ART Trier: Kunst York, an international exchange of art, will present six artists from in and around York this month and eight from the German city of Trier in July at Bar Lane Studios, Bar Lane, York.

The exchange has been organised by York artists Nathan Chenery and Stefan Philipps, whose project began in January with a show at the Galerie Junge Kunst, in Trier, featuring Nathan, Kirsty Boutle, Sally Taylor, Thomas Rodgers, Tom Hodgson and William Bradley.

“There was a great response to the work on show, so we’ve now decided to exhibit the York contingent before we exhibit the Trier artists this summer,” says Nathan.

“By holding exhibitions in both cities, the project hopes to open an exchange of ideas and create an ongoing relationship between the two art scenes.”

Nathan, who works as a fine art technician at York St John University, has gathered a loyal following for his artwork both in York and Trier over the past few years.

He uses marks to build space and look at relationships between borders and horizons. “My present work sees the development of the vertical in the horizon,” he says. “‘Here borders still play an integral role but I’ve found the idea of rising up from or above the horizontal a liberating one.”

Kirsty Boutle is studying for a Fine Art Masters at Edinburgh College of Art after completing her BA at York St John University. Her paintings and drawings rely on a repetitive, almost ritualistic approach.

“The act of making brings forth the momentary dissolution of repetitive existential problems,” says Kirsty, whose statement may or may not make everything clear.

Ryedale artist Sally Taylor has been selected for the Jerwood Drawing Prize and the 54th Venice Biennale and she also has held solo shows at Ryedale Folk Museum, Hutton-le-Hole, and Bar Lane Studios. She specialises in book-jacket drawings that utilise discarded, distressed book covers.

“They are crumpled, with torn edges, scribbles, signatures and the odd dedication as gifts to loved ones,” she says.

“My marks are superimposed over the traces of what has taken place previously – here I enjoy questions emerging about authorship. I like the feeling of not knowing the paper’s previous existence, not knowing who has made the marks already in place.”

Thomas Rodgers, who works at York College, makes images using traditional, film-based black-and-white photography.

“I’m in a constant search,” he says. “My work is divided into two: first comes an instinctual photographing session, followed by a much more intense darkroom session where the work comes to life.

“The images are the result of an assimilation of my natural inclinations towards form and arrangement.”

Tom Hodgson’s work bridges the gap between art and design. He makes clean, slick works that often reference the material as a subject, and his art takes on assorted forms, from drawings that almost look like architects’ plans to very minimal “sculptural paintings”.

“My latest work uses layers on an intimate scale to draw the viewer in, peering through stylised gaps to get more information,” he says.

William Bradley’s career has gone from strength to strength since he completed a MA in Fine Art: Painting at Wimbledon College of Art in 2008. He has gathered a large group of collectors and has been selected for the 2011 Catlin Prize and Valeria Sykes Prize at the Mercer Gallery, Harrogate.

He favours the large scale for his bright abstract paintings, which make reference to a wide range of artists. “My work looks to question how meaning is created in abstract painting,” he says.

The first exhibition runs from Thursday's 6pm to 9pm launch until April 29; the German artists take over the walls from July 20. Gallery opening times are: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm; Saturdays, 10am to 5pm; closed Sundays.