ChloĂŤ Holt RCA FRSA
Hortulus Animae: Little Garden of the Soul solo exhibition of paintings
‘A time to contemplate, reconnect with nature and discover the beauty of the small things: hear the birds sing, watch the sunlight chase the dappled shadows, and see the garden grow and seasons change’. ChloĂŤ Holt
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The ‘Hortus’ was the name given to the central garden within a Roman home. A place to enjoy the notion of ‘Otium’; a Latin abstract term with a number of meanings, including, time at home, resting, contemplation and academic endeavours. It can have intellectual and virtuous implications, activities that were considered in the Roman world to be artistically valuable... and above all enlightening! In this solo exhibition, Chloë Holt explores the subject of Still Life using ancient objects within the composition, which have naturally inspired her to capture the sense of a distant time; of a light that might have been reflected from the Mediterranean heat onto the walls of the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Holt’s unique method of working in gesso, oil and raw pigment, echoes the crumbling plaster of such Roman temples and have a quiet, contemplative atmosphere. These paintings are interspersed with large works on paper capturing abundant gardens which have been created with loose, expressive marks painted ‘alla prima’.
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Lucia oil, raw pigment and encaustic wax on board in a large antique frame 64 x 77cm (framed size 95.5 x 108cm) 4
Hydria oil, raw pigment and gesso on board in antique frame 48 x 65cm (framed size 62 x 80.5cm) 5
Liber oil, raw pigment and gesso on board in antique frame 67 x 55.5cm (framed size 82 x 71cm) 6
Reverie oil and encaustic wax on board in antique frame 67 x 47cm (framed size 74.5 x 54.5cm) 7
Octavius oil, encaustic wax on board in antique frame 55.5 x 45.5cm (framed size 77.5 x 67cm) 8
Vitis Vinifera oil, raw pigment and gesso on board in antique frame from The Palace of Versailles 57 x 80cm (framed size 82 x 104.5cm) 9
Otium oil, raw pigment and encaustic wax on board in antique frame 35.5 x 44cm (framed size 49 x 58cm) 10
Sanguinello oil and gesso on board in antique frame 33 x 40.5cm (framed size 42.5 x 50.5cm) 11
Terra Rossa oil and gesso on board in antique frame 41.5 x 51cm (framed size 55.5 x 65.5cm) 12
Sunlight & Shadows oil and gesso on board in antique frame 41.5 x 61.5cm (framed size 63 x 75cm) 13
Sea Poppy oil, raw pigment and pastel on Arches oil paint paper 90 x 130cm 14
Grotto Azzura oil and pastel on Arches oil paint paper 88 x 130cm 15
Cera oil, raw pigment and encaustic wax on board in antique frame from The Palace of Versailles 66 x 76cm (framed size 85 x 96cm) 16
Monastic Bowl encaustic wax, raw pigment and oil paint in antique frame from The Palace of Versailles 66 x 76.5cm (framed size 86 x 96cm) 17
Viridarium oil and pastel on Arches oil paint paper 130 w x 90 h cm 18
Reflections oil, raw pigment and pastel on Arches oil paint paper 130 w x 91 cm 19
Las Flores de la Espana water-soluble pastel on Khadi paper 42 x 59.4cm 20
Chloris water-soluble pastel on Khadi paper 42 x 59.4 cm 21
Materia Prima oil, raw pigment and encaustic wax on board in antique, hand-finished frame 77 x 96cm (framed size 92 x 111cm) 22
Primavera oil and gesso on board in antique frame 77 x 92.5cm (framed size 100 x 115cm) 23
Livius oil and gesso on board in antique frame 48 x 71.5cm (framed size 66 x 89cm) 24
Lararium oil and gesso on board in antique frame 32 x 41cm (framed size 44 x 52cm) 25
Illuminate oil and gesso on board in antique frame 47.5 x 65cm 26
Nasturtium I water-soluble pastel on watercolour paper 59.4 x 42cm
Nasturtium II water-soluble pastel on watercolour paper 59.4 x 42cm 27
Angels’ Trumpets water-soluble pastel on Khadi paper 42 x 59.4cm 28
Fioralba oil and pastel on Arches oil paint paper 88 x 130cm 29
Hanging Garden water-soluble pastel on watercolour paper 56.5 x 77cm 30
Chloe Holt, born in 1981, is one of the youngest artists ever to be an elected member of
the Royal Cambrian Academy and was selected by Maurice Cockrill RA, President and Keeper of the Royal Academy, London, in 2012. Holt trained at Manchester Metropolitan University and was accepted into The Royal College of Art. She became a Fellow of the RSA in 2003 and also won a Student Design Award. Other prizes include the “Lorenzo il Magnifico� Prize for works on Paper at Florence Biennale, 2010, and, Winner of the Kyffin Williams Drawing Prize, 2012. Exhibiting regularly in England and Wales, Chloe Holt has had solo exhibitions with David Simon Contemporary in 2017 and 2020.
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Janus raw pigment, oil paint, gesso and encaustic wax on board in antique frame 130.5 x 200.5cm (framed 155 x 226cm)
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