Past Exhibitions
DAVID LEWIS & SEVAN GARO NIGOGOSIAN 8th - 28th May 2009
New abstract paintings (Ground Floor Gallery)
INDIA & CAMBODIA 8th - 28th May 2009
Photographs by Nick O'Halloran (First Floor Gallery)
LINES 8th - 28th May 2009
Photographs by Susanna Maki (Second Floor Gallery)
OPEN SPRING EXHIBITION 2009 17th - 30th April 2009
Featuring over 30 artists & designers
ON THE WATERFRONT 12th March - 5th April 2009
Rachel Biddulph, Barry Lewis, Sylvia Lewis & Mark Williams
IN SPACE 13th - 17th March 2009
UWIC 2nd Year Contemporary Media Arts & Performance
CONTEMPORARY PAINTINGS 13th Feb - 5th March 2009
Hannah Benkwitz, Kelly Best, Richard Davies,
Gill Marriner-Edwards & Jon Oakes
SURFACE 16th Jan - 5th Feb 2009
Angela Howard, Patty Kraus, Nigel Pugh & Marcus West
'1001' OPEN CHRISTMAS EXHIBITION 2009 6th Nov 2008 - 6th Jan 2009
1001 pieces of art, design and craft
'VS': THE BOOK, THE PAINTINGS, THE POET 23rd - 30th October 2008
David E. Oprava: Book Launch, Poetry readings &
exhibition of paintings to accompany the book
SECOND WAVE 16th Aug - 13th Sept 2008
Featuring over 30 artists & designers
NEW WAVE 26th June - 9th Aug 2008
Gallery launch exhibition featuring over 50 artists
& designers from across a diverse range of disciplines
Sylvia Lewis
Sylvia Lewis lives in the Rhondda Valley, a place which has long inspired artists with it's turbulent mixture of industry, nature, coal and politics.
Sylvia has been painting for most of her life, returning to college in her fifties to study art. In the last ten years Sylvia has been practicing as a full time painter working from her purpose built studio. Despite the endless source of inspiration on her doorstep, Sylvia is a keen traveller and has ventured as far as Scandinavia, Italy and even America in search of new ideas for her paintings.
Sylvia has exhihibited her work widely, proving very popular and winning several awards.
Hannah Benkwitz
The work explores the relationship between figuration and abstraction; autonomous forms are isolated yet remain predominantly figurative. The work relies on abstraction, rather than a pure abstract, through the dislocation of formal qualities.
Abstraction of the landscape is derived from the interruption of visual information caused by light manipulating our perception of physicality.
The paintings rely on photography as a starting point yet are synthesized into a new image which secedes the photography. Visual information in the photograph is edited to break forms down into freestanding marks.
There is a sense of absence pervading the banality and emptiness of the paintings that shifts the focus onto the paint itself which further accentuates the abstract qualities of the work.
Berwyn (1), Oil on panel, 80 x 60 cm, £195
Berwyn (2), Oil on panel, 80 x 60 cm, £195
Berwyn (3), Oil on panel, 80 x 60 cm, £195 SOLD
Hannah Benkwitz
Moelwyn (1) Image not yet available
Oil on Panel
80cm x 60cm
£195 SOLD
Hannah Benkwitz
Moelwyn (2) Image not yet available
Oil on Panel
80cm x 60cm £195
Hannah Benkwitz
Moelwyn (3) Image not yet available
Oil on Panel
80cmx 60cm
£195
Kelly Best
Kelly Best's paintings are unique visions of dramatic and enveloping spaces. Conflict occurs between the paint creating an intangible landscape partially sunk into by mysterious darkness, and partially obscured by intense bright light. The curious rage of the vibrant paint pushes the boundaries backwards into a dark infinity of a place unknown. Combining this with a complicated layering of the surroundings the viewer is thrown forwards, backwards, inside and around the painting in a puzzling battle between what is real and what is not. Challenging how space is defined we are forced as a viewer to assess his or her positioning in space. Am I in the foreground, background? Am I trapped inside a strange kind of prison, or an outsider gazing in?
Recognisable physical barriers add to the uncertainty. A fleeting familiarity can be found in this recognition; however this is soon replaced by an ambiguous questioning. A fence or a bar divides the canvas in an unconventional approach. These objects enforce the strong connotations to the thin line between entrapment and freedom. The awkward positioning of these barriers in and through the space offers little assistance to explanations of logic that we need when we observe something.
How did this place come to be? Is this a derelict landscape, no longer in use? Or have I now as the onlooker become trapped as the inhabitant of its space?
Kelly Best has been living and working in Cardiff since November 2007.
Exhibitions include; Group show at George Rodger Galley, Maidstone 2004,¿Que e Isto? Sala X, Pontevedra, Spain 2006, Con Pelos en la Lengua. Kingston University. 2007.
