Gallery Rich May 09 24/4/09 12:37 Page 1
GALLERY
e-mail: carol@artalone.com
Art at a
glance
Society event
a73 Orleans House Gallery
Riverside, Twickenham
Shakespeare 1709 – 1790
Carol Cordrey looks admiringly at the Dorking Group of Artists
features original sculptures of
the Bard by some great
18th century artists. It also
includes a facsimile of A
fter months and months of reading press
reports about our grossly mismanaged
institutions, the chance to flag up a
Roubilliac’s commissioned booming, not-for-profit organization is just too
statue for Garrick’s Temple to
good to miss. Not a finance house, but a secure
Shakespeare in Hampton,
and highly respected art society which, for the past
with a Sunday afternoon bus
60 years, has been quietly adhering to that rare and
shuttle to Hampton to see the
wondrous policy of putting the customer first.
original work.
It’s the Dorking Group of Artists (DGA) and its
Until Jun 7
customers fall into two distinct categories. On the
After Observation:
one hand are the 200 or so members, who enjoy a
Representation through
full programme of tutorials, demonstrations and Still Life with Physalis by Jane Anderson Wood
Composition is a collection of
paintings and drawings by
workshops aimed at stretching their considerable
Jeffrey Spedding, derived
talents. And on the other hand there’s us, the
from photographic imagery.
external customers, who have the chance to buy
May 21 – Jun 21 (Stables)
work from DGA exhibitions at thoroughly
Tel: (020) 8831 6000
reasonable prices.
www.richmond.gov.uk/arts
It was at one such display that I first took note
of the unusually high standard of work. Some
a73 Vestry House
Paradise Road
DGA members are represented by galleries in
Savour and buy from the
London and elsewhere, receiving prestigious
Richmond Art Society Spring private commissions, and I left the exhibition
Exhibition, to be officially determined to bring the society to the attention of
opened by internationally readers throughout South-West London and
renowned artist Ken Howard
Surrey. Here, therefore, is a taste of what you can
on May 17, at 12.30pm.
expect from the forthcoming Spring Exhibition.
May 16-25
The luscious landscapes of Stuart Stanley form
Tel: (020) 8876 6026
patchworks of rich colour applied loosely, but
www.richmondartsociety.com
with the vigour of an artist enraptured by the
a73 Royal Botanic Gardens
power of nature and impatient to celebrate it in
Kew, Richmond
paint. Look, for example, at Autumn Woodland,
Stunning images from
Abinger Rough. The thicker the impasto, the more
International Garden
voluminous and molten the countryside appears –
Photographer of the Year,
Autumn Woodland, Abinger Rough by Stuart Stanley
and the more I love Stuart’s work.
including those in the new
In contrast, soft colouring and beautifully
With Stephanie Manchipp, it is the realistic
category of World Botanic
worked tonal effects are the hallmark of Linda
Gardens, created for the
feline compositions that stand out. Like the late,
Amos. And, although I admire the delicacy and 3D
250th birthday of RBG Kew.
great Louis Wain, Stephanie endows all her cats
quality of her flower paintings, it is Linda’s
May 23 onwards (near the
with individual character. Their puffball fur or
architectural scenes which grab me. Unusual
Pavilion Restaurant)
silky coats possess a wonderfully tactile quality,
viewpoints entice us to peek into the intimate
Huge willow sculptures of
but it’s the eyes which are truly mesmeric.
seeds create a Seed Walk at
corners of higgledy-piggeldy, cheek-by-jowl
Through them we discern whether the cat is
Main Gate.
groups of old and apparently deserted buildings.
contemplating its next meal, appealing for love,
Until September
Two for Joy is a case in point. Here the unsettling
preparing to pounce or, as in Ragtime, shrewdly
Look out for the new world
stillness is dislodged in the viewer’s mind by a pair
analyzing its surroundings.
map garden on the theme of
of communicating birds, strategically placed in the
Finally, the talents of Jane Anderson Wood are
RBG Kew’s conservation
foreground of the enigmatic composition.
exemplified by Still Life with Physalis, in which
work, as it comes into bloom
Winner of several art awards, including last
year’s Guildford Painting Competition, Chris
subtly coloured gourds and apples prepare our
at Victoria Gate during May!
Tel: (020) 8332 5655 Forsey is a highly accomplished artist about whom
eyes for the main feast: a jug of gorgeous, glowing
www.kew.org I have written in the past. He paints in a
physalis – aka ‘Chinese lanterns’ – dangling from
representational style, but his subjects are pared
brittle stems that spread the vibrancy of the
a73 The Barbara Stanley Gallery
279 Upper Richmond Road, down rather than precise, with some elements
flowers across the picture plane. A natural effect,
Putney
reduced to near abstraction. Often the painting is
yet this work is actually a very clever contrivance
Vibrant, emotive landscapes
highly textured and restricted to a limited palette,
– and one more reason to celebrate the DGA.
by Cormac O’Leary.
with just a peppering of highlights. Yet the
a73 Dorking Group of Artists exhibits at Betchworth
May 6 – Jun 6
addition of glowing light effects produces Village Hall, Station Rd, Betchworth, nr Dorking
Tel: (020) 8789 8088
emotionally charged, distinctive works, such as from May 2-3 (10am – 6pm) and on May 4 (10am
www.irishartinlondon.com
Foreshore Flora, that sell very fast indeed. – 4pm). Tel: (01306) 628090. Visit: www.dga.org.uk
www.richmondmagazine.co.uk 69
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84