STYLE | Feature
On the road to Binnel Bay, I met… The ei ght resident a r tists of Bi n nel Bay Stud ios a re open i ng thei r doors once aga i n i n Aug ust to g ive v isitors the cha nce to see thei r work where it is created. Style caught up w ith them to f i nd out more about th is i nspi r i ng place.
Celia Wi lki nson Celia’s exuberant canvasses fill the walls of her studio at Binnel. “They’re landscapes but not always about the landscape – very much about me,” says Celia. “I don’t know what I’m doing until I do it. They’re semi abstract with layers of colour. I start with broad brush strokes or splashes of colour and once you have something on the canvas you have a sense of perspective. “I’ve been here for eight years – I like the privacy and quiet and the space,” adds Celia. Her large airy studio has tall windows to a small garden area, skylights, and daylight lighting. Influenced by her surroundings, one of her paintings is about the erosion of
the south Wight, and others feature the strange yellow light we had when the Sahara dust was in the sky. “I do a lot of horse riding, and this inspires me. The downward projection of the paintings is because I’m high up on a horse. Your eyes never stop looking do they. It’s an all-consuming thing being a painter, and I don’t work from photographs. “Last year in October I had some work at Florence Biennale and I won a Lorenzo il Magnifico Award for painting. “We (at Binnel) don’t all exhibit on the Island, so the open day gives Islanders the opportunity to see what we do down here. celiawilkinson.co.uk
Matthew Chambers “Although we’re a group of studios there’s not much traffic, which suits me fine. I bring my dog in with me and we go for a walk to the beach most days. It’s a mostly gentle and calm place to work, especially at this time of year. “The surrounding landscape isn’t integral to my work, but being amongst it certainly helps with the flow, so it does feed my work in this way. “I make abstract sculptural pieces that aim to convey a beauty and serenity. I like to play with the three dimensions in
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the works by making exploratory forms that take the viewer’s eye through the layers, whether outside or going in. “I’ve an exhibition opening at the New Craftsman Gallery in St Ives on July 2nd, and in the spring of next year I’ve a show planned alongside David Firmstone in the Campden Gallery in the Cotswolds. “I’m also getting a 5ft bronze cast at the moment, partly inspired by my surrounding landscape. I’ve looked at the rhythm in movement, including the flow of waves. The work will be installed at Marchmont House in the Scottish Borders on completion.” matthewchambers.net
