The best art exhibitions coming up in Bristol and the Westcountry – selected by the Friends of the RWA…
Here’s our pick of the best art exhibitions and events happening in and around Bristol and the south west – including a look ahead to upcoming features….
AT THE RWA
RWA 171 Annual Open Exhibition
14 September 2024 – 5 January 2025
The RWA’s most popular exhibition returns, with over 600 works on display covering a vast array of media including painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, film, sculpture and architecture by artists ranging from leading professionals to emerging talent, from across the UK and beyond.
This year’s invited Artist is Rana Begum, RA. More info
Fauna
6 November 2024 – 5 January 2025
This exhibition brings together paintings and sculptures by four RWA Academicians; Angela Lizon, Beth Carter, Dorcas Casey and Leslie Glenn Damhus.
These artists play diversely with the symbolism of animals in art. Their compelling and magical works are steeped in the history of art, fables, myths, fairytales, dreams, childhood memories, kitsch, the subconscious and the sacred. Their work is often filled with their distinctive sense of playfulness and humour.
Image top: Joseph Smythe Esquire (after Stubbs) by Angela Lizon RWA
CURRENT EXHIBITIONS
Compiled by Sue Quirk and Laurel Smart
1) SOPHIE CAPRON: ECHOES OF THE PAST
2 – 30 NOVEMBER, ARTWAVE WEST, MORCOMBELAKE, DORSET
Sophie Capron’s artistic process is rooted in sustainability and the profound narratives embedded in old paint. Using paint donated from various sources, she meticulously layers and sands her works, revealing the stories hidden within. Each stroke and texture tell a tale, echoing the past while engaging with contemporary themes of renewal and change.
Capron’s technique of building up layers and then sanding them down not only creates depth but also symbolizes the passage of time and the way memories can fade yet remain impactful. The resulting pieces are rich in both visual and emotional complexity, inviting viewers to reflect on their own connections to the past. “Echoes of the Past” is not just an exhibition; it is an experience that challenges us to consider the histories we carry with us and how they shape our present. Capron’s work resonates with those interested in the relationship between art, environment, and memory, making it a must-see for art lovers and enthusiasts alike.
2) SYLVIA WADSLEY & LAURA DUTTON: FROM THE EDGE OF THE SEA
5-10 NOVEMBER, THE SETTING GALLERY, THREE STOREYS, NAILSWORTH, GLOS
‘Standing at the edge of the sea, I am captivated by the distant horizon, vastness, space, endlessness and the possibility of setting off into the unknown. I paint atmospheric seascapes which aim to impart peace and serenity, calming the anxieties and complications of the times we live in. My seascape work is for me a meditative form of painting in contrast to my landscape work which is often around environmental concerns.’ Sylvia Wadsley
‘I love to observe, absorb, gather and collect at the edge of the sea. My process involves wandering and wondering at the strangeness and beauty of the anima of the sea and its treasures washed up by the wealth of the tide. These glass sculptures try to capture something of the beauty, fragility, resilience and wonder of life within the waves.’ Laura Dutton
3) MARTIN SHAW: INIS OIRR (INNER-SEER)
7 – 27 NOVEMBER, FIELD SYSTEM, ASHBURTON, DEVON
In the middle of last winter, the writer and artist Martin Shaw braved a three day storm to go pilgrimaging on the smallest of the Aran Islands. This is a gathering of drawings, paintings and recordings responding to the adventure. Dr Martin Shaw is an acclaimed teacher of myth and author of the award-winning Myth teller trilogy. He founded the Oral Tradition and Mythic Life courses at Stanford University, and is director of the Westcountry School of Myth in the UK.
4) KARO PLOVERS PTASZKOWSKA: ENERGY FLOWS WHERE ATTENTION GOES
9 – 16 NOVEMBER, STROUD VALLEYS ARTSPACE, STROUD, GLOS
Karo Plovers Ptaszkowska’s solo show features a selection of paintings and textiles from her new series, as well as found objects collected during her short stay in Stroud. Her literally multi-layered works are infused with fragmented bodies and biomorphic forms that shift into architectural motifs, patterns, and sources of light. These elements serve as means of interconnectivity between humans, electric appliances, forms, space, and time.
She focuses on fostering greater empathy and compassion, investigating how personal work can contribute to global healing and harmony. The energy associated with an individual’s thoughts and emotions correlates with certain frequencies, which can either deplete or promote healing and well-being.
