Parallel//Paysage
Parallel//Paysage is an exhibition of new work by Rachel Duckhouse and Bronwen Sleigh. In October 2014 they travelled to Quebec City for an exchange exhibition between Glasgow Print Studio and Engramme. While there they undertook a research trip travelling through Quebec, Labrador and Newfoundland funded by the Bet Low Trust. This latest exhibition presents the divergent responses of these two artists to their shared experience of the same landscapes through printmaking, drawing and sculpture.
Parallel//Paysage runs from 9th April to 1st May 2016 at Glasgow Print Studio. You can find out more about Bronwen and Rachel's collaboration via their blog Multiple//Parallel.
A detail from one of Bronwen's etchings
Bronwen editions a new lithograph print
A detail from Rachel's pen and ink drawing 'Saguenay ii'
One of Bronwen's etching plates
Rachel inks up her 'Black Wood' linocut
Rachel's 'Black Wood' linocut and 'White Wood' pen and ink drawing
Pages from one of Rachel's sketchbook
BE / ONE
I've been meaning to post something about our friends at Caught By The River's latest audio release on their Rivertones label for a few days. What's been delaying my post is thinking about a way of explaining just how good it is.
I'm still trying to work that out, but as it seems to be (justifiably) selling extremely quickly (the first vinyl edition has sold out) I wanted to get this posted before it sells out completely.
It's the first long player on the Rivertones label and is the soundtrack to Wolfgang Buttress' award winning pavilion at the 2015 Milan Expo. The Hive is an immersive, multi-sensory experience inspired by groundbreaking UK scientific research into the health of bees and the audio release is a hypnotic conceptualisation of their life, work and living environment. The musicians involved in the project improvised in the key of C, playing along to a live feed of sounds from the a beehive.
A series of live performances are underway. Luke Turner has just reviewed the Nottingham debut of the Be collective's performance...
"It’s a genuinely immersive experience, as cosy as if we are in the hive itself. Indeed, there’s an old-fashioned wicker hive on stage, just in front of the keyboards. Although bees communicate by vibration, amplified recordings of their activities are audible to the human ear, and the sound of tooting queens and their subjects’ waggle-dancing hums in and out of droning melodica, Tibetan singing bowls, accordion, cello, guitar and occasional vocals." Read in full
There's not much more than I say other than do what you can to get a copy of the CD or vinyl release before it's too late.
This summer the installation will come to Kew Gardens. Find out more
Jonny Hannah’s Main Street
If you've yet to visit, we'd recommend you head up/down/across to Jonny Hannah's Main Street exhibition at Yorkshire Sculpture Park which runs until 28th February 2016.
Jonny has transformed the YSP Visitor Centre, creating three pop-up shops made entirely from his 2D and 3D artworks.
The exhibition – a tribute to high streets of the past, lined with independent retailers stocking an assortment of curiosities – features a collection of new linocuts, screenprints, and paintings. Incorporating strong colours and typography, and inspired by Hannah’s love of jazz music, the works are reminiscent of 1940s shop signs and concert posters. The exhibition also features Heavy Wool Products Come to McVouty’s – a limited edition screenprint printed at The Penfold Press in Selby, created exclusively for YSP – together with a small hand-painted and printed edition of unique wooden ukuleles. View a selection of the works exhibited
Find out more via the YSP website - you might also like to take this expert's guide to the exhibition or book a ticket for The Darktown Valentine's Cabaret.
Jonny Hannah at YSP
Here's a great little film featuring Jonny Hannah talking about his current exhibition Main Street at Yorkshire Sculpture Park.
The exhibition features three pop-up shops made entirely from the artist’s 2D and 3D artworks, all of which are available to buy. Navigate Main Street using Hannah’s traditional hand-painted signs suspended above the YSP Centre concourse; natter with the owner of the Record Store; and nip to The Hand and Heart junk shop to pick up anything your heart desires!
You'll even spy Jonny's wallpaper for St Jude's, The Darktown Billets-Doux.
The exhibition runs until the end of February 2016 at Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton, Wakefield WF4 4LG. Find out more
Edward Bawden at Christmas
Edward Bawden worked with London luxury provisions store Fortnum & Mason for a number years either side of World War II, designing many catalogues, menu cards, brochures and other ephemera.
Bawden's work for the store was captured in Mainstone Press' wonderful Entertaining À La Carte. Unfortunately this limited edition book sold out some time ago but copies can still be found online from time to time.
Here are a few seasonal images of Bawden's work for Fortnum & Mason.
Nature Study, Late Summer
Earlier in the year I was delighted to be asked by The Pallant House Gallery in Chichester to produce a new screen print to celebrate the opening of their latest exhibition, David Jones: Vision and Memory.
I've written about the inspiration for this new six colour print in the latest Pallant House Gallery magazine, but you can find out more online.
I was particularly influenced by David Jones' Flora in Calix-Light (1950) and Briar Cup (1932). Whilst working on the print I visited Kettle's Yard, focussing on the collections of natural objects such as pale grey-brown feathers scattered upon a shallow glass dish, a small glass jug of asters beside a twist of seaweed stem and Jim Ede's pebble spiral on a simple wooden table.
A visit to The Lumber Room
In September 2015 we took a visit to Mark Hearld's curated exhibition at York Art Gallery, 'The Lumber Room - Unimagined Treasures'.
The Upper North Gallery has been transformed to reflect one artist’s vision of a Lumber Room – a room of miscellaneous stored objects and artefacts.
For the past two years, York-based artist Mark Hearld has been visiting the stores of the Yorkshire Museum and York Castle Museum as well as York Art Gallery researching the objects and artworks to include in the exhibition.
His choices include textiles, costume, oil paintings, works on paper, furniture, and taxidermy, many items of which have not been on public display before.
Alongside these are new works that Mark has created especially for the show which are inspired by the collections. The exhibition is influenced by a short story called The Lumber Room, by Saki, which was read to him in an English class when he was 15.
Mark explains…
“Since I heard Saki’s story I have always been intrigued by the idea of a locked room that contained treasures so wonderful they are beyond what your mind can imagine. In this exhibition I wanted to create the sense of excitement and wonder that you get when you discover the key to the room and see the “forbidden” objects for the first time.”
View further images from our visit or find out more about the exhibition.
You might also like to see Mark's range of fabrics and wallpapers for St Jude's.
