The Christmas Exhibition

This Christmas at Curwen Gallery we have noticed a certain tendency in ourselves to be attracted to art involving animals. The most exciting of these works have found their way into our Christmas Exhibition.

 It's a time that we allow ourselves to indulge our love of all the best work that we come across throughout the year. As usual the show is varied and full of all sorts of different works,reflecting the diversity of artists which we show. However, this year, more than any other, we seem to have erred on the side of "animal" for reasons unknown to us.

Anita Mandl, Little Blue Penguin, bronze

Some of our most consistently popular work comes from Brendan Hansbro- a long term gallery staple and one of the best contemporary printmakers we know of. His solo show earlier this year contained over fifty of these exquisite little characters all produced as wood engravings. We have selected a few of our favourites for the Christmas Exhibition.

Brendan Hansbro, Kitten, wood engraving 

Gallery newcomer Mark Ward makes an interesting contribution to the exhibition with his Dodo which has been exceptionally popular with our visitors. 'Dodo' is a surreal work, painted from direct observation of a miniature sculpture which he has compiled from found objects.

Mark Ward, Dodo, acrylic on canvas

Another newcomer is Alison Elliot, winner of the Curwen Gallery Prize for Figurative Painting, which we held in September. Her large paintings of horses and a giraffe, which won her the competition, contrast dramatically with her new miniatures, however her magnificent skill is evidenced even on this smaller scale.We look forward to her upcoming solo exhibition this June.

Alison Elliot, Frank Nichols, oil on gesso panel

The Christmas Show is a great time to view a small selection of the work of most of the artists that we represent. A good proportion of The Christmas Exhibition is made up of artists that will go on to have solo exhibitions later in the year. If you are interested in visiting the gallery to see what types of works we specialise in, then the Christmas Exhibition is a perfect opportunity.

The exhibition is open until 23rd December and many works can be seen online here with prices. If you would like any information on any of the artists shown online please call the gallery on 0207 323 4700 or email jill@curwengallery.com.

Macmillan Support Fundraising Weekend

Saturday 29th November 11am-8pm
Sunday 30th November   11am-6pm

The Macmillan Support Weekend is a charitable iniative we have been running for over 30 years.

The weekend is a fund raising art exhibition which runs for two days only. Of every sale 10% of the artwork's price is donated to Macmillan Cancer Support.

New sculptor Sadie Brockbank will be showing Small Prickly Bear a beautifully patinated bronze measuring 13 x 11 x 7cm.

 Originally started in 1977 at her own home by the gallery director, Jill Hutchings, the exhibition has been running every year since. Jill's particular connection with Macmillan Cancer Support
comes from her backround in nursing at the oncology wing at the Middlesex Hospital, where she looked after cancer patients.

Brendan Hansbro's classic wood engraving Octopus will feature in the show along with many of his other prints from the popular Animals collection

The exhibition is traditionally made up of a mixture of our gallery artists as well as artists that are new to us. This year old favourites of the Macmillan Support exhibition such as Jo Barry, Henry Walsh, Lee Sellers and Brendan Hansbro (above) will be joined by new artists Alex Kirkpatrick (below) Sadie Brockbank (above) and Robin Spalding.
    

 Alex Kirkpatrick, an recent addition to the Curwen Gallery stable, will be showing Biplex Perca, a new bronze sculpture based on a cross section of the shell.

Every year the exhibition raises money, as well as awareness, for the charity. It is also a great opportunity to see a more eclectic mix of artwork than is usually shown by the gallery.

Old favourite David Rhys Jones will be showing his very reasonably priced (£35-45!) ceramics, which are always popular with Christmas shoppers.

The show is only on for the weekend of 29/30th November 2014. Buyers are free to take purchases home with them so try to arrive early on the Saturday if you're interested in a particular item.

For more information see the gallery website http://www.curwengallery.co.uk/gallery/macmillansupport/title.htm .

New Bronzes : Alex Kirkpatrick's Nautilus Shell

Curwen Gallery have just accepted the work of a new sculptor, Alex Kirkpatrick, whose beautifully finished bronze shells are causing a lot of interest amongst our visitors.

This sculpture pictured is inspired by a cross section of the nautilus shell, a mollusc of ancient origin which has remained unchanged for 500 million years.

Each shell is first made in clay.

Alex works from a small bronze foundry in Lancashire that he made in his shed. Each aspect of the process, from the initial moulding to the casting and finishing of each sculpture, is completed by Alex himself.

Alex pouring molten bronze into the Nautilus shell mold

Each sculpture is made first in clay, then moulded in silicon to produce the sculpture in wax. The wax shell is then encased in another mould, this time made of heat resistant ceramic.

Grinding and polishing the bronze shell

The wax shell is then burnt out of the ceramic mould, leaving a cavity to pour in the molten bronze. Once the bronze has cooled in the mold it can be broken out and finished with a grinding tool and chemical patination.

