Victorian Market at Rotherham Minster

On Saturday 27th November 2010 the team were part of the annual Rotherham Minster Victorian Market held within the Minster itself.

Unfortunately it snowed overnight which one would think would be perfect in creating an ambiance and a reason to attend, resulting in a packed church , unfortunately the Minster was undergoing renovation work which rather restricted access albeit in a small way. but as those who know it the Minster is right in the centre of the towns shopping area which is a good thing but it is also on an elevated position with steep steps to one side and a sloping cobbled roadway to the other side providing its main access from the shopping centre which throughout the day remained covered in ice restricting access to the Minster which was felt by the exhibitors through a lack of visitors.

This was not to say that the town was devoid of shoppers as witnessed by the author who checked the shopping centre it was just that they had difficulty getting up to the Minster, plus there seemed a distinct lack of marketing in the town on the day to inform the public of what was taking place, after all this is an annual event and was supposed to raise the profile of Rotherham and bring in the visitors as well as raising funds for the Minster.

It would be interesting to see how the Lady Mayor who opened the event arrived.

In fairness to Rotherham Corporation they did start spreading grit around the Minster around 3.30pm to aid the stallholders leave early due to lack of visitors, and they did have free car parking.

A wonderful opportunity to turn weather conditions to an advantage was lost.

Sorry Rotherham could have done better.

"A Silent Conversation"

Have you considered what makes a gallery? does it have to have a specific layout with spotlights and a hanging system? does it have to be dedicated and defined as a gallery? This was the thought that occurred to our reviewer when he came came to write this preview.
On Thursday night (25/09/2010) we attend a preview of "A Silent Conversation" being the latest combined art exhibition by Mick Foster, John Ledger and Mikk Murray in the West Yorkshire Village of 'Honley' just outside of Hudderfield.
The exhibition is self was located in 'Holme Valley Warehouse' situated on the main road running through the village, the name of the premises initially gave the mental impression of it being an industrial warehouse which proved to be erroneous, for these are commercial shop style premises which upon entering proved to be a treasure trove of art, sculpture and object d 'art fighting with, yet complementing each other for space on the lower floor but at the same time having some of the upper rooms totally dedicated to art work including the current exhibition.
The owner of the premises (another 'Mick') deals mainly in old style furniture comprising Wardrobes, Chest's of Drawers, Pews, etc, either in their original state or which have been refurbished as well as unusual and quirky pieces for the garden and home which have been placed in some cases where there is room, giving the premises an almost emporium feel.
You may ask what does this have to do with a contemporary art exhibition, the fact is that this mix of solid wood furniture belonging to another generation , quirky objects and this specific exhibition of modern art incredibly fits together, which caused us to ask "What make a gallery"?.
As usual the answer lies with you the viewer so rather than us posting a personal review of the exhibition itself, feel free to go along and visit the premises and exhibition, then tell us what you think.
Add your comments or opinions on the blog.
The Premises are situated at 11 West Gate, Honley, Huddersfield HD9 6AA
t.n 01484 667915 and is open Monday- Tuesday, Thursday-Saturday 10.00am-5pm, closed Wednesday & Sunday.
The Exhibition runs until the 8th October 2010.

"20x20" at Access

Entering its 5th year the Access Space's 5th exhibition has 48 pieces of art work on exhibition by various artists based on a mount of 20x20 in size hence the title.
The subject matter and style are left to the individual which had produced an eclectic mash of 20x20,s from paper mache' to prints and textiles, however surely this is what it is all about, the unknown and unexpected ranging from the figurative to the obscure or even tenuous.
Being a IT centre the exhibition has to be viewed in part with IT work taking place but this is not a detriment for as can be seen from some of the work the connection beween digital photography and IT work can sometimes be blurred and taken out of contex, but who is to say that it cannot or should not happen, we are talking artistic interpretation which relies on presenting that work to the viewer for judgement and criteque, that space none of it would happen.
The Access Space is open 11am-7pm and is situated at 3-7 Sidney Street, Sheffield

"The Working Artist"

