Summer 2021
An invitation to the Private View of the Summer Affordable Art Fair in Battersea Park on Wednesday
7 July, 5.30-8.30. We have a few Private View Invitations left. If you would like one of these please visit https://aafbattersea.seetickets.com/timeslot/affordable-art -fair-battersea? outputStyle=Default&pageIndex=1&pageSize=30
and select a time to visit and enter NIBPV. Alternatively, we have Invitations for the late view on Thursday 8th and Friday 9th July 5.30-9.30. Enter NIBLV Finally, we have half price tickets for general admission. Enter NIBHP Front Cover: Joseph Davey. ‘Two’. Sold.
MICHELE GRIFFITHS ‘Two Ways’ Mixed Media on Plaster. 62 x 62 cm. £2000
MICHELE GRIFFITHS ‘Grounded’ Mixed Media on Plaster. 62 x 62 cm. £2000.
DARKNESS into LIGHT Michèle Griffiths at Chichester Cathedral July 2021 Darkness and light are words that come readily to hand. They connect with our everyday existence, divided as it is into night and day. But the moment ‘into’ is inserted between these two words, as in the title of this exhibition Darkness into Light, they become conjoined in a way that suggests a relationship less fixed, more mutable. Michèle Griffiths’ recent paintings deliberately play, not with logic and certainty, but with the possibility of change and movement. She remarks in the catalogue that in Hope the cross near the centre of the painting, imitating an ancient piece of graffiti, can be taken as a religious symbol or as an anchor in the composition. These are, after all, immersive pictures, inviting us into a seemingly haphazard, non-didactic world. They act as a theatre for the soul, offering an opportunity for our own experiences to shape not only our looking but also the content of this art. These new works are far removed from Griffiths’ previous ‘Prana’ series, a set of serene land- and seascapes that drew on finely adjusted hues and tones to establish the illusion of depth and space. Part of their strong appeal was the sure-footed access they offered the viewer, into an imagined scene, empty, restful, and spacious. In contrast, this new work exposes the struggle involved in the making of these paintings. The complex process begins with the arbitrary roughening of the surface with a layer of plaster, and from then on layers are steadily built up, rubbed off and reworked, as the painting evolves. Like Bridget Riley, Michèle Griffiths often begins with no specific associations or title in mind, and criteria for judging progress only develop as the work evolves, when sensations begin to indicate the direction that it will take. These criteria, as Riley herself admits, ‘are not attached to anything particular, but when I recognise them in a painting, in certain abstract relationships there, then I feel that I have got something real, that I am on firm ground and can build’.1 A sense of building is an apt metaphor for Michèle Griffiths’ recent paintings. Not only are there suggestions in some of doors and windows, but in many of them the surface of the picture is so scuffed and scarred that it begins to look like a time-worn wall. Graffiti, as found by the artist in Chichester Cathedral and other churches, is then added, reminding us of the passing waves of human history that attach themselves through these marks to sacred buildings. The Church invites us to recognise that most were made, not as an act of vandalism but a form of prayer, the double, over-lapping ‘V’ acting as symbol to ward off evil, and the vertical incisions made by the sword of a crusader said to have been completed with a horizontal line across the vertical on their safe return home. But the most important intensifying ingredient in these paintings is the handling of light and its relation to darkness. It takes on a variety of roles: it seeps through veils of colour or suddenly flares with unexpected brightness; it can soften, bleach, darken, flatten or semi- obscure other colours like a floating mist. In places we can discover that the artist has used iridescent paint, which, as with certain shells, can only be seen when looked at from a certain point of view and which disappears again when we change our position. 1 Bridget Riley, The Eye’s Mind: Bridget Riley: Collected Writings 1965-1999, (London: Thames & Hudson, 1999), p.128
The paradox, time and again explored in these paintings, is the relationship between surface and depth, and the way painting can somehow abruptly tip from one to the other. Similarly, these paintings remind us that dark and light can be inverted. After all, light makes visible but can also blind us as to what is there to be seen. Darkness, on the other hand, can become fertile ground. Although the famous opening chapter of St John’s gospel presents light and darkness in stark opposition, the ‘dark night the soul’ is claimed by some to be a part of spiritual progress. Henry Vaughan’s famous poem ’The Night’, takes this paradox further. His poem begins by reminding us that Nicodemus sought out Christ at night, needing answers to his questions. From then onwards the poem turns the more usual understanding of darkness and light on its head. of theological thought, both Christian and Buddhist. In the same way that the use of iridescent paint introduces an unexpected tenderness and intimacy, Griffiths’ titles also open pathways for thought and memory. An element of personal history lies behind the artist’s choice of title for Transcending Sorrow, in which can be found the most dramatic use of light and dark, but it is also particularly apt title for today’s world, struggling to emerge from a pandemic. Griffiths’ titles add another layer of resonance to these engaging works. They are in harmony with the time in which we live. In themselves, these paintings are also in harmony with each other, and together form a remarkable unity. Frances Spalding 2021 (From the introduction to the Catalogue ‘Darkness into Light’, an Exhibition of Paintings by Michele Griffiths In Chichester Cathedral June/July 2021)
Anthony Murphy. ‘Apres le Bain’ 61 x 46 cm . Oils on Canvas. £6000
Anthony Murphy. ‘La Baignoire’. 73 x 50 cm. Oils on Canvas. £6000.
Unfinished and in the Artist’s Studio.
Roo Waterhouse. About Florence' 41 x 51 cm. Oils on Canvas. Framed. £1750.
£17
Roo Waterhouse. ‘Architectural Heritage'
Oils on Canvas. Framed. 41 x 51 cm. £1750.