The finished "Lightning Nautilus Shell",bronze, 39 x 29 x 12cm, 7.8kg,  £3500

Alex Kirkpatrick's "Lightning Nautilus Shell" will be showing in the Christmas show (4th-23rd December) and his "Biplex Perca" and "Marbled Tun" will be showing in our Macmillan Cancer Support weekend (29th - 30th November).

 http://www.curwengallery.co.uk/gallery/macmillansupport/title.htm .

Lucy Willis: Gardens and Other Paintings

5-26th November 2014

Private View: Tuesday 4th November, 6-8pm

Lucy Willis’ new collection of watercolours are inspired both by her travels abroad as well as places closer to home in England. Beautiful beach scenes and stunning interiors from Greece, houses and rivers from journeys through France and some quintessential English country gardens feature in this exhibition.

Corner of the Kitchen Garden, watercolour, 37 x 56cm, £1950

Willis’ sensitivity to details of architecture or features of a place, along with a wonderful portrayal of light within each location can be seen throughout, and these characteristic features are much admired by followers of her work.

Pine Tree Shadows, 29 x 42cm, £850

Lucy Willis trained at the Ruskin School of Art and since then has travelled widely, taking inspiration from many places to fuel her painting. She has tutored many painting groups in various countries across the world and written two books on the subject of watercolour painting. Exhibitions include numerous solo exhibitions and group exhibitions all across the UK. 

Girl with a Parasol, Lijiang, China, 24 x 36cm, £850

She won the BP Portrait Award for portraits of Shepton Mallet Prison inmates, following her artist residency there. She was elected a member of the Royal West of England Academy in 1993.

For a full online catalogue of the exhibition: http://www.curwengallery.co.uk/gallery/willis14/title.htm 

Gallery Artist Julia Brooker on BBC Wales Challenging EU Pigment Ban

Gallery artist Julia Brooker has been working with paint manufacturer Spectrum to challenge an EU ban on pigments containing the chemical Cadmium. The ban, intended to prevent the chemical entering the watercourse, could potentially cause paints containing cadmium to be banned in the next few years.

Julia Brooker with a recently finished commission for a client in Hong Kong

Many artists, including Julia, say the risk to artists is minimal and that the pigment is essential for producing the paints they use.

Some work in progress in Julia's studio

Julia Brooker will be having a joint show with sculptor Clare Bigger ar Curwen Gallery in February 2015.
Click here for the online catalogue of Julia's 2013 solo show with Curwen Gallery. http://www.curwengallery.co.uk/gallery/brooker13/title.htm

CURWEN GALLERY PRIZE FOR FIGURATIVE PAINTING: An Exhibition of the Shortlisted Artists

08-29 October 2014

Selected by

Sir Peter Blake (Artist), Anthony Green RA (Artist),

Nicholas Usherwood (Features Editor, Galleries Magazine), Jill Hutchings (Director, Curwen Gallery)

Private View & Prize Announcements on Tuesday 7th October 6-8pm

Two prize winners will be announced during the evening

Winner of the Curwen Gallery Prize for Figurative Painting (£1000 and a solo exhibition at Curwen Gallery)

Winner of the Odgers Berndtson Purchase Prize

Alison Elliot

The work of eighteen artists feature in this exhibition, each having been selected from the many submissions that were made to Curwen Gallery’s first ever prize for figurative painting. 

The panel of esteemed judges, Artists Sir Peter Blake and Anthony Green RA, and Nicholas Usherwood, Features Editor of 'Galleries' magazine joined Jill Hutchings, Director of Curwen Gallery, in making the final selection of artists.

This collection of works shows some of the great diversity in subject matter, style and approach in contemporary figurative painting.

Alison Elliott’s life-sized baby giraffe creates a huge impact as its sits at over two metres high, filling the wall from floor to ceiling. At the other end of the spectrum, Jeremy Galton still draws the viewer’s attention, albeit more quietly, with his exquisite still life of a humble hard boiled egg.

Jeremy Galton

Alongside more representational works including The Humanist (Self Portrait inspired by Erwin Panofsky) by Michael Sangster, and Richard Dack’s coastal scenes, more surreal or dreamlike imagery is seen in the work of Sandy Damon, Eileen Schaer or Josh Hollingshead. 

 In Hollingshead’s ambitiously large and detailed work Imaginary Gallery, famous works of art cover the vast hanging space from hundreds of well known artists throughout history.

Michael Sangster

One of these eighteen shortlisted artists will be announced as the winner of the Curwen Gallery Prize for Figurative Painting at the private view on 7th October, winning not only a cash prize but the opportunity of a solo exhibition at Curwen Gallery in 2015.

Josh Hollingshead

The shortlisted artists are:

Colin Allbrook, Richard Dack, Sandy Damon, Alison Elliot, Jeremy Galton, Josh Hollingshead, Peter Jones, Michael Kirkbride, Mark Lawrence, Jill Leman, Martin Leman, Bridget Moore, Colin Murray, Max Naylor, Michael Sangster, Eileen Schaer, Mark Ward and Robert E Wells.

Richard Dack

For press enquiries please contact Natalie@curwengallery.com 
or call 0207 323 4700

For more information on the exhibition see the website 

http://www.curwengallery.co.uk/prize/index.htm