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Current exhibition

Thick skin: Cheryl Nolan and Kylie Nichols

Welcome back to artist Cheryl Nolan, who joins sculptor Kylie Nichols to create our October exhibition, Thick Skin.

Cheryl Nolan’s Pumpkin (oil on canvas) and Kylie Nichol’s 500 seeds (fine white porcelain)

Thick Skin is about our outer shells – those we build around us to protect ourselves from the elements.

Kylie and Cheryl explore the qualities of resilience using fruit and vegetables as a figurative reference.

Like people, fruit and vegetables have an outer skin that gives no indication of what’s inside. They’re versatile and resilient and have adapted to suit the times and/or situation.

Kylie has chosen to represent the humble pumpkin – one of Nature’s more resilient fruits. It has become a symbol of prosperity, growth and abundance, with its tough outer shell to protect it from its environment.

In her works, made of fine white porcelain, Kylie explores and celebrates the pumpkin’s geometric forms that reflect strong sculptural lines.

Cheryl too, has a focus on shape and line, exploring the patterns and qualities of fruit and vegetables as they are stacked and displayed in boxes. These are those expressed in beautiful embossed prints and yet others in oils on canvas. And yes, there are humans too, in their boxes, in the almost voyeuristic painting, Survival.

Reminiscent of Central Market produce displays, Flower garden: Nature’s chemist

Both artists have enjoyed representing the subtle relationships between shape, line and form.

Thick skin is a robust celebration of the versatility of the fruit and vegetable kingdom and of the ability of all organisms to grow and change in order to endure.

Thick skin is on show at Mrs Harris’ Shop until Sunday 25 October. The gallery is open on Saturdays and Sundays, 11am – 3pm, or by appointment. 

Categories
Current exhibition

Contemplation . . . blue: Ian Corbett

It feels so good to welcome you back to Mrs Harris’ Shop after our enforced break. And, this exhibition feels like the best possible way to do that!

Moroccan blue

Ian Corbett’s work always proves to be a treat, and his new exhibition Contemplation . . . blue is no exception. 

Blue ginger jar

This time, he has taken many of his treasures – collected as gifts, mementos of his travels, from family, or his explorations in antique shops – and has created a delightful collection of things blue.

Blue ginger jar (76 x 91 cm)

Each one gives him cause for reflection and joy. They range from tiny A4 sized pieces, to larger-than-life works, rich in colour and detail.

Ian always manages to create a veritable feast of colour and light in his works. Focusing on blue has him exploring myriad subtleties and patterns as they appear on glass or porcelain, sometimes on their own, at others, playing with the starkness of white. Then, every now and then, he slips in the perfect contrast to keep us engaged.

As a bonus, Contemplation . . . blue will be on show throughout August as well, as part of the SALA program.