Mill's Gallery welcomes New Friends.

Otterton Mill Gallery's current exhibition welcomes a number of Cornish artists new to the East Devon art venue, and is aptly entitled "New Friends". The exhibition marks a broadening of the Gallery's geographical sourcing to include Cornwall, alongside work currently exclusively sourced from Devon, Dorset and Somerset.

The exhibition features four artists working in different mediums to showcase a body of work that is a vibrant and uplifting collection.

Karrie Fox paints in acrylics to create dynamic, brightly coloured images of Koi fish as they move through water. Her paintings are a response to what she observes through the surface of the pond, rather than portraits of a particular fish. The result is a bold image full of life and movement, with vivid colours and swirling patterns that illustrate perfectly the way the Koi plays with the water and the way the water plays with the light. Whether Karrie shows the surface turbulence of a darting subject, or the gentle grace of a more sedate fish, she captures the moment spectacularly. Karrie's award-winning paintings have earned her Full Membership to the National Acrylic Painters Association (NAPA).

Acrylics provide a link from Karrie to the second artist featured, Bill Penman, but there the similarity ends. Bill is a coastguard and driftwood artist who collects the materials for his work from the shores of Cornwall's remote Lizard peninsula. The driftwood is mounted on bright, acrylic painted backgrounds to create wonderful busy seascapes of boats racing, fish in frenzied excitement, lighthouses illuminating, mystical seahorses and the hustle and bustle of harbours. The driftwood itself stimulates Bill's creativity by its different shapes and forms seasoned by time and tide, travelled with wind and wave and crafted by sea and shore, coupled with the mystery of its origin and the thought that it may have drifted thousands of miles before reaching the Cornish shores. The frames are also constructed of driftwood and become an integral part of the picture.

Don Taylor is also a driftwood artist who crafts functional pieces, both large and small. The exhibition features work ranging from a ladder-back chair and a low side table to chunky book-ends and a keep-sake box. Like Bill, Don collects his wood from the coast-line of the Lizard peninsula before carrying it home to his small garden studio where the wood is dried by the sun and wind. On completion, the wood is finished in aromatic natural oils. Don is also a serpentine artist, and creates natural form sculptures from this truly Cornish stone. Although serpentine has been worked on the Lizard over many years, Don has developed his own technique for crafting his sculptures by redefining the angle of the cutting edge. The results are unique and wonderfully tactile.

The fourth featured artist is Russell Gibbs, a ceramicist. His work is rooted deep in the ethos of traditional country pottery, with utility and indigenous materials playing a central role. The colours are subdued greens, blues and creams and convey a simple rustic style. The work is a natural projection of Russell's training and passion for traditional ideas and techniques and is reflective of his experiences whilst working in England and abroad, following the examples of master English potters like Isaac Button, George Curtis and Harold Thorburn. Russell's unique designs have featured in numerous exhibitions nationwide, and pots commissioned by Kew Gardens have also been exhibited in Japan.

Otterton Mill co-owner Caroline Spiller said "We are delighted to welcome Cornish artists into the Mill gallery. For over 30 years, the Mill has showcased work by outstanding artists and craftspeople from Devon, Dorset and Somerset, and we are very happy to now be strengthening our existing portfolio with selected artists from our neighbouring county of Cornwall."

The "New Friends" exhibition runs until Thursday 12th November, every day between 10am to 5pm. Entry is free.

Otterton Mill Gallery is housed in the historic mill building and the artworks are displayed against the backdrop of the ancient mill workings. The Gallery shows a constantly changing selection of work by leading South West artists and features paintings, sculpture, furniture, prints, photography, ceramics, glass, textiles, jewellery, mixed media, metal and wood. The Gallery also incorporates a craft shop selling exceptional crafts and affordable gifts made by West Country craftspeople.

For more information, call the Gallery on 01395 568008.

PRESS RELEASE OF 16 OCTOBER 2009.

Date added: Friday 16th October 2009
Latest updated: Friday 30th July 2010