cambridge contemporary art

ceramics,exhibitions

Brenda Hartill, Illona Morrice and Lara Scobie Exhibition

Printmaking, Painting, ceramics, Sculpture, exhibitionscambridge contemporary artComment

cambridge contemporary art is delighted to launch a new exhibition with prints and paintings by Brenda Hartill, sculptures by Illona Morrice and ceramics by Lara Scobie. The exhibition runs from 28th May until 19th June. You and your friends are warmly invited to the exhibition preview on Friday 27th May from 6pm to 7pm.

Brenda Hartill is an innovative British painter and printmaker based in East Sussex. Her work explores the texture, pattern and light of landscape in richly coloured and textured images, often enhanced with silver and gold leaf. Brenda's strong fascination with the primeval, essential structure of the earth and its elements has heavily influenced her prints. While her primary aim is to develop abstract images in the studio, Brenda’s work is firmly rooted in the landscape, and she often finds it necessary to return to it. Whilst known especially for her print-making skills, Brenda has in recent years focussed her attention on a series of watercolours on handmade paper, embossed using her print-making techniques and presses.

 

Brenda Hartill

Cool Sun I

embossed watercolour

Brenda Hartill

Rainbow Storm VI

embossed watercolour

 

Like Brenda Hartill, sculptor Illona Morrice takes her inspiration from the landscape that surrounds her. Living by the sea on the Moray coast in Scotland, Illona uses the rock, stones and wildlife on the beach and in the mountains as a source of creativity. Over the years, Illona has realised she can say more with less, so her sculptures have become more simplified. Her stoneware clay sculptures are individually made by hand, and no two are ever the same. Illona also creates sculptures which are cast in bronze. Each piece is different, and only a small edition is made.

 

Illona Morrice

Penguins

glazed stoneware

Illona Morrice

Terns

glazed stoneware on soapstone

 

Lara Scobie is a ceramicist based in Edinburgh whose work is predominantly concerned with the dynamic interplay between form and pattern. This is explored through the cohesive integration of drawing, surface mark making and volume. Lara is interested in the space that surrounds pattern as much as the hue and texture of the decorated surface. Surface patterns and colour observed in botanical life enable Lara to explore her love of colour and abstract pattern making.

 

Lara Scobie

Bowls

ceramic

Lara Scobie

Set of Pourers

ceramic

 

Brenda Hartill will be giving a talk about her collagraph printing methods, as well as her unique painting and collage techniques on Saturday 18 June at 3pm. Book a free place by email info@cambridgegallery.co.uk, in person at the gallery or over the phone on 01223 324222.

Reg Cartwright, Michael Lythgoe and Sarah Went Exhibition

Painting, ceramics, Woodcambridge contemporary artComment

Grey Still Life with Fish

This May, cambridge contemporary art is proud to present new paintings by Reg Cartwright, accompanied by Sarah Went’s ceramics and Michael Lythgoe’s sculptures. The exhibition runs from 30th April until 22nd May. You are warmly invited to the exhibition preview on Saturday 30th April from 11am to 1pm.

Reg Cartwright is an award-winning painter and illustrator from Leicester whose work has been exhibited around the world. He began his career as a graphic designer and became a full-time painter and illustrator in 1976. As an illustrator, he is well known for a series of picture books for young readers which he created in collaboration with his wife Ann. As a painter, he creates deceptively simple-looking still-lifes in which he renders everyday objects through subtle abstraction to focus on the tone, colour and physical qualities of his subject matter.

Suffolk Estuary

Reg Cartwright returns to cambridge contemporary art for his eighth major exhibition. His paintings continue the tradition of British Modernism, calling to mind that of St Ives School painters Ben Nicholson and William Scott. Working primarily with still life, Reg uses familiar objects such as jugs, plates and flowers as a pretext for examining complex spatial relationships. His paintings are less about the objects he paints and more about achieving a balanced and pleasing composition, attaining this by flattening perspective, omitting non-essential details and focusing on tone.

 

Bewicks Swan

Michael Lythgoe was born in Liverpool in 1950 and trained as an engineer. During a holiday in the Cape Cod region he purchased an old wooden decoy which inspired him to change careers and become a professional artist, creating wooden bird and fish carvings. Inspired by the early North American decoys Michael's stylised curvilinear representations of wildfowl and waders have now evolved into a style and form entirely unique to him. His sculptures are curvaceous and calming, combining the eye of an ornothologist with the precision of an engineer. Each sculpture is unique, carved from blocks of wood and then sympathetically painted.

