WINTER 2018 Gallery Selection
PAINTINGS
ANDREW BIRD
Based in Derbyshire, and a frequent visitor to Cornwall, I find a huge amount of inspiration for my paintings from both of these places. I love the hustle and bustle of harbours and coastal life, as well as the rugged nature of the landscapes of Derbyshire and Cornwall. With my work, I try to capture an essence of a place or situation as well as trying to simplify the form and colour of what I see. The images are invariably made using sketched ideas and references from memory or the work is developed instinctively. I am interested in the relationships made using colour and contrasts as well as the interplay of forms and gestural markmaking. Elements within a painting are based on fleeting images, imagination and experiences, which perhaps aren’t visually representative. if compared to a snapshot, but for me, encapsulate a particular slice of time.
ANDREW BIRD
BECKIE REED Beckie Reed graduated from Loughborough University in 2004, with a first in Fine Art Painting. Since then she has had solo exhibitions in Cambridge, Norfolk and London. She was accepted for the RA Summer show in 2014. She regularly exhibits in and in international art fairs as far afield as New York, Hong Kong, Singapore and Toronto. Her work is held in private collections all over the world. Beckie Reed is continually drawn to woodland and treescapes. The tree trunks and branches are dribbled on, requiring control and patience but also allowing space for accidents to happen; giving the work a looseness and freedom that’s contrasted with the controlled detailed areas. Each dribble captures a moment and is a permanent mark on the canvas that can’t be undone. It’s the juxtaposition of loose washes, splattered paint, dribbled branches and detailed, precise areas that gives the work its energy and vibrancy. “I feel free and alive when I’m in the countryside on a long walk and there’s something magical about being in the woods. I love the changing light and shadows and hope to create beautiful paintings that create a sense of escapism for the viewer”. ‘Folklore’ Acrylic on canvas 80cm x 80cm £2300
BECKIE REED
‘Autumn Fragments’ Acrylic on canvas 100cm x 100cm £2995
‘Bewilderment’ Acrylic on canvas 80cm x 60cm £1800
KRISTAN Kristan studied Fine Art in Nottingham and Birmingham before moving back to Sheffield several years ago, drawn back by the open landscape of the Dark Peak, with which his work is often synonymous. His heavily textured paintings of the moors and gritstone edges in all seasons and weather describe and explore the fall of light, cloud and shadows over immense distances. Although his paintings are usually specific to particular places in the landscape, abstracted visionary qualities become uppermost. The layered depths in these landscapes correspond to the memory and association connected with familiar places. Baggaley knows the land so well that the moors in all their guises have become a metaphor for intimations of hope and harmony that are only to be found in nature; he believes that in painting the familiar subject matter, the inessential falls away leaving the essential. The surface of the work is all-important and he drags and cuts the material around the canvas, using forks and combs to plough the paint as a farmer may work his fields. In his technique he adds fine sand to the oil paint, which he applies with large palette knives and decorator’s brushes
PAULA SHARPLES
I graduated from Reigate School of Art in the 70’s with a degree in Textile Design. I then worked as a freelance designer producing designs for furnishing, wallpaper, bedding and giftwrap for companies such as Coloroll, John Wilman Interiors and John Wolf Decorative Fabrics in the USA I have also worked as a ceramics pattern designer for companies such as Portmeirion and Churchill China. This and the landscape surrounding my home in the Peak District has strongly influenced my paintings.
Using acrylics, inks and graphite, mainly on linen but also on paper and canvas, I build layer upon layer of paint to give a feeling of depth, often positioning flowers in favourite china against a landscape backdrop. Design and colour are very important to me and there is usually a decorative element and contemporary feel to my work.