"The Working Artist" is a joint exhibition by 7 young artists working in collaboration with each other to mount an exhibition of their work aided by collaboration with Barnsley Council in providing an empty shop situated within the town centre for the promotion of the arts by such individuals or groups such as this exhibition on display in the aptly named POD1.
The range covers photography, installation and fine art dealing with various subject pertinent to the artists own interest.
Artist exhibiting are Carys Bryan (Photography and drawing) Kate Burton (Photography)
Fiona Helen Halliday (Fine Art) Jessica Jones (Fine Art) John Ledger (Drawing) Sophie Littlewood (Sculpture) Lisa V Robinson (Fine Art)
For further information contact the Northern Young Artists at fiona'norhternyoungartists.co.uk

Review of Northern Futures 10 Award

The preview evening for the shortlisted entrants of the Northern Future 10 Award look place within Barnsley's newly built Civic building which hosts a number of galleries and exhibition rooms adding to the status of the town as an up and coming place for the arts.
The exhibition featuring four categories under Fine Art, 3D design, Film, and Fashion. showed that not only does the North have a huge range of artistic talent but it has the facilities to do them justice.
It is not the purpose of this review to go into detail or extol the merits of any individual exhibitor but rather to comment on the fact that not all roads lead to London.
The exhibition runs until the 10th of September,

Review of Mikk Murray Exhibition at Gallery 4'33"

Mikk Murray had the honour of being the opening exhibitor at the preview of the new gallery (4'33") FourThirtyThree on Mowbray Street, Sheffield
The brainchild of artist Mick Foster the gallery is situated within an industrial quarter creating and rejuvenating a new lease of life to premises in what would have been ignored and overlooked yet once again reflects what artists can see and do with nothing.
Mikk's exhibition is rather potent yet thought provoking in the message it is getting across.
For some time bees have been subjected to a mite which has decimated colonies across the world and whilst you may say "So what?" think on this, No bees=no pollination=no crop set=no crop=no food=starvation=extinction. Yet only £250.000 has been allocated to research in the UK from which a large cottage industry and food producers rely on bees.
Only a suggestion but perhaps Mikk's next bee themed exhibition in the not to far future may have to be called
"We know where the bees went but what did we do about it?"
The reviewer can see this gallery becoming a venue as the conscience of those who care about what we have, where we are going, and how we are getting there.
We look foreward to reviewing further exhibitions from 4'33"
The exhibition runs until the 20th August 2010

"Old Bones Dark Waters"

The photographic exhibition "Old Bones Dark Waters" by Alan Melling at the Coterie Gallery in Shefffield opened on the 16th July 2010 to a well received viewing from a cadre of interested patrons.
Taking a totally different outlook on what is there but not usually noticed be it animal vegetable or mineral the photographer has isolate a part or details of the whole and produced an image which illuminates parts of the subject matter yet giving it an appearance of being suspended in a fathomless void.
Whilst this may be sufficient for most photographers Melling takes it to an even further stage by catching the highlights of certain parts which pushes the background deeper whilst pulling parts of the subject foreword in such a manner as to be almost resembling an oil painting.
Some of the subject matter of old bones from where the exhibition obtains its titles may seem an unlikely subject matter but that is the whole point of the exhibition where coming across the unexpected and seeing shape and form within what nature and life casts aside and creating a new visual life form has produced an exhibition of photographic merit.
Whilst Melling embraces the use of digital photography he is still an exponent of the traditional film and many of the images have been created from an old 35 mm camera which has accompanied him on many of his journeys around the world where the light can produce stunning visual effect not seen in the UK which can give rise to presumptions that digital imagery has been employed to produce the effects.
Entry to the exhibition is free.
Prints are for sale from a little as £40 which are mounted and framed ready for hanging, or prints and mounts only.
All prints are produced using best quality inks and paper which carry a manufacturers guarantee of being fade free for 70+ years.
The Gallery is situated at the bottom of Pack Horse Lane, High Green, Sheffield S35 3HY, and is open Monday - Friday 9am-5pm directions can be found on the website www.coteriegallery.co.uk
It has free parking, full disabled access, craft shop, cafe' and backs onto the Westwood Country which combined with its next door neighbours indoor children's play area makes it a pleasant few hours for the individual or families. during the school holiday.