Two Grass Ruffle Vases

 

Sarah Went is a Cambridge-based contemporary slipware potter who uses the traditional techniques of slip-trailing and sgraffito to create texture and pattern. Her work is hand-thrown on the potter’s wheel and individually decorated. Sarah uses porcelain clay which gives a delicate translucent quality to her work and is perfect for the soft, subtle colours that she uses. When making her glazes, Sarah aims for natural colours reminiscent of the sea, sand and plants around the coast or from her garden. 

Meet the Artist - Marina Bauguil

Meet the artist, ceramicscambridge contemporary art1 Comment

Marina at work in her studio

 

If you have been to our gallery in the past month, you will have noticed the characterful porcelain creatures that are currently populating our front cabinet. These 'Kami', as they are called, are designed to evoke 'the sacred element or spirit which can be contained in everything, expressed in an awe inspiring way.' They are lovingly and delicately created by Marina Bauguil. Marina has answered some questions for us so we can learn more about her wonderful work.

 

How do you go about making a new piece?

Red Fox Spirit

I usually go back to my sketchbook to pick up on my last train of thought. Next, I sit in my work space for a while and become present using a meditative approach, then setting an intention for that working day - this can be as simple as "have fun today" - all the while letting my ideas simmer. After that I get the clay out, put music on and start rolling out small coils, which I hollow out and model. Each piece then appears intuitively, a bit like an information download: I let myself be guided by what the piece is telling me.

 

How did you get started with your art career?

I studied sculpture at Falmouth School of Art and Design for three years and spent a further two studying ceramics in Nottingham. I then worked with a sculptor friend of mine firstly on a community project, then making large sculptures for the artist David Mack. I also worked with a landscape architect making large pieces for gardens and went on to do private commissions for a while, whilst working on my own ceramic pieces in my parents' cellar.

Owl Spirit

What is your preferred medium/colour pallet to use?

Clay is undeniably my preferred medium and over the last two years more specifically paper porcelain. My colour palette changes but I have noticed over the years that I like using turquoise, teal blues and greens.

What inspired the range of work that we have in the gallery?

A long fascination with tribal/ethnographical figurative art traditions such as the Dogū figures of ancient Japan or the Divination figures of Angola. I love the idea that clay holds power, for example, it can be used as a building material for construction or become a recipient for food and water but also a vehicle for the intangible such as emotions,essence or magic. The work in the gallery is partly inspired by this idea, I see my little pieces as contemporary shamanistic objects which hold a power of their own.

Which other artists do you admire?

That's a difficult question as there are so many. I recently discovered the work of Ramesh Nithiyendran which I love, I also admire the work of Claire Curneen, Kristen Brunjes and Grayson Perry.

Wind Spirit

 

Could you describe a typical working day?

A typical working day starts how I described it in the first question. I usually start around 10am and work until 3.30pm when my children come back from school. I often go back to the studio ( which incidentally is my utility room) for a few hours in the evening.

How do you see your work evolving in the future?

My work is a journey, so in a way I discover it as I go along. However, working on such small pieces is a very intense and concentrated process. I used to make very large pieces when I worked in bronze, so I would definitely like to work on larger pieces in the near future.

 

Glynn Thomas Retro-perspective

exhibitions, Demonstrations, Printmaking, Etchingcambridge contemporary artComment

This April, cambridge contemporary art is showing a retrospective of Glynn Thomas’s work in honour of the artist’s 70th birthday.

Glynn Thomas was born in Cambridge in April 1946 and studied illustration and printmaking at the Cambridge School of Art in the 1960s. Glynn then moved to Suffolk, where he is still based today. cambridge contemporary art is delighted to be celebrating Glynn’s career, which spans over five decades. Glynn has been showing at the gallery for over 20 years and is one of the gallery’s best-loved artists. This exhibition will be Glynn’s largest show to date, with hot-off-the-press new etchings, an extensive collection of work created over the last 50 years, and some of his early student work.

 

Cambridge Boat Houses

 

Glynn Thomas specialises in creating limited edition prints from copper-plate etchings which are hand-drawn and painted onto the plate. The entire process, from the direct line drawings in his sketchbook to figuring out the composition and finally etching the plate, is extremely time-consuming. From its conception to the resulting print, one of Glynn's largest etchings can take more than 200 hours of work to create. Each print is individually inked and entirely unique.

