artist Archives - Page 2 of 3

5 things to do in and around Harrogate this weekend

Get out and about with our guide of the top cultural goings-on from 5-7 April.

Attend a calligraphy course

(Image: Pixaby)

Handwriting seems to be somewhat of a dying art form, partly due to the rise in technology. Learn the skills of beautiful handwriting at this two-hour calligraphy workshop in Knaresborough.

Aimed at beginners and improvers, you will learn the strokes that are based on ancient manuscripts and get the knowhow to create Celtic designs.

£25, booking is required as spaces are limited, 10am-12noon, April 6, Briggate Art, 9a Briggate, Knaresborough, HG5 8BQ, 07931 778 276, chameleonartclasses@gmail.com.

Meet the artist exploring the life of a curlew

(Image: Paco Valera)

Did you know that the curlew is the largest European wading bird, found on estuaries in winter and the moors in summer?

Head up to the Yorkshire Dales this weekend and meet one of the artists behind the Curlew Calling exhibition, Sally Zaranko.

Sally’s work is shown alongside Paco Valera’s photography as well as experienced and highly regarded North Yorkshire artists including Judith Bromley, Hester Cox and Robert Nicholls.

You can chat, draw and write about the beautiful bird at the event.

Free, 10am-3pm, April 6, Dales Countryside Museum, Station Yard, Hawes, DL8 3NT.

Attempt to grow the tallest sunflower

(Image: Pixaby)

You know warmer climes are on the way when you’re sowing sunflower seeds. And this weekend is the last chance to take part in the Sunflower Challenge at F Tate & Sons in Ripon.

Plant your sunflower seed at the planting table at the nursery, take your seed pot home and then post the results on social media by August 15, tagging @FTateandSons and @RiponBID for a chance to win one of three kids’ gardening prizes.

Free, 10am-4pm, April 6, F Tate & Sons, Larkhill Nurseries, Studley Road, Ripon, HG4 2QR.

Visit Goldsborough Hall gardens

(Image: Goldsborough Hall gardens)

This week is Community Gardens Week for the National Open Garden Scheme, and to mark the occasion Goldsborough Hall is opening its gardens to the public on Sunday 7 April. Visitors can expect to see colourful displays from spring bulbs, the woodland walk and a stroll up the quarter-mile long Lime Tree Walk that is lined by a carpet of more than 50,000 daffodils.

There will also be garden talks in the Kitchen Garden at 12pm and 2pm by Goldsborough Hall’s head gardener, and a plant stall on the terrace too.

£7.50 per adult, children free, 11am-4pm, April 7, Goldsborough Hall, Knaresborough, HG5 8NR.

**Last chance to see For the Love of Art at 108 Fine Art Gallery**

(Image: For the Love of Art at 108 Fine Art Gallery)

Forming part of 108 Fine Art Gallery’s collections that breathe new life into the stories they tell, For the Love of Art explores personal narratives and shared experiences.

Showcasing the works of artists Paul Wager and Laimonis Mierins, expect to see work that’s from the heart and explores memories and personal connections that have been made.

Free, 11am-5pm, until April 6, 108 Fine Art Gallery, Cold Bath Road, Harrogate, HG2 ONA.

Do you have an event that you’d like us to potentially feature in the future? Drop me an email at francesca@thestrayferret.co.uk

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5 minutes with… the artist behind BEAM Light Festival, James Bawn

BEAM is a brand-new event for 2024 by Harrogate International Festivals. The Stray Ferret spotlights James Bawn, the man behind the event that’s lighting up Harrogate this weekend.

You’ve worked in events for more than 20 years; can you tell me a bit more about your background?

Lighting design has always been a passion of mine, even from a very young age where I took charge of after-school productions or local lighting events. I’ve been fortunate to work with many talented people within the industry, and you can always take inspiration from both the most complex of installations, or indeed, the simplest, purest form of light. The latter can quite often deliver the most dynamic impact.

What do you most enjoy about your work?

