ALEKSANDRA NIEMCZYK
Polarity
Saturday 30th of September to Sunday 15th of October
Three Weekends : from 11.00 am to 6.00 pm
Aleksandra Niemczyk is an abstract painter living and working in Blackheath/Greenwich, London. She uses mixed-media techniques to create non-figurative paintings of vibrant intensity and colour.
With respect for the great non-figurative modernists of the past, and uncompromising dedication to abstract expressionism based on “organic geometry” and colour theory, Niemczyk paints sensual but complex, delicately balanced colour compositions.
In practice, Niemczyk deconstructs forms and images from her immediate landscape into abstract elements and reconfigures them in balanced constellations, evoking an impression or hue of her subjects rather than a narrative description. These compositions accrue a sense of tactility through Niemczyk’s extended experimentation with textile and application: silk, cotton, paper, thick oil or acrylic paint, asphalt, and gold leaf.
Niemczyk's latest collection, "Polarity", is an outcome of her art residency in Tokyo, Japan, where she researched traditional Japanese techniques of painting, printing and patching on textiles. The name "Polarity" mirrors Niemczyk's experimentation with contrasting colours, giving rise to a further dichotomy: the urge to harmonise these contrasts versus the desire to maintain their tension. This conflict is expressed through the composition of abstract landscapes in which opposing colours can exist in symbiosis.
Niemczyk’s formal training includes an MA in Fine Arts (Painting and Lithography) and MA in Film Directing from Béla Tarr’s radical film factory program in Sarajevo. She exhibits internationally, and her works feature in many private and public art collections, including Focus Bank and Louis Vuitton Art Collection in Oslo, Norway.
She has exhibited in many art institutions internationally. Recently her works were presented at The Mall Galleries, London, during the Royal Society of British Artists 200th Anniversary Exhibition.
Twitter and Instagram @niemczykaleks
JOHN BUCK
'Crossing'
Saturday 21st of October to Sunday 5th November
Three Weekends : from 11.00 am to 6.00 pm
John Buck is a figurative artist working in paint, printmaking, collage and drawing.
‘Crossing’ brings together a selection of prints and paintings growing out of decades as a commuter joining the crowds heading into London. The figures are taken out of their context into an abstract, dreamlike landscape. The prints came out of the idea of someone lost in the city.
Developed through street photography and sketching, a stream of expressive drawings found an outlet in printmaking. The prints use accidental, random marks and rough edges from the process to add an expressive texture and atmosphere.
John has had work included in group shows including the Royal Academy summer exhibition, Mall Galleries and Bankside galleries in London. He has worked as a graphic designer and illustrator in publishing for more than 30 years.
SINCLAIR ASHMAN
'Makings'
Saturday 11th November to Sunday 26th November
Three Weekends : from 11.00 am to 6.00 pm
Sinclair Ashman writes:
"Printmaking practice often asks questions of the art form, such as ‘when is a print finished?’ and ‘is a print the only possible outcome?’. For example, I sometimes include post-print embellishments, such as sewing threads into the paper surface, or folding the print into sculptural forms. My largely abstract and textured images are made from plates created from everyday materials such as fabric edgings, acrylic gels and floor tile adhesive.
The plates are often deliberately fragile – surface elements may loosen after a few impressions, altering details in the image and contributing to the creation of truly unique prints. I often include in-print and post-print embellishments, such as chine collé and threads sewn into the surface of the printed paper.
Although I produce some figurative work, the vast majority is abstract, because I am more interested in texture, form and the overall visual power of my imagery than in direct reflections of nature."
DOT YOUNG
‘Ephemeral’
Saturday 2nd December to Sunday 17th December
Three Weekends : from 11.00 am to 6.00 pm
Dot Young is a Scottish artist, based in South East London. Her work considers the global environment and our ephemeral existence within a fragile ecosystem under ever increasing threat.
Through relief sculpting, visual narratives and sculptural interpretation she explores and celebrates the intricacies and complexities of natural life forms and responds to the work of environmental activists such as internationally renowned Kenyan author and founder of the Green Belt Movement, Wangari Maathai (1940-2011).
Most recently, her work aims to reconcile the potential impact of sculptural practices on our environment. She is currently investigating the sculptural qualities and wider environmental context of historically and internationally renowned Japanese heritage washi papers. She considers the relationship and empathy their production has with the natural Japanese landscapes and questions western approaches regarding control over nature.
She has been granted a funded research sabbatical for 2024 from RCSSD, University of London, to further pursue and investigate the enquiry.
Her formal training includes a BA in Fine Art Sculpture and an MA in Creative Media Arts. Her work features in private and public art collections.
Instagram @dotyoung_art
