In the countdown to Nine Days of Art, beginning on September 9, an insight into the artists – more than 80 in 51 venues – who will be displaying their work within the Teignbridge area.
Carre Cooper Locke Nogsland Farm, Dunsford, Dartmoor.
Carre has lived and worked in New Zealand and Australia in costuming for professional theatre, film, television, and in public arts. Her grandfather, RT Cooper, was a graduate of the Royal Academy, London, and she has followed in his artistic footsteps now living permanently in the UK and paints full-time. Her work has an individual style of surrealism and colourful, graphic images. Each of her larger works is a story, dynamic, full of passion, dialogue and intensity. Carre said: 'For me to present a work to the world it must have a quality of meaning that captures the attention of the viewer, be interesting, inspire debate, give a visual voice to feeling, thought, imagination and emotion. Each painting must tell its story to the viewer and this then becomes the viewer's own story.' She has other works that are quieter, quirky, illustrative and fun so this is definitely an exhibition to see in Teignbridge Nine Days of Art 2006. Carre will be exhibiting along with Suzanne Ahmed and Suzie Haywood.
Marilyn Bishop Fieldfare, Old Totnes Road, Newton Abbot.
Marilyn Bishop is a self-taught artist who has been painting for 20 years. She is well-known for her watercolours but also paints in pastels, oils, acrylics and mixed media. She paints a varirty of subjects including landscapes, townscapes, people, animals and flowers. Marilyn is a Dartmoor park guide specilaising in the stroll and sketching walks on the moor. She has won a number of cups, awards and commendations for her paintings, and in 2005 won the best painting in show at the Devon Art Society. Marilyn has shown her work with the Women's Society of Artists in a selected exhibition in London and has had solo exhibitions with many societies and galleries. Marilyn will be exhibiting for the first time in Nine Days of Art from her home in Newton Abbot. Her exhibition will be open on most days from 10am - 4pm.
Suzanne Ahmed Nogsland Farm, Dunsford, Dartmoor.
Suzanne is an artist and interior designer whose work is influenced by a study of philosophy, design. Her work questions truth and essence and the way things can be perceived. Change in geography is a driving influence in her work as she has a mixed cultural heritage and has travelled and lived in different locations in the UK and abroad. She says that a change of environment brings newness to what is seen and heightens curiosity in the aesthetics of the normal and everyday, in cultural assimilation and social identity. Suzanne said: 'My vision for art is to enhance and promote creative thinking and seeing, to enliven and enhance sensibilities and to develop an intimacy to the world and life beyond the limits of how we are taught to perceive. 'In my opinion creativity is of immense value to humanity, to the creators and those who explore what has been created. It therefore cannot be exclusive but must be open and an integral part of life. For me art has an emotive base, I feel space form and colour are poetic and lyrical. Process of production is an inherent part, and includes chance, accidents and faith in what is emerging and form the ritual and archaeology behind the finished piece.'
Ally Duke The Sail Loft, Shaldon
Ally takes something that everyone else looks at and sees it in a completely new way, her styles of pictures vary tremendously, from tropical and local shots to distinctive individual digital artworks on stretched canvas. The main focus of her work is coastal, varying from sea and river to nautical. Her colourful designs are tenuously inspired by natural observation, some are produced by digitally altering the photographs to engage the viewer. Ally also works to commission, producing bespoke pictures in line with her clients' requirements. She is an outdoor photographer who uses nature as her backdrop and lighting medium. Her pictures are produced using the highest quality Archival Inks and are limited in quantity of up to 250 prints to preserve the originality of the works She currently resides and works by the River Teign. Her home overlooks the river and the village of Shaldon; some of her works are a reflection of these views. If you would like to see some of Ally's paintings, visit the exhibition of her works in The Sail Loft, Shaldon, on September 9-17 daily between 11am and 4pm as part of Teignbridge 9 Days of Art 2006 event.