Desirable Contemporary Craft to Buy at The Atkinson

Desirable Contemporary Craft to Buy at The Atkinson

The Atkinson is delighted to announce the opening of Love – its stunning selling exhibition of contemporary craft on Thursday 28 November.

As part of The Atkinson’s brand new ground floor offer, the selling exhibition displays contemporary Craft from some of the best makers across the UK, all inspired by the Love Stories exhibition running until April 2014.

The Exhibition Love celebrates the romance of British Craft. Bringing together twelve makers from across the country who portray Love in a variety of ways and mediums. Featuring jewellery by Gine B Clarke and Philippa Dutton, ceramics by Amanda Mercer, Claire Baker and Helen Russell, Wood by Edward Wild, Letterpress prints by Print for love of wood, Textiles by Louise Taylor, Paper works by Alix Swan along with Glass and mixed media pieces by Tink Glass, Clare Knox- Bentham and Debbie Smyth.

 Emma Anderson, The Atkinson’s Director said:

We are expanding our offer for visitors, so that people are able to buy exclusive gifts based on our stunning collections and desirable; unique craft gifts – all selected on the theme of Love – created by leading makers from across the country. 

For the first time Southport has a distinctive, high quality craft showcase o rival that of Manchester and Liverpool”.

 The collection has been selected by Jenny Rutter and Rose Hamilton, two of the leading craft curators in the North West. There will be seasonally changing exhibitions to reflect the themes of The Atkinson’s programme. Visitors can look forward to craft on a seaside and on a floral theme.

We have deliberately chosen affordable craft to feature alongside the more exclusive pieces, for discerning buyers.

 Along with the Bakery The Atkinson’s new shop is another reason for people to come and spend time in The Atkinson with family and friends. It is situated in a prime retail location on Lord Street – Southport’s main shopping street and it hopes to maximise on its footfall of 20,000 visitors per month.

More information on the exhibition of contemporary craft please visit  theatkinson.co.uk

 The Atkinson
Lord Street
Southport
Merseyside
PR8 1DB

 

HOW TO BOOK

In person: Visit the Southport Tourist Information Centre (located on Lord Street, Southport).

For tickets: visit the website theatkinson.co.uk* or call box office on 01704 533333

-ENDS-__________________________________________________________________________________________

Notes to Editors

For more information, interviews, images or review tickets, please contact Emma Lloyd at The Atkinson on 0151 934 2129 | emma.lloyd@sefton.gov.uk

 

About The Atkinson

The Atkinson is a key transformational project, enhancing Southport’s offer of ‘England’s Classic Resort’. It is a £17 million development, due to open in Spring 2013. It involves the integration of three Arts & Cultural managed venues, Southport Arts Centre, the Atkinson Art Gallery and Botanic Gardens Museum alongside the Southport central Library, into one regional cultural centre. Sefton Council, North West Development Agency, Arts Council England and Sea Change funded the Atkinson project. A funding application has also been successful to the Heritage Lottery Fund for the fit out of the museum areas to feature within the Cultural Centre.

The Atkinson will deliver high quality arts and cultural entertainment from dance and drama to fine art and music, whilst supporting community art groups with their development and performances.

Set in a grade II listed building in the centre of Lord Street, the principal shopping avenue in Southport, which extends the length of the town. It will act as a focal point for the town centre and will add to the food and beverage offer and the Lord Street retail offer to make a complete visitor experience.

About the makers

Alix Swan

Alix Swan is described as a ‘textile artist’, ‘fine art bookmaker’, sometimes ‘paper artist’, I am a designer-maker with a love of combining paper, print, graphics, textiles and found materials.  Everything is made by me.  I cut, sew and assemble by hand.  I have a computer, digital camera and four old typewriters and my home is a treasure trove of found and second-hand materials.  I am happiest working on a small, even miniature, scale and my eye for detail and finish is of great importance.  The themes of my work are vintage stories, rhymes and sayings.  I offer my work as a quirky twist on the traditional.

 

Helen Russell

Helen is inspired by the natural world, storytelling and illustration. She enjoys muddy adventures in the beautiful Pennine hills where she lives, as well as further afield; often choosing to explore forests, mountains and other wild places. Helen’s BA(Hons) in Three Dimensional Design means she has experience of working in many different materials, but her first loves are clay and wood. Helen likes to celebrate the best bits of human nature and often works closely with customers to create pieces that celebrate family events or capture special moments.

 

Amanda Mercer

Amanda is a designer and maker and lovingly handcraft ceramics inspired by memories and nostalgia. Her range is a collection of delicate porcelain buttons, jewellery, pretty home wear and decoration all individually handcrafted and created from my studio in the heart of the city centre in Carlisle, Cumbria.

 

Her love for vintage and nostalgic memorabilia such as vintage buttons found in my Grandma’s button box, scraps of lace, black and white photographs, stamps and letters, is translated through her pieces, exploring surface decoration and form. She uses many different techniques to achieve this such as imprinting, screen printing and the use of decal transfers which are produced through my own drawings and collages of postage markings and letters. Each piece created is individual therefore will always slightly vary to the next.

 

Clare Baker

Her work is heavily influenced by the ‘aged’ and ‘distressed beauty’ of Miss Haversham’s Wedding Table in Dickens Great Expectations and the darker, more curious side of Victorian life. A love of Theatre and Victorian Gothic combined with a life spent exercising a vivid imagination encourage the particularly British peculiarity of my ceramics.

She has a personal obsession with scouring junk shops for objects to engage with acts as a stimulus for me, instigating my employment of reclaimed possessions as both inspiration and adornment.Using tea spoons as handles has become a familiar theme in my work.

 

Edward Wild

Devon based furniture designer / maker Edward Wild combines contemporary design with traditional craftsmanship.  He is a member of the Devon Guild of Craftsmen, with his work exhibited in a number of select U.K galleries.  His passion for quality craftsmanship includes the design and making of furniture alongside the sourcing of interesting and beautiful woods, from scented apple and damson wood, to the rich tones of English walnut. Edwards’s interest in furniture design and quality craftsmanship developed at an early age whilst watching his grandfather in his furniture workshop.  He later inherited his grandfathers’ tools which he now uses daily.  He made his first substantial pieces; in his early teens from an ash log sawn and planked by his brother, an early piece from which his work has evolved.

 

Louise Taylor

Recently setting up Louise Taylor Designs and focusing on creating a collection of beautiful products including silk scarves, cards and cushions. The collection is adorned with feminine, romantic floral prints and patterns designed by Louise from her original delicate watercolour paintings and intricate drawings. Inspiration comes from nature, vintage flora, traditional textile patterns and botanical illustrations.

Louise is passionate about painting and drawing and creates each design through this traditional approach; watercolours are her favourite medium to work in, with their fluidity and softness which adds delicacy and beauty to the floral designs, as well as working well with silk fabrics. The original artworks are developed through Photoshop and they are made into designs, ready for printing. The designs are digitally transferred in the uk, through modern print technology onto silks, which allows all the detail from the original artworks to be captured and displayed.

 

 

 

 

Posted on 21 November 2013 under General news

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