Menu
Hastings & St. Leonards on-line community newspaper
Shadow (from Pett Level)

Shadow (from Pett Level): Denise Franklin.

Earthworks drawn and sculptured

The St Leonards restaurant and gallery, Graze on Grand, has had two very successful contemporary exhibitions since its opening in early May. HOT’s Lauris Morgan-Griffiths went along to see the latest show, Earthworks, with two local artists, Denise Franklin and Bernard McGuigan 

First, I have to declare an interest. I have long been an admirer of Franklin’s contemplative work and I own a few of her paintings.

I respect Franklin for her change of approach; the theme might be similar but you are never quite sure what you are going to see. I think of her as a tangential, landscape artist. Franklin evidently has a profound connection with nature. The power of the elements are not ignored, yet their presence is portrayed lightly.

Some images in the exhibition are inspired by a holiday in Crete capturing the majestic mountains with evocative pencil lines. They look introspective and peaceful, so it was a jolt to learn that the flowing, jagged lines were born out of fear.

White Mountains 1

White Mountains 1: Denise Franklin.

“I didn’t think it was possible to draw terror,” Franklin explains. “We were driving up into the mountains on unfinished roads – I was in the passenger seat – and, to distract myself, I followed the lines as we zigged and zagged up the mountain.” As they twisted and turned she’d see one mountain peak repeat itself, the same peak echoes lower then higher up the mountain. When she got back to her studio she mapped out those lines tracing the zig and zag of  her car journey, living the moment again by working uninterrupted until the drawing was finished.

Crete was evidently an inspiration; however, to Franklin, the East Sussex coastline is no less striking. She has sat and recorded her reactions to the South Downs; swum in the sea looking up at Beachy Head; spent hours observing the strangeness of Dungeness and the oddness of Pett Level.

“I think about how the land is formed, the land building up with the waves, wind shaping the Dungeness peninsula, and I let the drawing evolve organically without trying to work out whether what I’ve done is good or not.” Pett Level has a different atmosphere: the strangeness of the transition of tides; the awareness of different sounds; the changing light and colour of the sea.

There is a real reward for looking closely at the pictures and seeing the water flow through the groynes; the white froth and motion of the sea; a red line of skittering oystercatchers at the sea’s edge; the intimation of erosion as well as land movement. This is an artist who through close observation has an elemental connection to the land which results in a quiet confidence that allows simplicity without  any gratuitous embellishment.

Broken. limestone on stone and wood base.

Broken: Bernard McGuigan (limestone on stone and wood base).

Showing alongside the paintings are abstract earthworks by Bernard McGuigan. The two artists have not collaborated; Graze’s co-owner Stephanie Goj brought them together, recognising a similar sensibility. Franklin may be excavating mentally the formation of the land, McGuigan is working directly with the land’s natural elements.

McGuigan is known mainly for his figurative work but about four years ago he started to work in an abstract way. So what happened to change his way of thinking? “It could be a sad story but it turned into a celebration.” His brother was diagnosed with cancer and he found that the figurative work could not encompass his emotions that were “fearful, painful and questioning.” However, his brother survived, and he has continued sculpting in an abstract way.

The titles give a hint as to what he was feeling at the time: Broken; Love and Pain (the two feelings being both linked and separate); Vessel (“I think of us as empty vessels floating though life not knowing what is going to happen”). However, the work is not sentimental and McGuigan is happy for “viewers to take away their own feelings and reactions from seeing the work.”

Two distinct artists. An intelligent, intriguing exhibition. Well worth a visit.

Earthworks: Denise Franklin and Bernard McGuigan Graze on Grand, 16 Grand Parade, St Leonards-on-Sea, TN37 6DN. Wednesday 9  September to Sunday 1 November, open Wednesday to Sunday.

If you’re enjoying HOT and would like us to continue providing fair and balanced reporting on local matters please consider making a donation. Click here to open our PayPal donation link. Thank you for your continued support!

Posted 08:10 Wednesday, Sep 9, 2015 In: Visual Arts

Also in: Visual Arts

«
»
More HOT Stuff
  • SUPPORT HOT

    HOT is run by volunteers but has overheads for hosting and web development. Support HOT!

    ADVERTISING

    Advertise your business or your event on HOT for as little as £20 per month
    Find out more…

    DONATING

    If you like HOT and want to keep it sustainable, please Donate via PayPal, it’s easy!

    VOLUNTEERING

    Do you want to write, proofread, edit listings or help sell advertising? then contact us

    SUBSCRIBE

    Get our regular digest emails

  • Subscribe to HOT