For a limited time starting on the 6th March, Mark Sprays latest collection of paintings and drawings “Weathering - Dartmoor Tors - Prometheus on his Crag”

This body of work was sown in acid, boggy soil in October 2006 when he was trekking over Dartmoor in search of a memorial stone to the late poet-laureate, Ted Hughes.

Spray had been immersing himself in Hughes’ collection of 21 poems on the theme of the Greek legend of Prometheus on his Crag. In Greek mythology, Prometheus was “a champion of human-kind known for his wily intelligence, who stole fire from Zeus and gave it to mortals. Zeus then punished him for his crime by having him bound to a rock while a great eagle ate his liver every day only to have it grow back to be eaten again the next day.”

Over the centuries this legend has inspired many artists to portray Prometheus and his gory plight. These include the painters Dirck van Baburen, Jacob Jordaens, Gustave Moreau and Peter Paul Rubens and the sculptors Nicolas-Sébastien Adam and Scott Eaton. The combination of the legend, Hughes’ poetry and the barren wilderness of Dartmoor led Spray to embark on a multi-faceted project. One that has involved numerous 250 mile round-trip visits to Dartmoor from his West Cornwall home; many epic treks across the sparse upland landscape and a number of overnight bivouacs on the moor.

Welcome to the first show of the year. We have come out of hibernation, put a new floor down in the gallery, a lick of paint and a fantastic new show. Three main 2D artists and two ceramicists.

Print maker Jonathan Kauffamn: Jonathans prints are in some of Europes major collections, including more than 20 years on public display in the V&A museum, the works on show this February are woodcuts and linocuts entitled ‘The Greyhound Series’ the works were inspired by several trips across the states by bus in the seventies and they are absolutely of there time and fabulous for it, they are like a still frame in time, you could imagine pressing go and the film rolling right on.

Colin Halliday is new to us but has been painting and exhibiting for many years, his work is powerful and atmospheric. Having worked in many different styles and subject matter his work has evolved into a fresh and unique style that reflects his deep affinity with nature and the British landscape.

We spotted Amanda Stead at her graduation show. Big bold vessels with abstract forms yet subtle lines make for striking forms, and she is already making a name for herself. A commission for the curator of textiles at the V&A museum was a feather in the cap.

Ostinelli & Priest, a collaboration between two artists - the perfect opportunity to see two heads working as one. Inspiration is drawn from human animal and bird form on an ever changing basis.  “We use texture, rhythm and colour into the clay to convey movement presence and humour into the work, these qualities being all important in any piece.”

Jonathan Kauffman

Colin Halliday

Amanda Stead

Ostinelli & Priest

Paul Priest studied graphic design, illustration and photography, working in this facet of the art world for a short time before realising ‘the mistake’.

Work with ceramic sculpture became my obsession as a result of attending an adult ed pottery course and the subsequent establishment of my own studio.  Now a professional member of the CPA and other societies it was some six years ago I met Gaynor Ostinelli, and over the following period together we have developed our working partnership.  Still creating work individually as well as jointly we have moved to exhibiting our work in galleries and festivals as well as holding demonstrations and workshops.

 

Maggie O’Brien’s land and sea paintings are a direct response to the wildness and drama of the Penwith landscape. Her working process is intuitive and exploratory, seemingly random marks will often kick start a painting until something more solid begins to emerge. Images can come quickly but more often than not they are worked over and over. Paintings are sometimes made outside and she works quickly in acrylic or water colour to capture the light. One image can lead to several others and the oil paintings that are made in the studio are an exploration of place, memory and imagination.

Maggie O’Brien trained at Central St Martins (Foundation), Camberwell (BA Hons - Fine Art & Drawing) and Wimbledon (MA Drawing). She is an energetic and pro-active exhibitor with venues in London, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

 

It is often said that the peninsular counties of Devon and Cornwall have a “quality of light” that attracts, inspires and sustains a veritable colony of artists. The intensely bright and suffuse light, plus the myriad variations in the coastal and inland landscape of these counties is portrayed in charcoal, ink, watercolour, oil, gouache and all manner of media by a legion of landscape artists.

Brixham based artist, Richard Thorn may just be one of this legion but his paintings cut straight to the quick with spontaneous, striking blasts of tone and colour that let you feel the warmth of the sun and the touch of the breeze and smell the fragrance of the ocean, the rivers, the fields and the woods. Viewing Richard’s blazing paintings is a truly memorable experience.

