What started as a weekly meeting of five Plymouth-based artists has now blossomed into a full-blown exhibition with an appropriate name to match: Gathering.
The exhibition – which opens at the Plymouth Barbican’s Pipe Gallery on 5 April 2013 – has been organised by Hungarian artist Alexandra Kovacs who has been living in Plymouth for five years.
The five diverse artists first met at Plymouth University on a Fine Art course and are busy working towards the opening of their show at the gallery in New Street – a 200-year-old vaulted gunpowder store.
“Since leaving university we have been coming together on a regular basis, triggering ideas, response and conversation,” explained Alexandra.
“Putting up a show in this atmospheric and unusual space seemed like a natural progression from our weekly meetings.
“The works we create are very varied, without a common theme. “
The work on show ranges from installation, text-based work and painting to monoprint and blind contour drawing.
“Clare Rogers’ piece is a response to living in Plymouth, Melony Skeldon revels in the beauty of nature, drawing inspiration for her hometown of Saltash, while travelling weaves itself in and out of Clare L Larkin’s work,” explained Alexandra.
“Jude Bryson-Meehan explores the concept of a child’s vision of wonder while my drawings are filled with feelings of longing and the distant familiar.”
Alexandra says Plymouth is an exciting place to be an artist at the moment, having in recent years played host to the British Art Show 7 (BAS7) and more recently bidding to become the City of Culture 2017.
And her comments are echoed by the Pipe Gallery’s owner Thais Lenkiewicz: “BAS7 was responsible for drawing out every disparate group of artists in the city and connected them, resulting in an exciting fringe programme that highlighted the city’s cultural talents,” said Thais.
“More than a year later we still see the energy it left in its wake. Hopefully Plymouth will continue the story by producing a competitive bid for the UK City of Culture.”
Gathering runs at The Pipe Gallery from 5-12 April 2013 and is open every day from 11am – 7pm.
