Jean Davey Winter: About the work:
A fascination with travel and the concept of the
journey provide me with an ongoing source of inspiration. Over the years
this has included a microlight flight over the volcanic island of Lanzarote; a road trip through New Mexico, Arizona and Utah and more recently a visit to the
island of Cuba, the starting point for this new work.
Cuba has an
extraordinary culture, a dense web of associations and contrasts which conjure
up words like: seductive, poetic, alchemy and magic. There is a constant
awareness that this vibrancy, colour and energy combine and conflict with
reminders of a darker past.
Many diverse elements from these experiences are
now coming together as the work continues to develop: glimpses of colours and
textures and the fragmented memories of travel. It is intentionally ambiguous,
hopefully to allow sufficient space for the viewer to bring their own
interpretations to it.
Working practice:
Coming from a textile background I enjoy the
freedom of working with mixed media. The opportunity to build up surfaces, to
combine this with collage plus the fluid qualities and mark making potential of
paint; I love the feeling of anticipation – that anything can happen, as a new
piece begins.
What I find most difficult is the ‘letting go’,
that moment of realisation that some of the bits you have become most attached
to have to be sacrificed if there’s any chance of making the painting work –
that’s the hard part….
Future hopes for Hastings Arts Forum:
Hastings Arts Forum has been transformed over the
ten years since I first exhibited there. There have been major structural
improvements to the gallery itself and the whole ethos and ambition of the
Forum has become very much more ambitious and professional.
Whilst maintaining it’s commitment to the community
I hope it will also continue to thrive and develop with the emphasis on curated
shows, both group and solo, and maybe create a series of major annual
exhibitions following on from the precedent set by Festival 15.
More about Jean and her work can be seen on her website
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