Hello everyone,
Just
to remind you to pop along to Nunhead and follow the Art Trail, open
from 11am - 6pm on Saturday and Sunday this weekend...Nunhead is a very
special place, a wonderful village in South East London, with a thriving
unspoilt 1950's style high street. They still have a butcher, a baker, a
greengrocer and a fishmonger, all nestled around the lovely village
green with community centre and gastro pub attached. Recent additions to
the high street include lots of lovely eateries, a craft beer shop, a
delicatessen and vintage craft and furniture shops. The map includes the
tranquil wilderness of Nunhead Cemetry, one of the most beautiful and
wild green spots in London.
More info and a map here:
I'm
number 69 in the brochure, 68 on the map, and as well as having a
painting at Tracey Francis's homage to The Nunhead Open at 156 Hollydale
Road - number 15 - I'll be exhibiting with artists Dick Graham and
Frances Greville at 57 Athenlay Road SE15 3EN, where I'll have plenty of
interesting work on show, including small affordable pieces, as well as
my newly reworked musical mushroom sculpture "Conical Wax Cap":
and my new series of oil paintings, last seen at Cafe Gallery Projects in Southwark Park.
The
oil painting “HMS Impregnable” is part of a series of paintings
which are an exploration of the wonder and fascination for floral
motifs in our history, and a metaphorical description of the power of
flowers to uplift and revive the spirit in times of adversity.
Blue
roses stretch across the canvas, surrounded by blue sky above and
green sea below. The blue rose is a flower of the genus Rosa (family
Rosaceae) that presents blue to violet pigmentation. In literature
and art it is a symbol of love and prosperity. The impossible or the
unattainable.
Since
the blue rose is a rarity in nature, it stands for something that is
hardly within one's grasp, an object(ive) that seems too difficult to
achieve. Thus, the blue rose is admired and revered as an
unachievable dream. It also expresses love at first sight, royal
majesty and splendour.
In
this painting, vibrant blue roses dance across the canvas, sharing
space with motifs such as butterflies, sailors and mermaids. Included
are smaller floral patterns described using stencils of William
Morris designs, sourced from the domestic architecture at Union
Chapel, and Darwin’s famous ship HMS Beagle, being chased by a sea
monster, with quotes from his writings found in the Penguin book “It
Was Snowing Butterflies”. One of the Little Black Classics series,
the book contains a selection of Darwin’s extraordinary adventures
during the voyage of the Beagle from December 1831 to February 1832.
Within
the paintings can be found 83 names, painted on white strips,
emerging from the pebbles at the bottom of the sea. These are names
of some of the people tragically affected by the government’s
changes to disability living allowance, and the bedroom tax, as
documented in Ken Loach’s film “I, Daniel Craig”. For example,
Colin Traynor who suffered from epilepsy, denied disability living
allowance and found fit for work: 5 weeks after his death his family
found out that he had won his appeal. His father is quoted as saying
“ I firmly believe – 100% believe – that the system this
government introduced has killed my son.” Stephen Hill, who died of
a heart attack while awaiting heart surgery, one month after being
found fit for work. And Cecilia Burns, found fit for work while
undergoing treatment for breast cancer, she died a few weeks after
winning her appeal.
These
elements are painted in oil on canvas, with vibrant colours, using a
broad range of techniques. From free scumbling translucent brushwork,
to intensely fine lined detail drawn in paint onto flat colours
across the canvas, and stencilling using hand made stencils.
The
roses represent the difficulty in achieving a balance between the
intense beauty of wild nature and the urban landscape. The source for
the roses comes from The 1990s, when my art expressed itself through
installations, using furniture, found objects, embroidery and
taxidermy. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher rolled out Care in the
Community. Hospitals and institutions closed. I attended an auction
of furniture and equipment and found a hospital screen. The poignancy
of its chintz rose pattern inspired me to start painting again. The
patina on the fabric, rich with emotional resonance. Sanderson
Chelsea. 1950s style retro. English beauty, wonder, fascination.
Floral motifs, history. Domestic architecture. I started drawing and
painting as an experiment. Describing and capturing process, a
description of flowers. Since then I have regularly used this motif
in my paintings, and still do to this day.
Here's
a link to the live art singing interaction, "Full Fathom Five", that
complemented the painting on September 3rd. Filmed by artist Calum F.
Kerr:
And here I am with the lovely Caroline Gregory who also performed on that day:
With love and best wishes - Joanna