Introducing ROCHE Gallery Special Events Program
"Window Shopper"
ROCHE Gallery is an old and quirky house which has been ours for 21 years. That's a tenth of the building's age. It's been many things in that time. Most recently - groceries, dental practice and an antique shop. Then we came, and as elements of a biosystem, the building, the family, and the business have moulded around each other, changing with the seasons. I would like to welcome something new - the ROCHE Gallery Special Events program.
I shall let the program unfold akin to water finding its path in the landscape. I am beginning this journey without preconceived ideas. The reality of recent tells us our plans matter very little, and the best strategy is living day to day, each day living up to our values as best as we can and seeing where the path takes us.
And so, I would like to announce the first of the ROCHE Gallery Special Events Program - the exhibition of paintings and prints by a dear friend and fellow printmaker, Brenda Hartill.
Brenda Hartill - Recent paintings and early prints
We met in 2005-6 when I was looking for printmaking studio facilities. A mutual friend connected me with Brenda and her husband, Harold Moor, who had just moved to their beautiful house in Udimore. I was privileged to use the newly established studio, one of the three Brenda actively employed at the time. The other two were in London and Gaucin, Spain.
It was a learning and inspirational experience to glimpse into Brenda's working processes. Seeing the extensive collection of her work, Tim and I offered to hold Brenda's exhibition at our gallery in Rye. This show was held in September 2008 and was a big success, close to a sell-out.
But that's the beauty of printmaking - the artworks are original, affordable and editions. Many of Brenda's earlier prints did sell out during her exhibiting career. At the same time, some rare artist's proofs remain in her collection, and some images have one or two impressions left of the edition. These days Brenda draws pleasure in working on unique mixed-media pieces that are a complex symbiosis of the techniques and tricks she has gathered during her extensive artistic practice.
The upcoming exhibition at the ROCHE Gallery, "NOW and THEN", will showcase the early prints, including rare editions and recent mixed-media paintings. Undoubtedly, it will be a treat for Brenda's existing collectors and those new to her creative work.
ROCHE Gallery looks forward to becoming a welcoming backdrop for the artworks of this accomplished and passionate painter-printmaker.
See the details of the event and more information about the artist.
What Next?
In September, and as part of the Coastal Currents Festival, we will hold the next show in the ROCHE Gallery Special Events program - an exhibition of mixed media artworks by Peter Spencer. Peter is a creative spirit that no definition can contain. I will introduce him later in the year.
We will look into the dark art of mezzotint in October, around Halloween time, through the exhibition of mezzotint prints by printmakers worldwide who dedicated themselves to this demanding technique. The working title of the show is "On The Other Side".
These are the plans. We look forward to seeing the shape of the gallery special events program emerge as we go.