A dynamic setting can bring out the best in an artwork, especially if the pictures echo the environment around them.
Watford artist Douglas Jackson’s exhibition at Cha Cha Cha Tearoom in Cassiobury Park last year focused on local settings – the park, the canal and the nearby woods. It was his most successful show to date and as a result he has been invited to exhibit in the Pavilion Gallery at Chenies Manor this August.
This time he is holding a joint show with ceramicist Jenny Birch titled Off The Wall and On , and the subject matter is unrestrained.
Whereas Douglas is largely self-taught, Jenny studied ceramics at Hatfield University and Chelsea School of Art. She is currently producing work at West Herts College in Watford. Jenny has several strands to her work – abstract, vessel and figurative.
For this exhibition, Jenny has created figurative forms based on Japanese netsuke – miniature sculptures that were used to tie clothing.
Douglas works in watercolour and acrylics and aims to reflect the beauty all around us. Twice-winner of Watford and Bushey Art Society’s annual painting competition in 2010 and 2011, Douglas is renowned for his vibrant scenes of nature and landscape.
“The gardens at Chenies are truly wonderful and I am interested in capturing the effects of light and shade, reflections in water and the sharpness and subtlety of colour,” says Douglas. “Up until now I have endeavoured to render still life and landscape subjects in a figurative and representational way. More recently, with encouragement from Jenny, I have begun to experiment with more abstract interpretations.”
The exhibition runs throughout August at Chenies Manor Pavilion Gallery, Chenies. Details: 01494 762888, cheniesmanorhouse.co.uk