Final Showing of Before I Die...

On 26th August 2012, Gallery150 will be presenting the final documentation of the ‘Before I Die...’ public participatory art project.

Since its launch at the gallery on 7^th August, 300 people have come to leave their mark on the internationally renowned wall, started by Candy Chang in New Orleans.

The photographs of the participants, which were kindly sponsored by the London Camera Exchange, and their “Before I Die I Want to...” statements will be exhibited and presented to the public in a private view, held from 4 – 6 pm on Sunday.

Situated at 9 Livery Street, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, CV32 4NP, 

Gallery150 is open Tuesday-Saturday 11am to 6pm and Sunday 11.00am to 4.00pm.


                            

Bastian Contrarian launches new fund-raising project

Horse of Tamar - oil on canvas 182 x 90 cm
by Nick Logan.

As part of the appeal to save the Horse of Tamar statue, which was damaged by metal thieves in February this year, local artist, Nicholas Logan, has created a work of art in a bid to raise money for the cause.

On hearing the news about the statue, the artist, who grew up in Solihull and acquired his BA (Hons) in Fine Art at the Glasgow School of Art, decided he wanted to help Solihull Council raise money to restore one of the borough’s few existing public art works.

“I have always found the Horse of Tamar inspiring and when I heard it had been damaged, I felt that it was my duty as an artist to do something to help save the statue and conserve a piece of Solihull’s heritage”, states Nicholas Logan.

The oil painting, which features a dramatic depiction of the borough’s iconic horse and trainer,Malvern Park, the Church of Saint Alphege and the River Blythe, will be unveiled at the Solihull Arts Complex on Thursday, 27 September at 6.00 pm. The original artwork, which will be on show at the complex for several months, is available for sale and the same painting will also be reproduced as a signed, limited edition series of 100 prints, with the proceeds donated to the Horse of Tamar restoration appeal. 

Councillor Ken Meeson, Leader of Solihull Council, said: “I’d like to express my thanks to Nick Logan for his kind offer of donating the proceeds of the sale of this painting to our fund. The public have been very generous already with donations, which along with the sale of the painting, will take us some way towards our overall target of £15,000.”

The original oil painting costs £2000, whilst the limited edition prints, which are available unmounted, mounted, mounted and framed, cost from £80 to £180. If you are interested in purchasing the original or a print contact Sarah Silver of Bastian Contrarian, on            07971-022369      ; un-mounted prints can also be purchased at the Tourist Information Centre in the Solihull Arts Complex. 

This initiative has been organised in collaboration with:

LSA Announce Summer Show Winner

Prize Winner Christina Vallaghan
outside Gallery150

On Friday, 10th of August, on the back-drop of the 'Before I Die...' exhibition, the People’s Choice winner of the LSA 2012 Summer Show was announced at Gallery150, in Leamington. 

Christina Callaghan came first and was awarded a cheque of £500 and a feature in the LSA magazine ‘Artspace’; Sonia Bubliatis, took second place, and celebrity painter Paul Oz came in third. They were closely followed by Paul Cheshire – whose work was recently featured in the BBC series, ‘Show me the Monet’ and who has also been selected for the Coventry Open 2012 at The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum – and Pam Smallshaw.

. 

Visitor to the gallery, Angela Kandil, whose voting slip was drawn out of the hat, took home the limited edition print, ‘Not the Usual Suspects, by photographer James Callaghan.

This year, the popular LSA Summer Show, which featured over 100 works by 68 local and regional artists, attracted a good 2407 visitors. 

Pre-Raphaelite by Paul Cheshire

Not the Usual Suspects by James Callaghan

                                                                               

The Gallery Trio

The Gallery Trio

On Friday 10th  August 2012, ‘The Gallery Trio’ will be rehearsing at Gallery 150 in Leamington Spa.


Composed of Maura Barnett (violin), David Pattenden (accordion) and Martin Lammyman (double-bass), The Gallery Trio is an acoustic band that bring together the talent of three musicians from different backgrounds, creating a unique combination of sounds. Their stylish repertoire includes light classical pieces, elegant waltzes, fiery tangos and Jewish wedding music. 

The trio's open rehearsals at the gallery are a rare meeting between the visual arts and music, providing the public with an opportunity to see the creative process of preparing music for performance. It also provides a chance for anyone interested in hiring the band for social functions to come and hear the music and have a chat in an informal atmosphere. The rehearsal, which will be held from 11.30am to 1.30pm, will be the trio's third performance at Gallery 150.

The Gallery Trio rehearsing at Gallery150.
Photo by Cheryl Doshi.

Before I Die... Comes to Leamington Spa

Before I Die... Savannah by Trevor Coe

From 7th-26th August, visitors to Leamington Spa will be able to take part in ‘Before I Die...’, a moving and thought-provoking, public participatory art project that will be hosted at Gallery150 in Regent Court Shopping Centre.

