Lovely Art - And Tempting Food Too!

The BBC continues to produce some fascinating programmes about art. We have written recently about Fake or Fortune and last Friday night we came across Sicily Unpacked. The show not only covered some of the interesting art in Sicily but also another of our favourite subjects, food!

Vicky has been to Sicily before and has visited some of the locations shown on the programme. One of the sights she didn't see was the Oratorio del Rosario di Santa Cita in Sicily's capital, Palermo. Art historian and presenter, Andrew Graham-Dixon, was keen to show his co-presenter, Giorgio Locatelli, the interior of this building. Once inside they turned to marvel at the stunning, ornate decoration. What seemed like hundreds of incredibly fine religious figures and scenes covered the walls. These are the work of sculptor, Giacomo Serpotta, who used stucco with added marble dust to create an amazing finish to the sculptures.

Later, as the two presenters visited the Vucciria market looking for food to cook for dinner, they popped through a doorway to find a modern painting of the market by Renato Guttuso. The picture was densely packed with shoppers, market traders, stalls and food. Andrew pointed out some of the stories incorporated in the picture such as two traders apparently feuding over something. Guttuso also has other links with food; he illustrated the book Italian Food by Elizabeth David.

We're still planning our 2012 holidays and the temptation offered by the food as well as the interesting art may be too much for us to resist a visit together sometime soon.

The series runs for a further 2 episodes on BBC2 on Friday evenings. You can catch episode 1 on iPlayer over the next few days.

Vicky And Vince,

Love Your Art.

Review Of The Year

As the new year approaches, it's time to both look back over recent months and look forward to more exciting art over the coming year. It's been an interesting year for the art world as well as for us. Here are a few of the things we particularly remember.

The Turner prize was won by Martin Boyce with a sculptural installation. 2011 was a special year for the competition as it was held away from the Tate Gallery at the Baltic in Gateshead. In coming years, the plan is to hold the competition at venues alternating between the Tate and other regional galleries.

The Hepworth Wakefield Gallery opened in the Spring. Although we haven't yet been to see the exhibitions, a visit is on our list for 2012. We enjoyed the Barbara Hepworth Museum at St Ives in Cornwall a couple of years ago and look forward to seeing more of her works along with other similar art.

The Zurbarán saga continues. First these historical paintings were to be sold off, then a deal was agreed to save them. Recently the deal looked like it had fallen through, then it was back on. Perhaps we haven't seen the end of the uncertainty yet but hopefully the plans for converting Auckland Castle into a new art gallery, with visiting exhibitions as well as the Zurbaráns will be finalised in the new year.

Vicky's highlight of the year was when we visited Bowes Museum to see an exhibition by Damien Hirst. His prints, depicting food packaged as medicine, ask whether we are as reliant on drugs as we are on food in these modern times.

Our trip to the village of Lempa in Cyprus was Vince's highlight of 2011. The jumbled collection at the College of Art reflected the bright and informal atmosphere of the island and it was a visual delight to become immersed within the work of the students.

But we both agreed that our joint favourite place this year has to be Cass Sculpture Foundation at Goodwood. Their stunning collection of outdoor sculpture really needs a whole day to view and appreciate the huge amount of artworks. Unfortunately we didn't allow enough time to see everything so we'll be heading back there again, hopefully in 2012.

Vicky And Vince,
Love Your Art.

Art In Lempa, Cyprus

If you happen to be in Western Cyprus and have an hour to spare, the village of Lempa is worth a visit. Last weekend we happened to be in Western Cyprus and had an hour to spare so we paid a visit. We found a village that had more art than most others we have been to.

As we drove into the village we were looking out for a building that's part of the Cyprus College Of Art. It wasn't long before we passed a wall constructed from a huge number of sculptures made from concrete, glass, metal and wood and probably a lot of other things too. It was fairly obvious that this was the building we were looking for.

A little further along the road we parked the car and found ourselves opposite the studio of artist Alessandra Desole. She was taking part in the Cyprus open studio event so we decided to look round. We were a little early but were welcomed by Alessandra who showed us displays of her paintings. These, mainly portraits, have a pleasant simplicity, painted in strong colours but with a softness of touch that makes them quite atmospheric and pleasant to look at. We also admired some of her small coloured stone figurative carvings. You can see some of Alessandra Desole's paintings on her web site. The Cyprus open studios continue during October 2011.

