- Venue
- Cornwall Contemporary Gallery
- Location
- South West England
Lower Gallery Maggie Matthews –Memento The current exhibition of mixed media paintings are as eye catching and attractive as ever but contain the additional element of 22 carat gold, 12 carat white gold and silver leaf embedded onto the surface of the canvas. The themes of the paintings are mostly nautical relating to the shoreline, ocean treasures and other remnants tossed upon the beach by dreams, memory or the sea. The resulting compositions are balanced which establish engaging environments in which a sense of depth is built up by layers of bright colour, which create a vital sense of harmony in their lyrical designs. As Sarah Brittain has remarked previously, “Accident and chance play their part, but the final paintings are highly planned and complex.” Maggie has worked here with a collection of shells and pebbles which she has selected as having become “resonant over time” due to the emotions which they convey. The organic shapes are often displayed in layers, which suggest growth over time, and many have fronds or cilia often depicted in metallic leaf that emphasises their significance as found objects. Or as she puts it herself, “Time is traced upon their surface and I try to interpret the markings and shapes, fixing them with ephemeral memories” In some compositions she has chosen to investigate the effect of a single gold form against a white background as in “Limpet Shell” or to construct mosaics as in “Between the Lines” or “Searching the line”. This is an intriguing and tranquil exhibition which appeals on many and varied levels. Upper gallery:
Masako Whitehouse
atmospheres
On the top floor the subtle and refined pastel paintings of Masako Whitehouse deal with floral subjects as varied as rhododendrons, honeysuckle and cow parsley. Masako, who also lives in Cornwall, in Gunnislake, says of her work, “Viewers often do not see the many colours underneath, but I hope that they feel them. The potential of stillness and the hidden possibilities, for me, are very exciting.” One of her oil on canvas works, not typical of those on display, is moving in its delicacy-it is called “Missing you” and depicts a dark bowl of narcissi with blue and purple stems against a deep velvet background partially covered by a net curtain. It has a feeling of poignant loss about it, which is deeply stirring and magical.
This exhibition neatly complements the others in the spaces below. It is not surprising to learn that one source of Masako’s inspiration is Japanese poetry. Here too, there is a tranquil elegance about these paintings of summer flowers glimpsed at refined coffee mornings, interesting colour combinations in “lemons and tulips” and the scent of “lily of Tamar valley” can almost be detected from such a refined and sensitive composition.
Together, these exhibitions will well repay an unhurried visit.