St Edwards Passage

 

Glynn Thomas has a very particular take on perspective, hence the title of this exhibition. He often incorporates several points of view to create a more complete overview of a place. In the extremely insightful book "Glynn Thomas: East Anglia, A Different Perspective" by Alan Marshall, Glynn Thomas is quoted as saying:

"I take the view that you are walking through a landscape. You start off with what is in front of you - then I draw what is beyond that and possibly what is behind me. I have a habit of layering things one on top of the other."

He adds that he moved away from traditional approaches to perspective because "Everybody draws things in rectangles, but if you close one eye you see your nose and the elliptical shape of the eye, so I was always intrigued by how each eye sees different things."

Alan Marshall's book is a highly recommended read if you are interested in learning more about Glynn Thomas's work. It is available at the gallery and is £27.50.

The exhibition runs from Saturday April 2nd until Sunday April 24th. You and your friends are warmly invited to meet Glynn at the exhibition preview on April 2nd from 11am until 2pm.

Glynn will also be holding printing demonstrations at the gallery on April 24th from 12 until 4 pm. Do not miss this unique chance to learn how Glynn creates his beautiful etchings. If you would like to attend the demonstrations, please book a free place in person at the gallery, by e-mailing info@cambridgegallery.co.uk or by phoning 01223 324222.

 

The Champion of the Thames

Early Doors

 

Meet the artist - Ikuko Iwamoto

Meet the artist, ceramicscambridge contemporary artComment

Like Ruth Molloy, Gael Sellwood and Mani Parkes, Ikuko Iwamoto's work is another very recent addition to our gallery. 

Ikuko Iwamoto

Ikuko started making ceramics in 1990 at Tezukayama College in Japan. She then moved to London to do an undergraduate degree in ceramics at the Camberwell College of Arts and she subsequently completed an MA in ceramics and glass at the Royal College of Art. At the RCA she started to make functional pieces using a slip casting technique using plaster moulds. Ikuko is now a successful artist working from her studio in London and she has exhibited extensively both in the UK and Japan.

All of Ikuko's work is entirely handmade. The main body of a piece is usually created using a slip-casting technique. Ikuko makes all the casting moulds herself by hand. Every part of the decoration, including every single spike, is then individually crafted and attached by hand. All of the pieces are made from porcelain.

Nucleolus Pofupfou Teapot and Spiky Milk Jug

Ikuko's work is informed by her own curiosity about invisible things such as sounds, music and the microscopic world - cells, genes and organic forms. The meticuolous level of detail with which she works is spot on for a subject matter that includes the tiniest of sea creatures and the minutest of micro-organisms.

Ikuko has already achieved critical acclaim and in March 2009, she was awarded the Ceramic Review Prize for Innovation at the RCA's Ceramic Art London exhibition. 

 

Nucleolus Pofu Teapots

How did you get started with your art career?

I went art and craft history BA course in Japan and I started making throwing pots when I was 18 years old.

 

What is your preferred medium to use?

Clay.  I tried to use metal when I was a student at Camberwell, but very frustrated…

Nucleolus Pofu Teapot Closeup

How do you go about making a new cup or vessel?

I draw the shape on the paper first and then make a model with plaster.  Carving plaster by hand, and then I make mould from the model.

 

What inspired the range of work that we have in the gallery?

Microscopic patterns

 

Which other artists do you admire?

Outsider artist especially Henry Darger

 

Could you describe a typical working day?

I drop off my kids to school and nursery in the morning and then go to studio by bike. I work at my studio in Clerkenwell between 9:45am and 2:45pm and then picking up my son from school.

 

How do you see your work evolving in the future?

I make framed sculpture too (www.ikukoiwamoto.com), so I would like to make a lot of art works as well as tableware.

Ikuko's work on display at cambridge contemporary art




Our Mixed Spring Exhibition

exhibitionscambridge contemporary artComment

Spring is in the Air and we're celebrating Mother's Day (Sunday 6th March)

Mums love beautiful unique handmade things and we've got a gallery full of perfect gifts for them!

Our Mixed Spring Show at cambridge contemporary art, which runs till 28th March, has plenty to offer. We are pleased to be showing new artists Victoria Dawes, Laura Lane, Ikuko Iwamoto and Jill Shaddock. Their ceramics are both functional and beautiful to look at. If you really want to spoil your mum, we also have some lovely floral screenprints by Angie Lewin in stock, including the new 'Honesty Blue'. Or be truly original and get your mum this brand new red dress by Joseph Silcott, which is entirely composed of hand-cut butterflies and is sure to put a smile on her face. Come in and browse our gallery for more gift ideas.