Windows and doors

 

Above are three paintings that I have recently painted for the Gorstella gallery exhibition – you can click on them to see a larger version. The exhibition is opening on Thursday 13 November and running until Sunday 23 November. The gallery is near Chester (see details below) and is celebrating 35 years with this mixed exhibition.

Looking out into a vast outdoor world or into an intimate indoor world has always fascinted artists (I’m thinking of Vermeer or Hammershoi).  The Japanese inscription above reads ‘best on earth’ – I wonder what the place used to be?

I used to paint a lot of old walls, windows and doors.  I enjoyed painting the aging surface textures and thinking about the mysteries they evoked. Below are a few from the archives…. The yellow door in Wroclaw, Poland, was on a derelict site that still had German Blackletter script on the walls. The green ribbon in Marrakech was the remains of the ribbons that are often tied all around their houses during celebrations.

The last of the four architectural paintings that I have sent to the Gorstella gallery is called ‘Palladian visitor’.  I’ll leave that mystery for you to see on their website here . They are also taking several of my still life paintings including the one below that is on the back of their brochure. If you fancy celebrating with them and seeing the other work that they are showing, they are raising a glass of fizz  6.30 – 9 pm on Thursday 13 and Friday 14 November and again on the weekends of 15/16 and 22/23 November, 11am – 5pm. I am looking forward to visiting on the final weekend.