Gallery day

Ali Sivyour and her wirework

Felicity and I had a ‘gallery visit’ day yesterday. We started at the Emma Mason Gallery in Eastbourne to see the exhibition of work by the late Robert Tavener, printmaker. The gallery specialises in original prints (lino in this case) and there were some original watercolours. I loved seeing the printing blocks (not sure if that’s the right term) that were actually used to create some of the prints on the walls, all hand cut of course, plus original sketches in his sketchbooks. It’s a lovely little gallery, a lot crammed into a small space but it didn’t feel crowded at all – I’ll definitely visit again.

Then we wandered up to find the ‘hidden’ South Street Art Studios gallery in little Chelsea but looks like we had just missed an exhibition so it was closed so we walked back to the Towner.

Gallery North

Not having much time before we had to be back in Hailsham we went straight upstairs to the Twixt Two Worlds display. It’s always fun to step into a darkened room through a black curtain but I’m afraid, as usual, I was a bit non-plussed by the three films on show and the displays on the walls and in the cases really did nothing for me as an exhibition. Yes, there were some sweet black and white silent movies being shown on a loop which I enjoyed, and the early photos of Animal motion appealed to me, but I didn’t get any sense of cohesion or the title ‘Twixt two worlds’. The Magic Lanten show was wonderful – a few seconds each but you could examine some of the slides in a case and, despite the fact that sadly it was a digital version that was projected onto a  stark white wall, I could sense the wonder of those who first saw these ‘moving images’.

Alex Baker with her ceramics

A quick bite to eat at the always enjoyable Chapter 12 Wine Bar in Hailsham, then we were at the preview of the Winter Sculpture Exhibition at Gallery North. There are some beautiful, organic pieces in the front room by Carol Sinclair which suit the space very well, specially where they are in the natural light from the window. More 3d work, wire sculptures by Ali Sivyour, is on both levels of the gallery and the humour and flowing lines are very appealing. As are the tactile wood turned pieces by John Turner, ceramic work by Alex Baker and felt and textile work by Jo Cranston. There is work on show by some of the artists who exhibited at the very first Gallery North show as this is the 10th anniversary exhibition and, in my opinion, one of it’s best. Oh, and my latest piece, Inside the Forest (the 3d glass painting) is on show upstairs too.

Showing off

After months of procrastination and lots of panic, feverish work, much expense and planning, the exhibition at Gallery North was finally ready. It took me almost 2 days to hang just 15 paintings in my room in the gallery, mainly because I still hadn’t worked out how to get light shining through the back of some of my paintings on glass. I’d bought some battery operated LED strip lights which were the right size and provided just the right light but they needed supporting on the wall behind the work rather than inside the back of the frame and I just could NOT work it out. I scrabbled around in the gallery cupboards and found an old red metal easel which worked as a support for one of the paintings to stand in front of the windows and I positioned my red standard lamp ready for when the sun wasn’t performing. The other 2 just had to hang on the wall and at the Preview I could demonstrate the effect by dragging the lamp over and shining it up behind the work.

The paintings on glass were well received – I of course had massive doubts as I was hanging the work. 2 pieces never made it out of the studio but all the rest went to the gallery and I hung all but 2, the rejected ones having been part of a previous collection which was shown there a few years back. To me the idea is simple – I paint on the back of the glass, scratch out the image, apply more paint, scratch off more and so on. But trying to describe this to people wasn’t easy so I decided to do a demonstration on one day… but no one turned up so I just had a happy couple of hours finishing a new piece of work.

The paintings that have had the most comments are my favourites. As I progressed with the technique, I loosened up and did less planning so the results were brighter and more spontaneous. It’s definitely a technique I’ll continue with. I’ve already completed another and taken it the step further that I had always intended – several layers of glass in one frame. This was a wedding present for my niece, a tree painting with leaves on the top layer, the trees and ground in the mid layer and the light, sky and vibrant colours on the back layer. Another clear layer behind that to protect it and it can be hung on a wall or in a window and works from both sides. Sadly I forgot to take a photo in the manic run up to the wedding. And the wedding is another story to come – a fabulous day.

The exhibition continues until Saturday 9th August, open 10 – 4 Tues to Sat, also open 5-9pm Wed 6th August for tea and cake while you view!