JoEllen's creativity just seems to flow

Theatre & Arts

Empty car going by JoEllen Brydon

Friday, May 09, 2008

This week I thought I'd do a bit of a round-up of just some of the exhibitions that are either on, or will be coming on, this month. To begin with, I really like the look of JoEllen Brydon's work which will be in the Nicholas Gallery, Belfast, from tomorrow until May 17 — unfortunately not long enough for me to see it and write about it before it closes.

Anyhow, JoEllen is a self-taught, Canadian artist whose family came from Co Tyrone, and she has been showing her work since 1985 with considerable, international success, although this is her first one-person show in Ireland.

Brydon generally takes everyday, rural scenes, which she interprets in a totally natural, un-selfconscious way, with a lovely naivety in her strange perspective, wobbly houses and cushion-like hills. She paints everyday, mundane things — children skating, people sitting around the fire, country cottages or shop interiors — with a very special approach to colour and form.

Something else that caught my eye is an exhibition entitled The Invisible Collection in the Ava Gallery, Clandeboye Estate, Bangor.

Based on the premise that artists constantly draw inspiration, whether consciously or subconsciously, from pictures that already exist, this show comprises 14 artists' reactions to other people's work.

These works range from ancient art, to works from the Renaissance and modern day, and the exhibiting artists show a variety of approaches.

Some have chosen to do direct copies of their chosen painting while others have been 'loosely inspired' by either the subject matter or the artist's approach.

Conor Fleck, for example, has chosen to paint 'after Balthus and after Matisse', while William Bogle has painted a 'self portrait after Munch.'

Commenting on the show, gallery director Dickon Hall said:

"Not only do we learn something new about these contemporary artists, we also gain a fresh vision of the great works of the past. We hope those people who visit the exhibition will have their eyes opened to the vast and revelatory legacy of objects and pictures that exist in the world."

The exhibition runs until May 24.

A quick word about a show that just might reveal some hidden new talent. Entitled Emerging Talents, it is showcasing the work of students from Strangford College and is running in Art in the Loft in Castle Street, Portaferry until the end of the month.

r LIZ BAIRD

elizabethobaird@googlemail.com