Richard Thorn studied at Newton Abbot School of Art and initially pursued a career in music, becoming an accomplished Jazz Guitarist and currently leading his Latin/Jazz quartet, “Ragged Fish” (for which he writes original compositions). His painting career began professionally in the early 80’s and was especially encouraged when Torbay Art Society presented one of his paintings to the Princess Michael of Kent at a Devon County Show. He was similarly inspired when invited to stage an exhibition of his paintings of Portugal in the Portuguese Embassy in London – and to have one of the paintings purchased by the Ambassador.

 

Following school Jonathan worked in architecture until 1969 when, feeling that there must be a better life than tearing down good buildings to put up bad, he entered Camberwell School of Art & Crafts. Specialising in Graphic Design and Printmaking he came in to contact with two excellent teachers who instilled an enduring enthusiasm for etching and woodcuts.

In 1971 he made his first of many extended trips around the USA from which sprang a series of prints of small-town and highway scenes. He went on to series’ including Kent and Surrey landscapes and Venice to name just two. All except one piece the work on show this February, ‘The Greyhound Series’, form just part of his American scenes. Work from his Venice trips will be on show later this year. Now living in Shrewsbury he is making a series of drawings of Shropshire’s old parish churches.

Previous exhibitions include five one-man shows in London and his work is held in the following collections:

Victoria & Albert Museum
Albertina Museum, Vienna
The Museum of Modern Art, Venice
Birmingham City Museum & Art Gallery
Leicester Museum & Art Gallery
Northampton Museum & Art Gallery
Portsmouth City Museum & Art Gallery
Walsall Museum & Art gallery
Tel-Aviv Museum of Art
and many library, college & private collections.

The runs are low - generally limited to 50 signed prints per run, some of the images are reduced block linocuts and the editions are then just 12 signed prints. The work is either mounted and framed behind glass at £295 ea or available unframed at £245. Images of the rest of the series will be available soon.

 

Born in Cumbria in 1964 Colin Hallidays paintings have been described as having painterly qualities and romantic inclinations that shine from the canvas and has even been compared to Turner. Having worked in many different styles and subject matter his work has evolved into a fresh and unique style that reflects his deep affinity with nature and the British landscape.

His paintings reflect the power of nature in that the application of paint retains all the immediacy and power that one feels when face to face with the elements and the landcape.

Halliday moved to Derbyshire in 2005 and now concentrates on Landscape painting and while the work is based on his surroundings it is not however bound by that. His paintings  go beyond that as one is drawn in to the surface and the beauty of the marks and application of paint.

Exhibiting since the late 1980’s Halliday was having one person shows even before college. With prices and demand for his work rising fast Halliday is not an artist that has found a style and stuck to it, his work is evolving all the time, and his willingness to take risks is among with many other qualities what keeps his work fresh and exciting.

 

I am inspired by subtle lines against bold expressionistic marks. The abstract qualities on my forms are influenced by close up images of appealing contrasts, in particular, Portuguese building walls. They show interesting qualities of composition between mark, shape and colour. Antoni Tapies and Robert Motherwells paintings also inspired me to express my work in a more abstract manner. My own interpretations through drawing and mono printing, in relation to the images, have been a large feature in my ceramic work. Hand building, mould making and slip trailing are a few skills which have enabled me to take 2D ideas onto 3D ceramic forms. The form is as important as the surface; both complement and play off each other. The edges of the pieces are deliberately torn to create diverse contrasts to the surface.

Since graduating in 2009 Amanda has received many offers to exhibit, including some of Londons leading galleries but this is your chance to see her work first. She has also commission for the curator of contemporary textiles at the V&A. “I have been using the facilities at Wolverhampton University to continue making my work and in exchange I have given a few demonstrations to the undergraduates. Next on the list is to have my own studio set up at home in Huddersfield by Summer.”

 

This Friday - 12th Feb is the private view of Jon Thompsons latest show at the prestigious Albany Gallery in Cardiff. The Albany boasts many top artists on their books including Royal academissions, members of the NEAC and was of course very closley linked with the late Kyffin Williams RA. Jon will be showing 22 paintings as part of there new show. If you fancy a trip to Cardiff (maybe take in the Wales Scotland game at the same time) then call in the gallery for a ticket for the PV.

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