This exhibition draws together painters and fine-craftsmen
whose work expresses the warmth of interiors, camaraderie, joyfulness and ease ~ elements that lighten the uncertainty of current discordant times.

A painter in the English Romantic tradition, HUGO GRENVILLE  creates a symphony of colour and pattern in his light-filled canvases. His interiors beckon the observer to wander among the chairs and little tables, sniff the abundant flowers and gaze through the window to gardens beyond  ~  a haven that we all dream of escaping to from time to time!  Immediate effect apart, there is a lifetime of skill and subtlety in all Hugo’s compositions.  His mastery of mark making and command of colour and tone have earned him renown in both Britain and the USA where he regularly exhibits.

Distinctive colour juxtaposition is also the key to ROSE HILTON’s seductive oil paintings.  Abstraction mingles with her assured figurative line, giving her lyrical work a tension and balance. Whatever her subject, she has the unerring ability to hold transient moments so that they sparkle with liveliness. Her many memorable solo shows throughout her career and the biographies by Andrew Lambirth (2010) and Ian Collins (2016) justly honour a remarkable painter of our times. The sad news of Rose’s death this week gives extra poignancy to her work in Convivio. Such a great artist, and a good friend.

Studying life in other cultures through painting has been a constant source of inspiration and a way of life to Harriet (H R BELL) for many years since her Fine Art studies in Moscow and St Petersburg and Hons. Degree at The Courtauld.  Observing people working together, playing, conversing, in countries such as Zambia, Bolivia, China and India ~ results in gem-like oil paintings redolent of the nature of each subject.
The great granddaughter of Newlyn School artist Frank Gascoigne Heath, H R Bell now works from her studio in West Penwith. Recent solo shows were at Francis Kyle Gallery and the New Grafton, London.

A figurative painter with a humorous touch, CHARLOTTE LYON conveys atmosphere and mood in her mixed media paintings of café scenes, kitchen studies, gossiping friends and musicians.  Her light impressionist brush strokes uncannily create instant personalities, giving rise to a sense of narrative in each of her subjects. A sense of relaxation and warmth pervades these new paintings, many of them based on sketches during recent travels in Italy. Charlotte exhibits widely in Europe and recently in a solo show at Chelsea Arts Club.

Unique among contemporary ceramicists, SUTTON TAYLOR has followed his own path since the 1970s, tackling challenging techniques and – with the touch of an alchemist – creating lustrous pots that seem to defy the limitations of the kiln. The iridescence and rich hues resulting from incorporating silver, copper and gold in the glazes have their origins in C9th Middle Eastern pottery traditions. Sutton’s own interpretation brings his unique aesthetic and abstract decoration, resulting in pots of grace and beauty to enrich our living spaces.

More photographs of Sutton’s ceramics to follow!

RHIAN WYMAN is a young textile designer working in the Forest of Dean.  Following the tradition of historic woollen mills in the area, she hand-weaves blankets and throws from British wool to her own designs.  Her sense of colour is intuitive and draws on the natural hues of the surrounding countryside.  From warp winding through to the final label stitching, all processes are done by hand and each throw is unique in its weave design and colour placement.  All colourways are available in large or small sizes.

Studio potter NIGEL LAMBERT’s individual style of form and decoration has flourished over the past decade, earning him recognition and exhibitions world-wide.  His thrown and altered earthenware pots combine bold shapes and free painterly brushwork.  Entirely practical in use, they enhance both table and food. A Fellow of the Craft Potters Association, Nigel works from his studio in the Forest of Dean, where he also holds summer pottery courses.

More pics to follow when the work arrives

Alongside Nigel’s pots, laid as if for a meal on tables in the gallery, are JUDITH ROWE’s bird candlesticks and cruet sets. Modelled birds atop her thrown candlesticks and vessel lids are a unique feature of her delicately glazed domestic ware.

More to follow.

The alchemy of transforming molten blobs of glass into beautifully formed wine goblets is the skill and artistry of ANDREW SANDERS and DAVID WALLACE. Their fascination with hot glass emerged in the 1970s when, after graduating in Ceramics, they enrolled at North Staffs Poly to study Studio Glass – still then in its infancy in this country.  Now, over 30 years of sharing workshops in Yorkshire, though working individually, they are justly regarded as Masters of their craft.

Working in a little workshop in the middle of a field in South Devon, FELIX KARY carves greenwood spoons, cups and bowls for the table, using native hardwoods from the copses around him.  Through his sensitive approach to the wood he handles, these beautifully carved objects show a natural elegance in balance and style.

A member of the Devon Guild of Craftsmen, ARWYN JONES makes fine-bodied domestic ware in the Oriental tradition.  An expert thrower, he uses white stoneware clay and deep and subtle sea-green glazes for the tea sets he has created for this exhibition.

More to follow

Working as an Interior Designer for the past 25 years, JULIET FITTON is a passionate newcomer to the world of ceramics.  Her innate flair for colour and tone results in glazes and oxides that mirror the palette of sea and sky in her fluted open bowls  - perfectly complementing Arwyn’s domestic pots.

JILL HOLLAND’s training was in both studio pottery and painting,and these talents she combines in her current range of fine porcelain vases and cache-pots.  She impresses and inlays the flat clay surface with plants, mono printing and drawing using coloured slips to set off the design, then moulding the clay into vessel forms.

Now ensconced in her new jewellery workshop, DUIBHNE GOUGH is bringing renewed creativity to the designs of her necklaces and earrings.  She harmoniously combines the colours and textures of many unusual gem stones, interspersed with the bold shapes of silver beads.

Among the larger tables spread with displays of pottery, wooden utensils, glassware and linen are several smaller tables by HELEN NOCK, constructed from Cornish rag slate inlaid with found pebbles and pottery shards. Crowning all is a metalwork chandelier by DIANE JORDAN.

Further sculptural pieces by Helen, including birdbaths, are displayed around the gardens.

In a focal spot against a background of greenery, REECE INGRAM’s ‘Fawn’ in white Carrera marble crouches beneath the foliage. 

A greenwood bench made by woodman DAVID HEARLE gives an opportunity whilst in the gardens to sit and cogitate upon all these exhibits ~ as well as additional collections of stoneware sculpture by JOHN MALTBY, ceramics by JILL FANSHAWE KATO,  jewellery by GUY ROYLE, GINA COWEN & RITA SERES and silk and cashmere scarves by ALISON DUPERNEX.

The Charity we are hoping to support through sales and donations in CONVIVIO! is The Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART), founded in 2004 by Baroness Cox as ‘a voice for the voiceless’ in countries where conflict and persecution tears communities apart. With no support from the international community, the small band of HART workers (including Baroness Cox herself) enter war-torn areas, working closely with local partners to bring life-saving food, emergency healthcare and education to those in desperate need.

I hope you will all enjoy this opening exhibition of the season at Yew Tree – whether in person or via the website.  I will happily send by email any further images required, and give prices on request. Any purchases made can be sent (at the client’s expense) if not possible to collect from the gallery.

Gilly