‘My..paintings are concerned with layering and archaeological substrata appearing quarried from the raw materials of the landscape itsel…’
RUSSELL FRAMPTON
Russell Frampton, painter and musician, was born in 1961 in Hampshire. He was educated at Portsmouth and at Exeter Art College (B.A. in Fine Art), later taking his M.A. in Fine Art at the University of Plymouth and now living in
His landscape based abstract paintings seem quarried to produce an archaeological substrata, often with the aid of collage and small, detailed areas of drawing. His work reflects his interest in landscape. Using dynamic line and colour, he produces paintings that synthesise the many elements of a place. His work is energetic, yet retains detail and clarity, using layering techniques to build up a level of complexity of surface
PAUL STONE Paul Stone’s paintings are meticulously observed and make reference to the Dutch and Spanish Still Life paintings of the 17th and 18th centuries. The compositions are focused on the relationships between the objects and their environment. They invite the viewer into an intimate space to seek out the symbolism of the objects and the ‘stage’ they occupy. Paul Stone on his still life collection… “At the core of my paintings is the search for a precision of focus on the formal properties of mundane objects that have an everyday, unremarkable presence in our lives. As the majority of the inanimate objects are gathered from local charity shops, they also record a previous unknown transience moment when they are suddenly cast out for whatever reason. This results in a familiar and nostalgic content, and for me a more intimate relationship with their representation.”
MARK PRESTON
Born in Derby in 1976, Mark showed an early interest in art and nature and after gaining a distinction in art and design, he went on to study illustration at Anglia University, Cambridge. However it was painting trips with his father Rex, to the Peak District, Cornwall and Scotland that really inspired him to become a landscape painter. Mark paints in acrylics and works mainly in situ with relatively little time spent in the studio.
“For me, experiencing the landscape and elements directly is essential to attempt to capture them in paint. I just need to be there to respond to the situation and the spirit of the landscape” This direct approach of working from nature, allows him time to observe and experience the subtle changes in colour, light and atmosphere, enabling him to build up an understanding and awareness of the places he paints. One mainstay of Mark’s thinking comes from John Constable’s declaration that “Nature is the fountain’s head, the source from whence all originality must spring”.
Nature is the fountain’s head, the source from whence all originality must spring John Constable
ESTE MACLEOD
A Brush with Light The paintings of Andrew Macara
6-28 MAY 2017
Rex Preston Solo Exhibition
1 - 23 APRIL 2017
We set up gallerytop in 2004 and since then we’ve curated over 80 exhibitions and showcases representing hundreds of artists. The focus of the business rests on the quality of the work we select and the relationship between the you the customer, the artist and the gallery. It’s a three way partnership based on a mutual desire to get the very best. We aim to bring together the work of artists and designers with people searching for beautiful things for their homes. We make it easy and enjoyable for you to buy original art – online as well as in the gallery – including painting, limited edition prints, sculpture, ceramics, glass and jewellery. We also curate several exhibitions a year in the gallery presenting some of the very best artwork available in the UK. When you purchase from us you can be confident that you are getting work from among the most accomplished artists and makers in the UK.
7 JANUARY - 12 FEBRUARY 2017
Kristan Baggaley on Stanage Edge An exhibition of dramatic paintings of the Derbyshire landscape
11 NOVEMBER 2017 - 14 JANUARY 2018
Summer Exhibition
An exhibition of paintings, prints, sculpture, ceramics and glass
8 JULY - 27 AUGUST 2017
1 - 29 OCTOBER 2016
11 JUNE - 10 JULY 2016
Botanical
An exhibition of paintings inspired by flowers
3 JUNE - 2 JULY 2017
Derbyshire Landscape
20 FEBRUARY - 13 MARCH 2016
AN EXHIBITION OF PAINTINGS BY KRISTAN BAGGALEY, COLIN HALLIDAY, JONATHAN BRIGGS AND MARK PRESTON
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BOTANICAL Natural Selection
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ON SATURDAY 8 JUNE 2013 GALLERYTOP IS OPENING A PRESTIGIOUS EXHIBITION OF PAINTINGS & LIMITED EDITION ARTISTS PRINTS BY FOUR OF THE MOST HIGHLY ACCLAIMED BRITISH ARTISTS. THE EXHIBITION RUNS FROM 6 JUNE TO 6 JULY 2013. VISIT OUR WEBSITE AT WWW.GALLERYTOP.CO.UK
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Kristan Baggaley On Kinder Scout
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6 - 30 OCTOBER 2012
PAULSTONE SLIPWARE NEW STILL LIFE PAINTINGS CURATED BY JOSIE WALTER