.

Based on our experience of Charlie and his work, and the sheer impact of the assignment and its design, I thoroughly recommend him for your project. If you need any further details (including photos and/or reports) please feel free to get in touch with me.

Yours faithfully

Max Mueller
Co-ordinator
Rockingham Estate Play Association