Strolling back to the college we were overwhelmed by the vast number of examples of the art produced by the students. Being a Saturday there was nobody there but a sign invited us to look round the grounds.

Within the walls we found a cacophony of widely differing sculptures, some abstract, some figurative, some made from found objects. Vicky liked the large carved wooden head and we both thought the group of dogs playing around a pole were fun. Here are more pictures of the students' sculptures.

As we left the College, a party of tourists arrived to look at the art too, guided by George, a local character who runs trips in his colourful old-fashioned bus. Returning to the car, the chatter and laughter from the crowd of tourists confirmed how delightful and exciting the art in the college grounds was. You can visit the web site for the Cyprus College Of Art And Design.

Our holiday in Cyprus was full of pleasant surprises and the hour or so we spent in Lempa was one of the highlights.

Vicky And Vince,

Love Your Art.

Vegetarian Sheep?

Art seems to turn up in the most unusual places as Vicky discovered at lunchtime the other day.

She had bought an Innocent Vegpot from the supermarket and when she took off the cardboard wrapper she noticed something printed inside it. We opened it up and saw a photograph of a floret of cauliflower with a few raisins attached to the side. As we looked closer we realised this actually formed a picture of a sheep in a field! (By the way, did we mention we collect sheep art?)

After investigating further, we found out that this was one of a series of humorous pictures using vegetables that make the product packaging more interesting. You can see some of the photos at the vegpot art gallery. (The pea pod canoe is our favourite.)

Inspired by the images we found on Innocent's web site, we decided to try our hand at doing something similar. A quick rummage round the kitchen turned up a few bits and pieces and we managed to create a sculpture that we call Veginia. She has a body of sweet potato, parsnip arms, carrot legs and an onion head with blueberry eyes.

OK, so the official vegpot pictures may not be mainstream art but they are a bit of fun and may even encourage kids to eat their vegetables. And, of course, we've added the cauliflower sheep picture to our collection.

Vicky and Vince,

Love Your Art.

The Wow Factor!

Loving art as much as we do, we've a long list of places we'd like to visit all over the country (and the world). So when we decided to go to Chichester for our summer holiday we checked our list for the Sussex area and found Cass Sculpture Foundation, with its displays of large-scale, modern sculpture at the top of the list.

When we arrived we found that it wasn't only the artwork that was on a large scale, at 26 acres the grounds were big too. In some galleries and museums you're given a guide to help you find your way around. Here we were given a map, but perhaps a satnav system would have made things easier.

We largely ignored the map and just wandered where we fancied. After passing a fish on a bicycle, we were delighted to come across a bronze sheep (did we mention we collect sheep?). However, we were quite worried about the hungry-looking bronze wolf on the other side of the path and wanted to take the sheep home to keep it safe.

Wandering further, a palm tree made from old tyres caught our attention. Then we came to a large clearing with a huge, bright orange structure of steel loops named Alfa (top picture) and created by Gerry Judah.

Wow! We just stood in amazement at the scale of this work. With its monstrous curves swooping around each other it reminded us of animations of atoms with their electrons buzzing along circular paths. The orange tubes, glowing in the sunshine, created a strong contrast with the grass and trees in their summer greenery.

Everything seemed to be on a big scale. We were dwarfed by a bronze sycamore seed almost three metres (ten feet) tall and the free-standing steel and glass Stairway. We were tempted to have a rest on the Sitting On History seat in the shape of a book.

With over 70 individual sculptures, there was a huge variety of works to look at. From the wonderfully curvy designs made from carbon fibre and epoxy resin by Eilís O'Connell to the slightly creepy Host characters made by Peter Burke from reclaimed copper and steel. With so much choice, how could we pick our favourite?

Well, we found our favourite just as we were heading back to the car. Paparazzi is a series of cameras mounted on spindly birds' legs in bronze (lower picture). With their dull black finish these seemed to reflect the sneaky, anonymous character of the photographers that relentlessly badger the rich and famous.

