‘Conversations with Nature’ exhibition, Wakefield
Conversations with Nature:
Alison Critchlow, Natalie Dowse and Helen Thomas
Tiled Gallery, The Art House, Drury Lane, Wakefield, WF1 2TE
27 July–21 August 2022
I am very pleased to announce this forthcoming exhibition with two fabulous painters Helen Thomas and Alison Critchlow. We all graduated in the same year from Falmouth School of Art, Cornwall back in 1992, and this exhibition brings our work together once more!
“Conversations with Nature brings together the works of Alison Critchlow, Natalie Dowse and Helen Thomas in an exhibition that celebrates the artists’ relationship with the natural environment. From plants that squeeze their way through the cracks in the pavement, to the uncanny and the familiar in the urban and natural landscape, this collection of paintings is a recognition of their shared explorations. Whether from a physical connection or an emotional feeling, or a combination of the two, the artworks in the gallery apply the language of paint to explore the beauty and unpredictability of nature.
The three artists originally studied together at Falmouth School of Art, Cornwall, and 2022 marks the 30th anniversary since their graduation. Conversations with Nature will be the first time their work has been shown together in three decades and is a celebration of their achievements, friendship and innate connection to the natural world.”
Launch Event: 27 July 2022, 5pm – 9pm
Exhibition dates: 27 July – 21 August 2022
Opening times: Monday-Sunday, see website for times. Free entry, everyone welcome, no booking required.
In Conversation event (chaired by Joanna Whittle): Sunday 21 August, 1.30pm – 2.30pm
Free, booking required, contact The Art House for details.
Alison Critchlow is a contemporary painter with a broad, investigative approach. Based in Cumbria, she spends her time between studio practice and educational projects. Informed by sensory experience, memory and observation, Critchlow’s paintings merge together representation and abstraction. The process of painting and the language of paint is central to her approach, using the texture, speed and pace of marks to spark conversations and curiosity.
Helen Thomas is a Yorkshire-based artist and studio holder at The Art House. Often inspired by the overlooked, and sometimes controversial self-seeding plants, her work explores responses to nature in its everyday environment. Thomas’s practice includes field and studio work, alongside educational and collaborative projects.
