A few weeks ago I went to the Pittenweem Arts Festival. It was a brilliant drive up along the coast, even if I did get a bit lost on the way! Overlooking the ocean, I had lunch with my good friend Amanda who was working at the Jonny Hannah venue on the Sunday. I then wandered back with her to the Jonny Hannah to begin my Festival experience. I enjoyed his use of text and colour and his themes of the sea and Fife. His artist books were lovely to behold and the name of his business, Cakes & Ale Press I think is superb. Here are a couple of items I picked up by the artist...
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| J Hannah, excerpt from his newspaper Spens, Shand & Stovies |
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| J Hannah, flyer from his 2007 show Hot Dogs and Rocket Fuel |
Next was the Keith Brockie venue. Given that he is a wildlife artist and has a close empathy with his wildlife subjects, it is no surprise that I succumbed to buying his book Return to One Man's Island. I figure where money is spent for art research purposes it's allowed :-). Here are a couple of pages from his book...
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| K Brockie (2010), Razorbill study, Watercolour, 34 x 43 cms |
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| K Brockie (2010), Gulls hanging in the wind, Pencil & Watercolour 34 x 39 cms |
Following this I had a wee chat with artist John Kelly. The wind was picking up a bit at this stage and the venue doors were starting to shiver. I really loved his pen and ink drawings. While his landscapes and architecture reflect what he sees around him, I think his fantastical/other world depiction really speaks to me. I guess I like to think of art as a portal into another dimension or world that I can enjoy, escape to or learn from. And I feel that looking through another person's eyes would be just that. Here is his website http://johnkellyart.org.uk/ and here is an excerpt from the Pittenweem Arts Festival Guide...
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| J Kelly images, excerpt from Pittenweem Arts Festival guide |
My final venue was William Middleton. The artist was happily sitting on the couch, playing a guitar and chatting to people as they came into the room. He talked to me about what he called 'the lap of honour' - where visitors enter the room, realise that the artwork is not what they're into, do a quick lap and exit. I can understand this, dare say I have done it enough times myself, but not with William's work. I really liked his prints and the subtle bluish and greenish tints some of them had. Also the idea of the duality of people - the recurring images of a character's internal head popping out above its external head. Here are a few of his postcards I bought...
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| W Middleton - postcards |
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| W Middleton - postcards |
Well perhaps the above is more a summary for myself than anything, but I hope you like some of the images and I definitely recommend the Pittenweem Arts Festival as a good day out. I've been watching Buster Keaton and Fatty Arbuckle movies the past couple of weeks, so best continue before I get another library return reminder notice...