Judith Brenner. 'Solfrid Kneeling' Mixed Media on Paper. 73 x 97 Framed. £1250
Judith Brenner. 'Sarita Standing' Mixed Media on Paper. Mounted only. 70 x 94 cm £790
Judith Brenner. 'Jaipur Pinks II'
Acrylics and Mixed Media on Canvas. 95 x 95 cm £2950
Joseph Davey 'Jump' Oils on Linen. 46 x 35 cm. Unframed. £650.
Joseph Davey 'A full Cherry tree'. Oils on Panel. 28 x 35 cm. Unframed. £650
Henrietta Stuart Coastal Path (Outcrop). Oils. 45 x 45 Cm. Framed. £800 Henrietta Stuart Marrakech Blues. 45 x 45 cm. Oils. Framed. £800
Henrietta Stuart ‘Coastal Dreaming’ 45 x 45 cm. Oils. Framed. £800
Anthony Murphy. ‘The Chefs’. 65 x 50 cm . Oils on canvas. £6000 . Anthony Murphy. ‘Le Boudoir’. 61 x 46 cm . Oils on Canvas. £6000
'Francis Farmar. Tamworth Pigs in a Wiltshire Vale'. 51 x 51 cms. Framed. Watercolours. £2250.
Francis Farmar. ‘Fontmell Down with Longhorn Cattle and Hornet Moth’. 51 x 51 cm. Framed Watercolours. £2250
DAVID HENSEL. The initial drawing of a ballet dancer was done on white paper a little larger than A4 size in pink, yellow and blue-green pencil, diagrammatically describing poise and form, one of a series, rehearsing until I felt I could capture the movement. I have been doing figure drawings with bright colour on black paper for several years, as that allows a sculptural description of spatial depth and a glow of light. I’ve also done a lot of colour photography, using film, where the process produces a negative of the colours, from which a positive print is made. The negative colours are fascinating, and these pink and yellow drawings were really done as negatives, from which a positive print would equate to those coloured drawings on black. It’s a way to arrive at a description of movement and light. As well as drawing from the model directly, I like to draw from photographs, photographing the model repeatedly until we reach a clarity of pose. I often take stereoscopic photos, which allow me to see the 3D form when drawing. I’ll draw from several of these photographs, which allows the stages of rehearsal necessary to understand the complexity of the pose and make it look simple, and to arrive at a composition which works. The colours used are not intended as representative of visual appearance. Colour has a life of its own and can convey perceived qualities or aspects of the subject that would be lost in a more photographic approach. Coloured marks kept apart from each other lead the eye a dance, where the choreography transfers to the image. A drawing can express the hand of the artist, the sketchiness becoming part of the aliveness of an image. Keeping to a linear description of the figure’s form and gesture rather than a more visual representation also seems allow an enlargement to enhance that sense of aliveness, and the original pencil drawing was done with the intention that it would be enlarged as a negative. The print here is such an enlargement, done on aluminium, which gives a flat, hard and glossy durable surface which I feel contrasts and presents the image well.
David Hensel.
C Type print on Aluminium.. 1. 46 x 62 cm. or 2. 69 x 91 cm or 3. 122 x 91 cm. 1. Signed Limited Edition of 25 (46 x 62 cm) or 2. Edition of 12 (69 x 91 cms) or 3. Edition of 5 (122 x 91 cm). 1. £550 or 2. £1250 or 3. £1850.
Shirley Trevena R.I. (Next Page)
'Still Life on a Marble Table'. Watercolours. Exhibited: The Royal Institute of Watercolours 1998. Exhibited: Francis Kyle Gallery. 48 x 38 cm. Framed 74 x 64 cm. £1850. Shirley Trevena R.I. 'Green Shirt and High Heels'. Watercolours. Exhibited: The Royal Institute of Watercolours 1998. Exhibited: Francis Kyle Gallery. 48 x 38 cm. Framed 74 x 64 cm. £1850. Oranges and blacks jump into the mix with pinks and greens and whites. Another virtuoso display of composition and line by the internationally acclaimed Shirley Trevena. She took the 'Aunt Emily' school of painting still lifes in watercolour by the scruff of it's neck and transformed how others treated perspective, composition, line and colour. She has been a member of the Royal institute of Painters in Watercolours since 1994 and in her first year won the prestigious Winsor & Newton Award. The Following year she won the Llewellen Prize and in 2007 the John Blockley Prize. In 2014 she was a finalist in the World Watercolour Competition. In 2017 she won the Winsor & Newton Award for the second time. In 2010 she exhibited as a special guest at the 7th International Watercolour Festival in Antwerp, Belgium. In 2011 she exhibited as one of 5 international watercolour artists at the St Cyr sur Mer Biennale in the south of France. In 2016 she exhibited as one of the ‘top 20 foreign watercolour Master artists of the world’ at the Qingdao-Jimo International Watercolour Exhibition in China. In 2018 she will be exhibiting as one of the ‘best watercolour artists from all over the world’ at the Masters of Watercolour 2018 exhibition in St Petersburg, Russia.
She is author of 4 best selling books: Taking Risks with Watercolour, Vibrant Watercolours, Breaking the Rules of Watercolour and Shirley Trevena Watercolours.
Judith Kuehne. ‘Celadon Series. Shadowed Bowl.’ Oils on coppered Linen Board. 40 x 50 cm. Framed. £1600.
Judith Kuehne. ‘Older Rose Bowl 2’.’ Oils on coppered Linen Board. 40 x 50 cm. Framed. £1600.
Www.nicholasbowlby.co.uk. info@nicholasbowlby.co.uk 00 44 7831 255691 Trevor Newton. Nancy Lancaster’s Yellow Room 1. 21 x 30 cm. Ink, wash, coloured pencil. £500.