Sadly we hadn't allowed enough time to see everything as we had to leave to meet up with a friend for dinner. With so many amazing sculptures there was simply too much to see in under two hours. Next time we're in the area, we'll be taking a picnic lunch and making a full day of it.

You can visit the website of Cass Sculpture Foundation for more information on the sculptures and artists.

Vicky And Vince,

Love Your Art.

Holiday Time

We've been busy planning our holidays which hasn't left much time for getting out and about looking at art. If you are still trying to find somewhere to go for your holidays, here are a few suggestions.

In Birmingham, a sculpture of Andy Warhol is on show.

Or if you fancy a trip to South Wales, a new art gallery has been opened in a phone box.

We are sure that the beer mat show in London will also attract a lot of visitors.

We hope you enjoy your holidays wherever you go.

Vicky And Vince,

Love Your Art.

Art In The Park

As far back as I can remember, Brinkburn Dene in Darlington has been a place for leisure and relaxation. It's where I learned to ride a bike. It's where I saw Punch and Judy for the first time, gathered conkers each Autumn and enjoyed endless hours of hide and seek in the bushes (when the Park Keeper wasn't around). But over the years, the six denes became a bit neglected; seats were vandalised, flower beds were abandoned and gates fell apart.

However, in recent years, the council have given more attention to this useful local amenity. And this year an award from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Big Lottery Fund has meant some further developments including a bit of art.

Last week I witnessed the installation of a steel arch at the Pierremont Road entrance to the "Sheddy" dene. This is the first of the new, artistically decorated entrances that will soon be installed in all six denes.

The artistic effects are fairly subtle and have been created to reflect a different theme in each of the denes. This one (lower picture) has a theme of water and wood - representing the numerous trees and the beck that flows through the dene.

The designs for the arches have been created by artist Coralie Turpin. As part of the re-development project, she held workshops with community groups of all ages to identify and explore themes for each dene. She then took all the ideas and artwork from the workshops and consolidated them into simple themes for the six denes. Ideas ranged from the wood and water mentioned above to butterflies, flowers and footballs.

The £878,500 project also includes new bridges across the beck, lighting along some of the paths, new seating and signs. I'm looking forward to seeing the other archways and enjoying some new experiences to complement my childhood memories - there are still plenty of bushes for hide and seek!

The arches are being manufactured by Sheffield-based Mayflower Engineering,

a specialist in sculptural metalwork.

You can read more about the denes project or visit the website of Coralie Turpin.

Vince,

Love Your Art.

Holiday Choices

Lighter nights and warmer weather mean that it's time for us to start searching for a holiday. We are looking for a week away, somewhere in Britain, with some art that both of us would find interesting.

This year, after a bit of digging through some old brochures and the Internet, we have narrowed the options down to Sussex or the Cotswolds. We are heading to Sussex to visit a friend for a weekend in the summer anyway. Should we extend that short visit to see more of the area or broaden our horizons with a tour around the Cotswolds instead?

Both areas have a lot going for them. There are numerous museums and galleries, stately homes with their own traditional collections and various displays of outdoor sculptures and installations. Plus plenty of other appealing attractions, exciting events and stunning scenery to give us a bit of a break from the art.

In Sussex, we like the sound of popping along to Worthing Art Gallery to see some of the work of Carol Wagstaff, a versatile artist who is exhibiting works inspired by the museum's collections. Cass Sculpture is another possibility. It's a charitable foundation that commissions, displays and sells sculpture by 21st Century established and emerging artists. And for a late night out, we could watch the coloured lighting of the "Sticks Of Rock" along the prom at Hastings and St Leonards.

If we choose the Cotswolds, we could visit the Minotaur and the Hare, a large bronze sculpture, made by Sophie Ryder, in the middle of Cheltenham. Nature In Art, near Gloucester, has a diverse collection of works depicting animals, landscapes and other natural themes. And the Fox Talbot Photography museum at Lacock, near Bath, sounds fascinating too.

The jury is still out at the moment. We'll let you know our decision later and report on what we find wherever we go.

