Art
In the picture which often provide a specific point of reference and sense of proportion. The Flint Gallery in Blakeney welcomes a new artist to its walls this season. Richard Barrett grew up by the coast and finds inspiration for his paintings in both land and sea. ‘Richard’s recent work has drawn him to the coastline of North Norfolk and its unique qualities - walking the saltmarshes to the sea under gigantic skies gives a special sense of space and calm, even on wild and windy days,’ says Stuart Stotter-Brooks of Flint. ‘His paintings start with a series of sketches which provide an anchor for the piece, then he works instinctively with fine washes and thick impasto, scratching, marking and glazing to give the work a feeling of energy, movement and mystery.’ Over in Holt, the Bircham Gallery will be celebrating the 80th Birthdays of two Richards, Richard Bawden and Richard Batterham with a joint exhibition from 8th October to 2nd November. The son of Edward Bawden, RA. Richard Bawden is a painter, printmaker and designer who works predominantly in lino, etching and watercolour, with subject matter ranging from his Hadleigh sitting room, cats and garden to townscapes and landscapes. His work has included book illustration, murals for restaurants, engraved glass, church windows and doors, a poster for London Transport, mosaics and furniture. His paintings and prints will sit alongside pots by Richard Batterham, one of the most admired potters of his generation. After a two-year stint at the Leach Pottery in St Ives, working under Bernard Leach, he returned to his native Dorset in 1959, where he and his wife Dinah set up their first pottery. Richard, who has been making pots on his own for 55 years, says of his work: ‘They’re things to hold, not to gawp at’, practical and to be used and held every day. He says: ‘My favourite is the making, I’m always in a brighter frame of mind when I’m making throwing, handling, putting spouts on, assembling teapots and all that sort of thing. Once I get going I can’t be stopped!’ This exhibition will be followed by the Gallery’s Christmas Show Part I from 5th to 30th November, with a selection of paintings, prints, jewellery, ceramics and glass, plus new wooden figure sculpture by Lynn Muir.
ADDRESS BOOK Bircham Gallery, Holt 01263 713312 www.birchamgallery.co.uk Burnham Grapevine Gallery, Burnham Market 01382 730125 www.burnhamgrapevine.co.uk Pocock’s the artmonger, Burnham Market 01328 730370 www.theartmonger.co.uk Quay Art, Blakeney 01263 740013, Wells-next-the-Sea 01328 710905 The Flint Gallery, Blakeney 01263 741791 theflintgallery.co.uk The Red Dot Gallery, Holt 01263 710287 www. thereddotgallery.com Utopia: The Unexpected Gallery, Creake Abbey, North Creake 01328 730827 www.utopianliving.co.uk West Barn Gallery, Great Walsingham Barns, 01328 820900 www.walsinghamgallery.co.uk
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NORTH NORFOLK LIVING AUTUMN 2016
Right: Small Caddy, stoneware, by Richard Batterham, Bircham Gallery Far right: ‘Edge of the Reeds’ by Richard Barrett, The Flint Gallery Below: ‘The Arab Jug’ by Richard Bawden, Bircham Gallery
‘Strangely Drawn to Norfolk’
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OT on the heels of ‘The Art of Music’, a solo exhibition of works by Wendy Mould (30th September to 26th October) at The Red Dot Gallery in Holt, the Gallery will be showing a collection of original paintings by artist Barrie S. Morris from 29th October to 25th November, exploring many of the architectural and natural treasures of Norfolk. Barrie has spent the last 18 months exploring both the wellknown and more obscure architecture of the county, from the magnificence of St Peter and St Paul’s Church Cromer, to the mystery of the Blickling pyramid, the mausoleum in the woods above Letheringsett to the familiar sight of the Lifeboat House of Blakeney Point. Red Dot’s Colin Rawlings says: ‘To each of the buildings he has chosen, a natural narrative has been incorporated involving the likely flora and fauna of the location with perhaps the odd twist! ‘‘Strangely Drawn to Norfolk’ perfectly describes the mystery of the often quiet and isolated places that beckon us to explore and return once more: lonely ruins, iconic churches, dark marshland and windswept shores. ‘A sense of gothic rests in many of the paintings, night and nocturnal creatures adding to a chill of dusk. In contrast, others are bathed in sparkling sunlight that celebrates all that summer might bring: screaming swifts, red admirals and diving peregrine falcons. ‘It’s a veritable treasure trove that could equally be termed ‘What to Look for in Norfolk’.’
‘Little Owl at Letheringsett Mausoleum’ by Barrie S. Morris, The Red Dot Gallery ‘Blakeney Point Oyster Catcher’ by Barrie S. Morris, The Red Dot Gallery