In Here It's Always Cold (1), Oil on canvas, 158 x 118 cm £1650
In Here It's Always Cold (2), Oil on canvas, 158 x 118 cm £895
Road To Nowhere, Oil on canvas, 158 x 118 cm £1250
Richard Davies
I studied graphics at Cardiff Art College based at the Friary in the 1960's and i went on to start my own design company which I ran for over 20 years. I continued painting during this time until the mid 70's and my work from that era shares the strong lines and the free use of vibrant colours that I continue to use today. It is an expression of my love of nature and the vibrancy of the world we live in.
Eight years ago i returned to fine art and now draw and paint regularly. I use many mediums including charcoal, pencil, pastel, pen & ink when drawing, oil and acrylic when painting.
In my recent work I have tried to improve my observational skills, with a more controlled use of colour to try and capture the essence and feeling of the image in my own way. My paintings focus on people and lanscapes. The figures in my work are observations of character, shape and mannerism, with a heavy contrast between brillant light and dark shadows.
I have been exhibiting my work in South Wales for the last five years
'I looked and thought, then drew around the thought'
A Trip to Town, Oil on canvas, 28 x 40" £450
Windsor Place, Cardiff, Oil on canvas, 36 x 24" £320
Quay Street, Cardiff, Oil on canvas, 30 x 20" £280 SOLD
Hanging Out In Queen Street, Cardiff, Oil on canvas, 20 x 30" £350
The Old Lock Gates, Cardiff Docks, Oil on canvas, 36 x 24" £320
Porthkerry, Barry, Oil on canvas, 24 x 36" £320 On the Beach, Southerndown, Oil on canvas 20 x 30" £280 Going Home, Oil on canvas Triptych, 3 x 20" x 16" (48") £420 SOLD
Tenby Harbour, Oil on canvas, 24 X 30" £350
Gill Marriner-Edwards
I like to visualise the outer shell of the world I see around me; the line, on the outside, that shapes the colour, form and texture within. My work traces the linear elements, both vertical and horizontal, of the industrial silhouettes and dynamic landscapes of Port Talbot and the old versus the new architecture of the Cardiff Bay area. The smaller works were inspired by the coastlines of North and South Wales and the wintery cold of a New Year in Swanage with its bleak harbours and crisp lines. In some of my work there are echoes of the rugged outlines of the North of England and Scottish Highlands and the cold, cold, snow and haw frost that blanketed my home county of Wiltshire in January 2009.
I began my formal art training at 13 when selected to attend a wonderful school in Surrey where pupils were encouraged to develop their artistic skills with a curriculum that dedicated almost 50% per cent of the school week to drawing, painting, printing, pottery etc.
At 18, I studied Art at Bretton Hall in Yorkshire. I have taught, been a Nature Conservancy Summer Information Officer, Careers Adviser and dedicated collector of all things quirky. I have always painted, sculpted and experimented with various media. I have shown my work in North Wales, Yorkshire, Wiltshire, Bristol and Cardiff.
Jon Oakes
'Figures in a Wasteland'
The 'Figures in a Wasteland' series enabled me to bring together many themes and images that I wished to convey whilst also succesfully presenting each image singularly. I have used the series format because I have always worked on numerous canvases at any one time. Therefore the logical progression was to make all five (in this case) canvases work as one larger narrative when viewed together. It then followed that each panel should be able to stand alone also.
I feel that with 'Figures in a Wasteland' I have found a distinctive way of presenting imagery, themes and narrative that is successful for me as a painter.
'Surface'
16th January 2009 - 5th February 2009
Private View: 15th January 7 - 9pm (Please contact the gallery for invitation)
An exhibition of the work of five artists - Angela Howard, Patty Kraus, Nigel Pugh, Marcus West and Lena Jane Woods.
6th November 2008 - 6th January 2009
1001 pieces of art, design and craft by over 200 artists and designers from all disciplines are showcased in this spectacular Christmas exhibition, spanning over the gallery's three intriguing floors. This is the largest exhibition of its kind in Wales and must be seen to be believed!
At '1001' you will find the best of new and emerging talent sourced from around Wales and the UK, as well as work by important Welsh artists. Original paintings and drawings, limited edition prints, photography, print-work, textiles, sculpture, ceramics, glass-work, silversmithing and jewellery can all be found at '1001'.
If you are looking for a unique and imaginative gift or simply a treat for yourself and your home, be sure to visit this exciting exhibition as there really is something for every taste and budget.
David E. Oprava
'Vs'- The Book, The Paintings, The Poet.
Thurs 23rd Oct - Thurs 30th Oct 2008
Private View, Poetry Reading and Book Signing:
Thurs 23rd Oct 2008, 7pm - 9pm
David E. Oprava will be launching his new full-length book of poems in Bute Space Gallery. On the evening of 23rd October, Bute Space will be hosting a special book signing and private viewing of David's original artworks which illustrate the book. David will also be reading a selection of poems from his book.
David's paintings and signed copies of his book will be for sale in the gallery for the duration of the week long exhibition.
Please contact the gallery for further information
Bute Space invites you to 'Second Wave'. Bringing you a unique collection of the finest contemporary visual artists and designers from a diverse range of disciplines. Painting, print-making, photography, ceramics, glass work, silversmithing, textiles and sculpture can all be found at 'Second Wave'.
