Future Exhibitions

Woven from Nature: Four Contemporary Makers

2 March - 29 April 2012

The exhibits in Woven from Nature are – literally – just that. This exhibition brings together four contemporary artist-craftswomen whose work is either entirely or partially woven and which has the ‘common thread’ of being made from natural materials: wool, cotton, willow, paper and vellum. This is a show that brings together traditional and contemporary practice in the most exciting ways.

Two established leaders in their respective fields, basket-weaver Mary Butcher and tapestry weaver Jilly Edwards, have each nominated a fellow maker working within the same discipline, whose work may not yet be as well-known as their own. It makes for a show in which experience has informed the curatorial approach, and which offers an fascinating breadth of work.

Jilly Edwards trained at West of England College of Art in Bristol, and the Edinburgh College of Art Tapestry Department; she has since taught, published and exhibited widely. Jilly is now based in Devon, where the landscape plays a key role in her work.

Jilly’s ‘nominee’ is Jo McDonald, who also trained in tapestry at Edinburgh College of Art and exhibits regularly. Her work is concerned with the story-telling aspects of history and the way in which it changes with each re-telling.

Mary Butcher trained under traditional basketmakers and within a formal framework at the London College of Furniture. She has travelled widely, acquiring knowledge about techniques and materials from Europe and beyond. She teaches at West Dean College and exhibits internationally, and in 2009 was the Crafts Council Designer in Residence at the V&A.

Maggie Smith, nominated by Mary Butcher, trained at City Lit., London. Her work is inspired by her passion for the heritage of traditional craftsmanship and love of natural materials. The starting-point for many of her pieces is a found object, around which she builds a form, often using natural materials from the same location.

Supported by - Arts Council England
  

Exposed: A Sculptural Installation by Laura Ellen Bacon

Installation starts 12 March 2012
On display until 30 September 2012

Laura Ellen Bacon was selected as a Jerwood Contemporary Maker 2010. Her work is site-specific and ecologically sound; she creates large scale ‘morphing’ structures, most often woven in willow or other coppiced materials.

At Blackwell, Laura will create an installation of two large-scale works in red willow. These pieces have been developed in direct response to Laura’s knowledge and experience of Blackwell, its landscape environment and the climate within which it exists. She will create two dramatic curvaceous structures, bonded to the building and the retaining wall of one of the garden terraces. The form of these two ‘clinging’ structures, which will span two floors of the external elevation, will emphasise their fragility against the relative permanence of the house.

"My large-scale installations are almost always built on site, allowing me to form the works in a way that truly fits its location. I began making my early works upon dry stone walls and evolved to work within trees, riverbanks and hedges, allowing the chosen structure (be it organic or man-made) to become host. Over a decade into my work, my passions have returned to not only merging with dry stone walls, but to the powerful connections with architecture. My work has to fuse with a building to succeed, both aesthetically and practically. The forms I make have such a closeness with the fabric of the building, their oozing energy spills from gutters, their 'muscular' forms nuzzle up to the glass and their gripping weave locks onto the strength of the walls. Whilst the scale and impact varies from striking to subtle (sometimes only visible upon a quizzical double take), I relish the opportunity to let the building 'feed' the form, as if some part of the building is exhaling into the work."

Laura Ellen Bacon is a rising name in contemporary sculpture; she was shortlisted for Jerwood Contemporary Makers 2010. Her work is site-specific and ecologically sound; she creates ‘morphing’ structures, most often woven in willow or other coppiced materials. As part of Blackwell’s developing sculpture programme Laura will be creating a sculptural intervention linking the house and garden terraces.

www.lauraellenbacon.com

Supported by - Arts Council England
  

From Rossetti to Voysey: Arts & Crafts Stamped Book Cover Design

10 May - 15 July 2012

The exhibition brings together books with case-bound cloth covers by well known artists and designers, published between 1866 and 1911 and issued by commercial publishers. The featured designers read like a roll-call of the leading names of the day, including: DG Rossetti, William Morris, Philip Webb, Charles Ricketts, Walter Crane, Laurence Housman and Gleeson White.

The covers have been selected on the grounds of their style and for the proximity of their designers to the core of the Arts & Crafts Movement. Most of those included had work shown at the Arts & Crafts Exhibition Society; four of the designers were Masters of the Art Workers Guild.

Supported by - Arts Council England
  

Light Structures: New Work by Halima Cassell

25 July - 7 Oct 2012

A solo exhibition at Blackwell of new work by leading ceramic artist Halima Cassell, produced entirely in response to the house. For this project Halima will utilize a new vocabulary of shapes, forms and materials in creating a body of work to include low relief wall panels, sculptural objects and freestanding sculptural vessels. Halima’s work is informed by a combination of geometry and organic forms which reflect many of the spatial and decorative elements at Blackwell. Some of the work will be available to purchase.

Supported by - Arts Council England