The Landscape
Metaphor: A World
Inside
A group
exhibition of contemporary, 'non-literal' landscapes by
three British Artists at:
Three Cups Gallery
Three Cups Walk, Ely,
Cambridgeshire CB7 4AN
8th November 2006 to 9th January 2007
***THE
PREVIEW RECEPTION TOOK PLACE 7TH
NOVEMBER***
Contributing Artists:
Gareth Buxton
Jeremy Mayes
Peter McCarthy
'The Landscape Metaphor: A World Inside' is an exhibition
of contemporary landscape paintings where the Artists use
landscape as representation of an emotional state.
Loneliness, fear, optimism and distrust are analogized
with variety, vigour and aplomb by these three male,
British Artists.
The impressive artistic development of Gareth Buxton, currently an Information Technology professional based in Derbyshire, is, in our opinion at least, squarely attributable to an appalling car crash he was involved in a couple of years ago. He admits that, since the accident in 2004 that came within an inch of taking his life, he has been forced to re-evaluate his priorities. But it is clear that he is evaluating much more than that. This series of land and seascapes are quite different to the work that Ovenden Contemporary usually shows from the Buxton portfolio, but they do possess the darkness, the sense of mortality so prevalent in the remainder of his work.
Jeremy Mayes, fresh from his first solo exhibition at the nearby Needhams Restaurant in Witchford, contributes a selection of his enigmatic 'Houses & Trees'. He cites his influences as Cezanne, Modigliani and Chagall and there is certainly a quality, a warm familiarity in his expressionist style that gently draws the viewer in. He makes you feel as though you are wandering through a beautiful garden, or punting along a quiet river, or sipping espresso outside a boulevard cafe on a lazy Sunday afternoon, as a gentle summer breeze passes you by. But all is not as it seems in Mayes' world and you might find yourself wondering what sinister fairy tale you have stumbled into.
At first glance, the graceful landscapes of the accomplished Suffolk Artist Peter McCarthy, appear to be a response to the vast flat vistas of the Fenlands, where McCarthy spent some periods of his life. Further consideration of these simple, but beautiful paintings, however, leads us to wonder about the solitude of these scenes. There are many places in the Fens where you could imagine that you are the only person for a thousand miles in any direction and the endless skies can make a person feel very insignificant. McCarthy's landscapes, however richly painted, somehow capture this sense of isolation and his trees, even when grouped, are still alone.
The Preview Reception was attended by the participating Artists and several other OC Artists. There was a great atmosphere, in spite of the cold weather and we sold 'The Bare Tree' by Peter McCarthy early on in the evening which was a great start to the exhibition. This exhibition marks the start of our relationship with Three Cups Gallery and we look forward to a long and prosperous partnership. Here are some photos from the evening......