Vicky And Vince,
Love Your Art.

Exploded Art

We were intrigued by the story on Newsbeat about a Mercedes Formula 1 racing car being "exploded" into a work of art. "We could do that," said Vince and promptly grabbed his toolbox and headed for the study.

The old Canon NP6016 photocopier that had been lying around for several years quickly became a pile of plastic, metal and electronic circuits. The challenge was then to arrange everything in its relative position and find a way to suspend it for display.

Not having a purpose-built frame to hang the hundreds of bits from, the washing line became an emergency stand-in. And it was back to the study to find a ball of string to suspend the components. However, we were only able to hang half a dozen pieces due to the weight threatening to snap the line.

Vince said, "Copiers are used by millions of people and they normally only see a plastic box with a lid. This exploded view shows them the heart of the machine in an unusual and artistic way. I call it 'Hang The Copier'."

The display makes the copier look like it has been frozen in time, except when a breeze blows and moves the bits around. It took about three hours to dismantle the parts and create the work of art, but that's nothing compared to the thousands of man-hours needed to design and build the original machine.

The parts are (from left to right):

Frame side panel

Main control circuit

Assortment of brackets

Operating panel

Cleaning brush

Prismatic triangulating focal reflector assembly

Supplementary toroidal quantum energy converter

Sadly, it looks like the sculpture will have to be dismantled as there is now a pile of freshly washed towels waiting to be dried.

Vicky and Vince,

Love Your Art

ps. Here is a previous version of an exploded F1 car.

Surprises At Newby Hall

There's a lot to see at Newby Hall. Apart from the house and gardens there is quite a bit of art too. On the day I visited, there was a display of children's book illustrations by Catherine Rayner, pictures to view in the hall itself and the displays by the Matombo sculptors. But my main aim was to look at the contemporary sculptures on the woodland trail.

It was a bit of a relief to be able to get out of the hot, late summer sun and wander along the shady woodland trail. This was a quieter part of the Newby estate; a place to wind down a bit and enjoy the natural surroundings. But it did turn up a few surprises along the way.

Walking through woods can feel strange, the shadows, the darkness between trees, you sometimes feel as though you are being watched. I looked up and found that I was - an eye-shaped stainless steel sculpture was hanging from a long branch, gazing across the path.

The suddenly from the right a wild boar rushed towards me. Well it seemed to but it was just a bronze casting of one, apparently being chased by medieval hunters.

Of course, art can be fun too. In a broad clearing a family were gathered round a group of giant conkers, one of which was tied to a branch as a swing. Four children were scrambling over the conkers on the ground and arguing over whose turn it was to go on the swing. I'm not sure they should have been doing that as they were priced at £550 each!

Strolling past a large bush I came face to face with a huge gorilla! Fortunately it was only another bronze casting, Jambo from Jersey Zoo.

As I neared the end of the trail, I was startled by the screams of children; they had just entered the tunnel on the miniature railway, another attraction at Newby, and I was back in the real world.

Altogether there were over 50 sculptures placed in the woods and around the gardens. Materials included bronze, wood, glass, stone and steel. This was an excellent experience for me as I am very interested in sculpture.

The sculptures on the trail are all for sale and are on view until 26th September 2010.

Read more about Newby Hall.

Love Your Art,
Vince

Matombo - Spirit Of Sculpture

The north-east of England may not be the centre of the art world but it does have global connections. Two sculptors from Zimbabwe have spent the summer in the gardens at Newby Hall near Ripon, demonstrating and talking about sculpture and exhibiting work that they and other sculptors from their country have produced.

As I headed along the path towards the exhibition area, I saw the first clue that the Matombo exhibition was going to be interesting. Here was a group of giraffe standing by the hedges surrounding the exhibition area. Although they were made from welded metal they were very big, perhaps close to actual size. As I turned into the garden, spread out before me were lots of stone and metal sculptures neatly laid out on the grass and on raised beds. There were animals, birds, figures of people and many abstract sculptures in various sizes, textures and colours.

In the centre of the garden were two lumps of rock that a couple of children were chiselling away at. "Having a go yourself" is encouraged and the rocks had clearly been attacked by kids of all ages over the weeks.