When Candy Chang, from New Orleans, lost someone very dear to her, she struggled to maintain perspective and wanted to find out what was important to the people around her. With the help of friends, she turned the side of an abandoned house into a giant chalkboard and stencilled it with the sentence “Before I die I want to_______”. Anyone walking by could pick up a piece of chalk, reflect on their lives, and share their personal aspirations in a public space.

To Candy’s amazement, the very next day, the wall was covered with the hopes and dreams of hundreds of people and continued to grow. But, what initially started out as an experiment has fast gained worldwide momentum, appearing as far afield as Australia, Canada, Lebanon, Italy, Mexico, Peru, Scotland, Spain and the United Arab Emirates.

Over the next few weeks, the public will be able to add their own thoughts to a dedicated wall at Gallery150, and, if they wish, they can also have the moment captured by a professional photographer, using equipment kindly sponsored by the London Camera Exchange in Leamington. Each day, the best of these portraits and statements will be documented and exhibited in the gallery, becoming an integral part of the exhibition. The event will culminate in a human and fascinating reflection on life, death and love, which will be presented in a private view on Sunday, 26^th August 2012.

Situated in 9 Livery Street, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, CV32 4NP, Gallery150 is open Tuesday-Saturday 11am to 6pm and Sunday 11.00am to 4.00pm.

Andy Farr Brings the Spirit of the Olympics to Leamington

Faster by Andy Farr. Image copyright of the artist.
“The power of the sprinter; the poise of the gymnast; the joy of victory; the exhilaration of the dive; the agony of defeat; the audacity of the high jumper… Every sport has its own unique rhythm, its own secret pattern, its own code.”

After the success of his solo show ‘The Space Between” in 2011, Andy Farr will be bringing the spirit of the Olympics to Gallery150, in Leamington Spa.

After a period of experimentation with abstract landscapes and cityscapes, the artist, who returned to painting in 2008, after what he refers to as “a brief pause of twenty years”, has shifted his focus to capturing the essence of movement. This fascination has led to a series of works inspired by carousels, dance, horse racing and sport. The artist begins each work by watching a slow-motion film of the subject to isolate the underlying rhythms, which he sketches then builds into a pictorial composition.

Velocity by Andy Farr. Image copyright of the artist.

In the ‘Rhythms in Motion’ exhibition, which runs from 17^th July-5^th August 2012, this highly experimental artist will be presenting a series of works inspired by sport, movement and the emotions and achievements of athletes.  In an impressive play of brushstrokes, depth, colour and light, this series of considered works show echoes of Kandinsky, Boccioni and Rothko, culminating in a complex blend of styles and textures, that hover on a line between Abstract Expressionism, Cubism and Futurism.

The private view of the Rhythms in Motion exhibition will be held on 17^th July from 7pm.

Venue: Gallery150, Regent Court Shopping Centre, 9 Livery Street, Leamington Spa CV32 4NP.

Opening times: Tuesday- Saturday from 11am- 6pm and Sunday 11am- 4pm.

Not Your Usual Suspects for LSA's Summer Show

Leamington Studio Artists (LSA) present a rich and exciting showcase of over 100 works by 68 local and regional artists.

Not the Usual Suspects by James Callaghan. Image copyright of the artist.

This year, Gallery150 will be hosting the ‘2012 LSA Summer Show’, ‘Not the Usual Suspects’ in the Livery Street gallery, in Leamington, Warwickshire.

This coveted annual exhibition will feature the work of LSA members and non-members from Leamington and across the Midlands.

With a steady rise in members in recent years, the show has become increasingly more popular and covers a broad range of mediums, including painting, drawing, photography and sculpture by talented emerging and established artists alike. And, this year, there will be over 100 works by a good 68 artists, some of whom will be exhibiting with the fifteen-year old organisation for the first time. Visitors to the show will also be able to get a preview of works by a number of artists participating in the up-coming Warwickshire Open Studios (30th June to the 15th July).

The audience will have the opportunity to vote for their favourite artist and the winner will be awarded a cash prize of 500 pounds and a special feature in Artspace, the LSA  arts journal, which has been in print since 1998. All of the voters’ names will also be entered into a prize draw and the winner will recieve a Giclée print of ‘Not the Usual Subjects’ by JamesCallaghan.

Not the Usual Suspects will run from 26^th June until 15^th July 2012; the private view, will be held at Gallery150, on Tuesday, June 26^th from 7 pm.

Gallery150, 9 Livery Street, Regents Court, Royal Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, CV32 4NP

Opening times: Tuesday - Saturday 11am - 6pm / Sunday 11am - 4pm.