Dates

• 2 - 31 December 2023

Katya Shepard - the exhibition 'In The Process' of the artist's latest paintings.

Katya Shepard is a British based Russian artist. She studied at the St Petersburg Academy of Art where she was awarded a distinction in her painting and portraiture degree. She has exhibited her work in Russia, France and Britain, including Mall Galleries (Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours, Royal Institute of Oil Painters, Royal Society of Portrait Painters and Society of Women artists), and The Great Art Fair at Alexandra Palace.

Katya likes to follow the best traditional techniques but also to experiment with different materials and styles, which is reflected in her commissions ranging from portraits to murals. For example, she has painted a portrait of Sir David Howard, the Lord Mayor of the City of London in 2001. She also participated in an international Art competition in France, and was awarded a prize (Prix de la Société TVS).

• 2 - 30 November 2023

Gemma Billington - the exhibition 'The Space Between' of the artist's latest artworks.

The works of Turner, Jack B Yates, Matisse and present day contemporary artist Hughie O Donoghue are much admired by Gemma and she admits that she doesn’t really think that you can be influenced by other artists but can be inspired by the subject that they are drawn to. Gemma’s main inspiration comes from the western coast of Ireland huddled on the edge of Europe where she feels true magic really happens.

Born a catholic, the ‘eight of ten children’ was brought up in household where the rosary was recited each night. Her religion is now one with nature and art. She believes a relationship with painting can be healing both for the artist and any viewer prepared to let go of preconceived prejudices and absorb the magic of the timelessness of nature and its ever changing patterns.

• 2 - 31 October 2023

Teresa Wells - the exhibition 'Only Human' of the sculptor's works.

• 2 - 30 September 2023

Enzo Archetti - the exhibition 'Vibrations Of Light' of the artist's latest paintings.

Enzo Archetti  was born in Monticelli Brusati (Brescia), Italy in 1946. He lives now in Brescia.

He began to be interested in art during the years of high school and after graduation he continued his cultural education graduating in Modern Letters. During the same period, without interrupting his studies, he attended the Carrara Academy of Bergamo for two years under the direction of Trento Longaretti. For Archetti painting is one of the most effective ways to tell himself, the others, and the world.

At the beginning of his artistic activity, in the 1970s, he painted the real, and then, until the early 90s, he confronted the great artists of the past, in particular with Piero della Francesca and subsequently combined his figurative with informal painting while maintaining the female figure with cobalt blue eyes as the dominant element.

• 2 - 31 August 2023

Helen Warner - the exhibition 'From Pain To Freedom' - the first exhibition at our gallery of the artist's artworks.

Helen Warner was born in Southampton, UK. She studied Art, Sport Studies and Human Biology at college and being a passionate runner, subsequently completed a degree in Sports Studies at DeMontfort University in Bedford, which encompassed elements of Human Psychology and Sociology.

"There is so much I could say about my artwork but I choose not to because my paintings and sculptures should speak for themselves. I like the viewer to see what they see and therefore this enables my artwork to have an unlimited potential to open minds. I love to shut my studio door behind me and shut out the outside world. The silence is wonderful to me.

Many subjects and emotions inspire and compel me to paint and create it's a continuous journey of exploration. It's all about and in the creativity". - Helen Warner

• 2 - 31 July 2023

Mel Smothers - the exhibition 'Big Oil, Lost And Found' of the artist's latest sculptures.

'I’m placing objects from climate change, and humanitarian events on top of a mass consumerism box. I have been bringing wood and other found objects, charred from recent fires on the west coast, or salvaged from a Florida Keys refugee boat, into a conversation with art history, climate change denial, corporate environmental greed.

These subjects are inherited with the times and drawn from personal narratives and sources that span art history. They reflect my interest in philosophy and contemporary thought.' - Mel Smothers

• 2 - 30 June 2023

David Mayer - the exhibition 'Studio Studies' of the paintings by the artist.

David creates works driven by the moment, by direct observation and a passion for his subject. Within a career spanning 35 years he has produced both wildlife and figurative studies on a commercial basis including a life-size bronze Welsh Cob commissioned for the town of Aberaeron, Wales. His own editions in bronze are choices based upon what he is interested in at that time or reflections of recent observation and encounters.

"I am often torn between working outdoors with a sketchbook and being in the studio. The studio is where the work is completed … outside is where my work starts. I enjoy all aspects of being outside, come rain or shine and is where I am most comfortable.

• 2 - 31 May 2023

Valentin Zenkovsky - the exhibition 'At The Intersection Of Borders' of the artist's latest paintings.

Valentin Zenkovsky was born in Moscow in 1952. He started to paint in early 1970s in his native Moscow as a theatrical painter. There was some theatrics in his paintings since each painting represented a prop. Sometime they looked like a shot from a movie.