The source materials undergo various degrees of decomposition—much like digestion—and the complexity of their reconfiguration is meant to be absorbed and utilized for their generative properties. Karo creates a body that acts as a structural design, serving as a spatial support for both micro and macro events. Her works explore forms as points where apparent known forces meet invisible, spiritual ones, suggesting that reality is shaped by the interaction of these forces.
PV 8 November 6-9pm
5) MARIA HARRYMAN: LIFE IS NOT STILL
12 – 23 NOVEMBER, ILMINSTER ARTS CENTRE, SOMERSET
Maria Harryman is a Wiltshire based artist whose current work finds inspiration in florilegium, books dating back to medieval times which recorded the plants of a particular place or garden. In this exhibition her specific place of interest is the Kennet & Avon Canal.
Starting in March as older nature-based calendars did, the work walks us through the months and seasons, depicting the wild plants growing in the reedbeds and hedgerows against a backdrop of bridges and wider towpath life. All artworks are for sale and an illustrated booklet of 12 pen portraits to accompany the exhibition will be available.
Maria will be in the gallery on Saturday 16th November to discuss her work and show her sketchbooks providing insight into her working practise.
6) DRAWING THE NIGHT IN: GROUP EXHIBITION
UNTIL 4 JANUARY 2025, YOUNG GALLERY, SALISBURY LIBRARY, WILTSHIRE
As the hour changes and the autumn light gives way to darkness, six artists come together to mark the drawing in of night. Their diverse and seductive interpretations, united by the subject of night’s blackness and quiet shadows show the subject of night is a dark and personal one. Little is known of this ‘other world’, a tapestry of shadows that absorbs a third of our lived experience. Research suggests that sleep was traditionally split into two segments, with a natural waking period in the middle of the night – echoes of this, scientists say, may be what keeps us awake in the early hours when worries and unfettered thoughts take over.
Engaging with the Young Gallery’s permanent collection, while offering their own individual interpretations, these six artists explore these questions and more, inviting the viewer to reflect on their own private experience of night. Featuring collaborating artists Henny Burnett, Susan Francis, Nick Grellier, Debbie Lee, Prudence Maltby and Corinna Spencer.
7) BATH SOCIETY OF ARTISTS ANNUAL OPEN EXHIBITION
UNTIL 11 JANUARY, VICTORIA ART GALLERY, BATH
The Bath Society of Artists Annual Open Exhibition has long been a highlight of Bath’s cultural calendar, bringing a vast array of artistic talent to the Victoria Art Gallery each year. Features around 400 artworks.
WATCH OUT FOR
- ELEMENTAL: GROUP EXHIBITION UNTIL 10 NOVEMBER Fiona Campbell, Ally Matthews & Jan Alison Edwards, environmental artists, respond to the ancient concept of the ELEMENTALS. SOU’-SOU’-WEST GALLERY, BRIDPORT, DORSET https://sousouwest.co.uk/pages/elemental
- JON ADAM & JASON ANDERSON: PARALLEL ORIGINS 15-17 NOVEMBER A collaborative exhibition. THE SALT HOUSE, WEST BAY, BRIDPORT, DORSET https://www.jon-adam.co.uk/exhibitions/parallel-origins
- KATE MCDONNELL: NOCTURNE 20-24 NOVEMBER An exhibition that embodies uncomfortable feelings using bedlinens and bedding with the weaving of disordered words. 44AD GALLERY, BATH https://www.44ad.net/nocturne-2024.html
- CONNECTIONS THROUGH WOOD: GROUP SHOW 23-27 NOVEMBER An exhibition of eight Bristol-based woodworkers, showing what is possible when an artistic eye meets traditional skills Artists: Geoff Hannis, Flo Hamer, Alistair Park, Sue Darlison, Rufin Hambrook-Rose, Jack Labanowski, Jack Ritson, Harry Morris. CENTRESPACE STUDIOS & GALLERY, BRISTOL https://www.centrespace.org.uk/whats-on/connections-through-wood
- PHYLLIDA BARLOW: UNSCRIPTED UNTIL 5 JANUARY Brings together a collection of the artist’s signature elements from several major installations, as well as a number of free-standing sculptures ranging from the early 1970s to work made in the last year of Barlow’s life. HAUSER & WIRTH, BRUTON, SOMERSET https://www.hauserwirth.com/hauser-wirth-exhibitions/phyllida-barlow/
The Floating Circle 