Matthew Nakhawale and Dudzai Mushawepwere, the sculptors, were busy answering questions from visitors, polishing the sculptures with beeswax and supervising the kids as they chipped away in the middle of the garden.

I chatted with Dudzai for quite a while. He told me about the types of stone, the techniques used to create the sculptures and the way some of the artists approached their sculpting. I was a little surprised to hear that it can take several months to complete even a small sculpture. Dudzai was very enthusiastic about his own work, explaining that he liked to create sculptures in an abstract style. He hoped that different people would interpret his art in different ways or one person may see different meanings in the shapes at different times.

As I was leaving a young boy had just finished chiselling at one of the rocks in the "have a go" area. "That was fun," he called to his mother. Yes, it was a bit of fun for the kids and fascinating for me. We may not have heard much good news from Zimbabwe recently but this exhibition showed that there is a positive side to life there.

More on Matombo.

Love Your Art,

Vince

Give Them An Inch...

...And they'll take a yard, so they say.

But who would begrudge these students a yard of space to brighten up the walls in Darlington town centre.

Art In The Yards is a project to bring student art to the attention of the public and brighten up parts of the town. This year, six students from the Queen Elizabeth Sixth Form College have added their work to those from the past two years. The images are based on the theme of heritage to complement the historic location of the yards. The students used their own individual ideas and a variety of techniques to create images that are all attractive but at the same time very different to each other.

Vicky was intrigued by a typographical arrangement by Joe Cocking, reminding people of a historical fact about the town. She said, "That's clever, it's a piece of art and a historical record and an unusual way of decorating the plain brick walls. We'll have to pop into the library and read up on that."

Vince liked the low-relief sculpture of Barclays Bank by Justin Ramsden, made entirely of Lego bricks. "The detail is amazing," said Vince. "There's even handrails on the steps and posters in the windows."

We went round the corner to look at the real building. It was a surprisingly close match, even the people looked the same! We understand that there is no truth in the rumour that Barclays will be renovating the building to match the Lego® version.

The other artists and their works were Charlotte Clewlow: You are Here, Jessica Everitt: State of Mind, James McKeown: Census, and James Snook: Tees Valley Gateway. Well done and good luck to all six of this year's artists.

Darlington Town Centre Management, which is the project co-ordinator and financial sponsor, has published a PDF brochure describing the Art in the Yards from all three years.


Love Your Art,
Vicky and Vince

Temenos, Middlesbrough

The North East of England continues to be an inspiration for artists and an important location for big works of art. Temenos, by Anish Kapoor and Cecil Balmond, is the latest of such works, following in the footsteps of Gateshead's Angel of the North, Darlington's Brick Train and North Shields' Lightning Clock. It is part of a major arts project to install five huge sculptures across the Tees Valley; others will be in Stockton, Hartlepool, Darlington and in the Redcar and Cleveland area.

So armed with an information leaflet, we headed for the Middlehaven Docks area of Middlesbrough to see what all the fuss was about.

Vicky: It looks quite graceful. The netting looks like it's floating across the sky.
Vince: It looks like a trawling net to me but you won't catch much with it; it's just an open ended tube.
Vicky: It says it's 50m high but it doesn't look that tall. That crane behind it is higher and the Transporter Bridge looks much bigger in the distance.
Vince: They should have put it higher up to stand out from its surroundings. That would have made it more visible from the A66 as well.
Vicky: The leaflet says it cost £2.7 million. It doesn't seem much for that amount of money.
Vince: There's a lot of engineering gone into it. It will attract tourists to the area and could become a focus for the re-development work being planned.
Vicky: I wonder if it will do for Middlesbrough what the Angel has done for Gateshead?
Vince: What's that?
Vicky: Create an icon for the town, an image that's easily recognisable and represents Middlesbrough.

This is still a new work of art and opinions will need time to consolidate. Perhaps Temenos will grow in stature, if not in size, when the other four works that will be produced as part of the project are complete and installed.

See a larger picture of Temenos in Middlesbrough.

Love Your Art,
Vicky and Vince