Each painting was in line with its own play and with the music, playing in the painter’s head while he was creating composition, mixing colours and putting them on canvas. It required different art techniques and materials. That’s why Valentin used oil, acrylic, tempera, watercolour, coloured pencils, etc., if it helped to achieve the desired result.

His education as a painter he started in the studio of the famous Soviet artist A.I. Laktionov.

From the late 1980s till now Zenkovsky was showing his paintings at various galleries all over the world (more than 300 exhibitions). He sold more than 2000 paintings. Valentin is constantly  looking for new  themes, new art expressive means and working hard to apply the creative approaches in the painting process.

Valentin Zenkovsky has PhD in engineering and he’s the author of 8 textbooks on computer graphics. These related fields of knowledge and skills are also helpful in art creation. He created dozens of films with the use of computer animation. He made some commercials where he used his drawing and colouring skills. He even wrote some stories.

• 2 - 30 April 2023

Metin Salih - the exhibition 'mesmerEYES' of the artist's latest artworks.

International artist Metin Salih hails from a “Mad Men” –esque background; having illustrated and painted for almost every ad agency and brand you can think of. Influenced and inspired by masters such as Sargeant, Reynolds, Varga, Robert McGinnis and Robert G. Harris, his boldly painted portraits are created from a truly unique colour palette merged with an experimental approach to this traditional genre.

Metin has been continuously evolving his style as a contemporary artist in his own right. The illustration-based background is reflected in the hyper-real and graphic nature of the work. The accuracy and sophistication of his images is bolstered by a clear passion for painting. His highly expressive work is provocative and sexy; yet able to capture the intimacy and vulnerability of his subjects at the same time. The relationship between artist and sitter is one of ease and trust, resulting in a sense of individuality and character that shine through these beautifully alluring portraits.

Primarily created with oil paint, he also fuses his work with unconventional elements such as cement and rusty nails; resulting in stunningly adventurous works of art that ooze with passion.

• 2 - 31 March 2023

Igor Tcholaria was born in 1959 in the small town of Ochamchiri on the coast of the Black Sea in Abkhazia, Georgia. During his school days, his teachers noticed his exceptional talent and suggested that he apply to the prestigious Art College of Sukhumi. Tcholaria spent the next three years there studying under the guidance of artist Givi Guergaya. After completing his studies at the College, Tcholaria moved to Leningrad to study at the University of Arts named after Vera Mukhina.

Tcholaria became one of the first artists in the Soviet Union who earned a living by painting portraits in the street. During Gorbachev’s Perestroika, Tcholaria was noticed by the owner of Cenacolo Gallery in Piacenza, Italy. Intrigued by Tcholaria’s talent, the Italian art dealer offered to collaborate with him, the start of an artistic venture abroad. In Italy he had his first solo exhibition, soon followed by shows in Greece, Belgium and Netherlands, along with auctions and art fairs. Among other commissions, he was asked to paint two four-meter long murals for famous ocean liner, the Queen Mary II. In 2009 he won the gold medal for his aerographics on the latest Volvo C70, exhibited at the Millionaire’s Fair in Moscow

• 2 - 28 February 2023

Penny Crofts - the exhibition ‘Heatwave’ of the artist's latest artworks.

Penny Crofts studied Fine Art at Central Saint Martins’ College of Art and Design, London, England, graduating with a BA (Hons) Fine Art in 2002. Her first solo exhibition was in 2006, and since then she has had further exhibitions around the UK.

Penny’s work is continually evolving and she continues to push the boundaries with her unique brand of art, using thermography as a starting point to reflect on the world in which we live.

Climate change is becoming particularly relevant to her paintings, the new challenges it brings with the UK perpetuating to be a tropical climate, a distinct change from the moderate climate we have been used to. Heatwaves are becoming more prevalent in this country with the hottest day ever recorded in 2022.

Some of these paintings also contain imagery of Olympic champion athletes which have been translated on to canvas using acrylic paint. They reflect the power, talent and determination through the vibrancy of colour. However, the initial source of the imagery, using a thermal camera that records heat instead of light, is a true reflection of warmth which is effecting our world today and in the future.

• 2 - 31 January 2023

Ashkal - the exhibition 'The Death Of Cleopatra' of the artist's latest artworks.

'My depiction of the series " The Death of Cleopatra " an event that occurred on August, 30 BC, in Alexandria is based on surrealism.
As an artist, I work hard and that hard work includes my study, research, and efforts to develop paintings that speak both to me and to others and what inspires me to portray The Death of Cleopatra which has been depicted in various works of art throughout history is the narrative itself and the way Old Masters portrayed it.
Cleopatra was the most beautiful woman of her era but she regardless of her looks was certainly a formidable leader—and one of the most powerful members of a Greek dynasty that dominated Egypt for more than three centuries.
As the Queen of Egypt faced with the prospect of losing her kingdom, she killed herself by allowing an asp (Egyptian cobra) to bite her.
I was very much inspired by this famous subject matter that I decided to represent a historical event in my manner.'

Ashkal