latest Paintings: A collection of my most recent work.

Here is the most recent paintings i have produced. Most of the works focus on portraiture as these were created in response to the ‘Creative Connections’ exhibition currently on display at the Millennium Gallery Sheffield.

‘Where’s tha been?’ 2022. Acrylic on bus tickets, H13.9 x W11.4cm.

This piece has been dedicated to a project I am currently working on in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery , Sheffield Museums and Sheffield Park Academy (a school from an under-represented area of Sheffield). Coincidentally I attended the school for a year whilst enlisting on a sports studies course in 6th form, it is also located on the council estate i grew up on

The sitter I chose is 'Paul' an old friend who was my next door neighbour and whom I shared many experiences with growing up on Sheffield council estates. The symbolism between Paul and the bus tickets reflects on our times spent traveling to school and around the city, it also refers to our journeys through life and ultimately the reunion with an old friend.

‘Lady from Mars’ , 2022. Acrylic on Mars bar wrapper, w22 x h4.8cm.

‘Lady from Mars’ is another painting created for my current exhibition ‘Creative Connections’. Part of the project is to respond to the works of arts featured in gallery collections all of which are related to inspirational People connected to Sheffield.

During the research for the project I discovered Helen Sharman (lady from Mars) who was the first person from the UK to go into space. Her story and connection to Sheffield deserves recognition and tied in well with the base of my practice. She lived in Grenoside, studied at the university of Sheffield and won a prize draw to train in Russia as an astronaut in the hope of traveling to the international space station to which she accomplished - earning her the recognition of being the first person from the United Kingdom travel to outer space. Another key point within this work was that she worked for Mars Bar as a chemist at the time she won the prize, hence the ironic title from national media 'Lady from Mars'.

‘The spirit of equal measure’ 2022. Acrylic and pen on paper, w21 x h29.7cm

The third painting i created in response to the ‘Creative Connections’ exhibition. The subject depicted is Yuen Fong Ling artist, university lecturer, teacher and friend. I have dedicated this piece to Yuen as he played a huge role in my own development as an artist. From being one of his students at art school to then becoming a fellow artist on the Freelands residency program. To this day he remains Inspirational and very supportive.

Whilst I have selected Yuen here, the work is actually also dedicated to Edward Carpenter a revolutionary poet, activist and philosopher who lived in Sheffield and features in my exhibition as a bronze bust under the 'bus shelter'. Carpenter paved the way for social and political reform with his activism playing a crucial role in the equality of our current time. Yuen has previously dedicated projects to Edward and I felt the cross generational teachings between Edward to Yuen then Yuen to myself worthy of an artwork to highlight these connections.

‘Piggy Bastard’ 2022. Acrylic on bacon fries crisp packet, w12 x h13.4cm.

This is my most recent painting, which was created in response to the two other crisp packet paintings i made last year. I originally planned for three crisp packet based works to be made but had to put this piece on the back burner whilst i dedictated my time to the ‘Creative Connections’ project.

Bacon Fries a staple snack for me and my brothers back in the day in working mens. Must have rinsed my Grandad's weekly pension on about 5 bags each whilst playing pool. The work draws inspiration from memory, iconography, the symbolism of objects and the environments that connect us to material i have chosen. I uses the connection between ‘Bacon’ to refer back to the football name calling ‘Piggy’ whilst it also depicts a rowdy drunk celebrating on pool tables, this is a nod back to my own personal connection to playing pool as a child whilst scoffing down packer after packet of these crisps.

Creative Connections Commission

Conor recently Applied for the ‘Creative Connections’ commissioned by The National Portrait Gallery in Collaboration with Museum Sheffield and Sheffield Park Academy.

He is excited to announce that he’s won the commission to work on this project. He will be working closely with the collections at the National Portrait Gallery and Museum Sheffield to create and exhibition of socially engaged portraiture in collaboration with my old school ‘Sheffield Park Academy’

“Its an honour to work with a school from an under-represented area of Sheffield but even more so because coincidentally it was a school a stones throw away from where I used to live on the Manor estate and one that has played a huge role in educating and supporting generations of my family and friends.”

‘Creative Connections is a national participation project which sees the National Portrait Gallery showcase highlights from its collection in partnership with galleries, artists and young people to explore ideas of place, community and the people who inspire us. ‘


Stay tuned for updates on the project.

Debut Solo Show: Manor Boy at Yorkshire Artspace

Platform 20: Manor Boy (Yorkshire Artspace)

‘Manor Boy’ is a solo exhibition by Conor Rogers inspired by his childhood on the Manor Estate in Sheffield. Through photorealist painting, spoken word poetry, sound installation and sculpture Rogers engages with and interrogates the historic demonisation of the estate and its residents in both local imagination and national press. Rogers offers a more personal, nuanced, and familial representation of the community of residents through the lens of his own experiences - coming of age the Manor Estate.

Here he profiles the humanity of the everyday, capturing friends and familiar childhood haunts from betting shops to estate gardens. Roger’s is interested in the symbolism and burden of language and its role in storytelling, affecting perception and reinforcing stereotypes. Rogers choice of subject intends to question the nuances of our cultural differences, our insecurities, our judgments, power dynamics and sense of self. In Manor Boy Rogers has utilised paddling pools as both a reference to the innocence of childhood and a challenge to the conformity of the traditions of painting and curatorial display. Central to the exhibition, is a painting submerged at the base of a paddling pool – a gesture intended to highlight our social fragility and explore the idea of preservation. “I accept that most my works have a lifespan and will eventually decompose but there is a beauty in the birth and death of an artwork and teaches us about our very own momentary existence.”

The recent Platform 20 exhibitions featured the work of five Sheffield based artists: James Clarkson, Maud Haya-Baviera, Victoria Lucas, Conor Rogers and Joanna Whittle. The multi-venue exhibition at Site Gallery, Yorkshire Artspace and Bloc Projects presents a fascinating insight into the artists’ work developed during their two-year residency with Sheffield’s visual arts organisations.

Platform is an established artistic development programme at Site Gallery which allows artists to explore new ideas in a public space, testing new thinking and research with engaged audiences.The multi-site exhibition will be presented in three iterations at Site Gallery, Yorkshire Artspace and Bloc Projects.

These artists began their residencies in 2019 and are five of twenty from the Sheffield City Region, taking part in a rolling five-year initiative funded through the Freelands Artists Programme. Each artist receives a two-year paid residency which includes investment in professional development, production as well as opportunities to exhibit.

Platform is funded by The Freelands Foundation through the The Freelands Artists Programme. The Freelands Foundation was created to support artists and cultural institutions, to broaden audiences for the visual arts; and to enable all young people to engage actively with the creation and enjoyment of art.


Exhibition Documentation:

A collection of documentary photographs of the ‘Platform 20: Manor Boy’ solo exhibition by Conor held at Yorkshire Artspace 22/07/2021 - 22/08/2021.

Photographs by Jules Lister and Peter Martin.