Local artists collaborate in ‘The Space Between’ – a painting exhibition at Elmslie House
Gemma Griffiths, Maria-Cristina Gardiner, Erin Conel and Mary Brittain, who met at Malvern School of Art at Malvern Hills College (MHC) before its closure in 2021 have come together to stage an exhibition of their work at Elmslie House, Avenue Road, Malvern
The exhibition which runs over two weekends in May (13,14,15 and 21,22,23) will provide a showcase for over 50 works including paintings, collage, drawings and sculpture. Tea, coffee and cakes will be available throughout.
Each participant has her own distinctive style. Gemma Wiseman is a land and seascape artist working from her studio near the Wyche Cutting on the Malvern Hills. In her work she strives to capture light, textures and atmosphere and is currently working mostly in oil paint. Much of her work for this exhibition derives from her plein air sessions on the Hills.
Maria-Cristina Gardiner, was born and studied art in Florence before training to become a conservation architect working in the West Midlands. Her artistic practice, generally in oil paint onto large canvases, is primarily concerned with man-made landscapes where it is possible to imagine industry and history but she is also drawn to ‘natural’ landscapes which are vast and dramatic.
American-born Erin Conel orginally trained in mathematics before taking up painting in 2001. After moving to Malvern in 2014 she became part of the artistic community surrounding MHC. Her work combines imagery from a variety of sources including family and historical photographs, film and local landscapes. This is used to create digital collages which are then further developed and transformed through paint.
Following a career in journalism, Mary Brittain, who lives in Great Witley, turned her full attention to her art. Her work for this exhibition comprises mostly bold and colourful mixed-media pieces some of which include elements of collage. She will also be exhibiting a small collection of sculpture. Her inspiration is mostly drawn from her immediate surroundings and mixes domestic and garden objects with plants and the occasional living creature.
The four picked the title ‘The Space Between’ because it has resonance for them all. For Gemma it signifies the area where the land or the sea meets the sky and where the most beautiful light is found. For Mary it reflects her fascination with the negative shapes created when she is painting and drawing and how changing her treatment of these alters her work. For Cristina it is found in the transition from her initial quick sketches to her finished pieces which emerge slowly following the addition of elements of surrealism and abstraction. Whilst for Erin the ‘space between’ in where a landscape becomes not just a physical place, but is symbolic of feelings and experience.
Speaking for the Group, Mary Brittain (who with fellow-exhibitor Gemma Griffiths has been closely involved with the SOS Task Group still working to try and save Malvern Hills College (www.savemalvernhillscollege.org.uk) said: “We all very excited to be exhibiting together and are grateful to Anna Taylor at Elmslie House for this opportunity to showcase our work. We are just a tiny fraction of the many people who have been helped on their artistic voyage by the talented staff who taught at MHC. We hope our exhibition will remind people just how important the college was to the region and more importantly how important it can be again under new management.”
The exhibition will be open from 11.00 – 5.00 with the exception of Sunday 23rd May when it closes at 2.00pm.