Great question. I call it the ‘The Gig Buzz’. The moment the doors open, or the sun sets, and the crowd finally gets a chance to view and (hopefully) enjoy my work, that is what gives me a real spike of adrenaline; it never leaves or wears away.

The lighting beams and projections will animate Harrogate’s most famous buildings this weekend from March 15-16, how did you select these?

Harrogate is a wonderful town with impressive architecture; it’s a fabulous canvas for any artist or creative. Choosing the final locations was in fact one of the hardest parts of this event. If allowed, I’d have covered the entire town in glistening photons of light, but I had to obviously consider the realities and logistical timescales in delivering the project across multiple sites. I’m grateful to the Harrogate International Festivals team in making it a reality and reining me in when necessary.

(Image: a map of where you can see the lights)

Can you tell me a bit about the soundscapes?

They are pieces of composition which I have chosen to complement the lighting design in two of the locations. The lighting is key, but the music adds an extra dynamic which will really help with the narrative.

In your opinion, why have lighting installations become more popular in recent years?

I think there are several factors. One of the biggest influences from my side is the advancement in technology; we can deploy LED fixtures and beam lights in a very short timeframe. This has had an overall impact on the lighting industry as it means more outdoor-based entertainment-style fixtures can be produced efficiently. It has huge benefits and makes large-scale installations more accessible for a whole new range of clients and event organisers.

Another big factor is that light installations provide an opportunity for social bonding within the community, for local families to get together as well provide local businesses with more footfall. The sense of excitement, mystique and a general happy buzz that lighting festivals create is wonderful.

Growing up in Yorkshire, who inspired you most?

I’m very fortunate that my parents introduced me to the world of the creative arts through theatre and my dad was a professional musician, so I was always exposed to music, light and art exhibitions. They literally carved out my career path without knowing it!

I’ve also been fortunate to work with many local talented creative artists over the years including David Blackburn and Patrick O’Mahony but Yorkshire is an absolute hotbed of creative talent and I for one am very proud of my county.

BEAM Light Festival, free, from dusk until 10pm, March 15-16, venues across town – click here for the map of where you can see the lights and for more the information, click here.

Main image: photography credit, Richard Maude

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Nature-inspired murals brighten up Starbeck underpass

A striking new set of murals aims to bring the natural world into an unloved urban part of Starbeck, its creator says.

Sam Porter has painted three murals to brighten up the underpass near the level crossing.

They feature wild birds and plants, as well as symbols of the area’s history, on three boards put up along the white walls.

Harrogate-based Sam was commissioned by Starbeck in Bloom to do the work, which was funded by Northern Rail.

He told the Stray Ferret:

“The thing I found quite difficult was, I’m used to painting directly onto the walls and you can work with the environment easier.

“It could have spanned through the whole underpass, but we would have had to close the underpass, which would have been a problem.

“But doing this has been really good, because it has added another strand to my work, using panels if people don’t want things directly onto walls.”

Sam said he was fortunate to be offered space to work in the yard at Amara Jane, the furniture shop next to the station, keeping him close to where the paintings would go on display.

He has struck up a friendship with the business owner, Andreas Mandrekas, and has been offered use of the yard again in future.

After years of travelling to Manchester, where he was being commissioned regularly, Sam is happy to have been asked to do more work in Harrogate in recent years.

His murals can now be seen in Cross James Street in Harrogate, as well as on Cheapside and near the Two Brothers Grill and Pizzeria in Knaresborough.

He has also created artwork for community buildings, including Aspin Park and Western primary schools.

He will soon be working on a mural for the Kiosk at Conyngham Hall as part of Knaresborough’s Feva Festival.

As part of his work, Sam enjoys researching local history to come up with the designs for his murals.

In Starbeck, he has featured some of the local buildings, as well as the Pump Room in Harrogate. He said:

“When people used to come to Harrogate for the waters, they used to get the train to Starbeck and then get coaches up, because people in Harrogate didn’t want the dirty trains coming into town.

“The workhouse was in Starbeck, so it has always been the more working class area of Harrogate, but a vital part of the whole thing.”

Much of his work has been commissioned to brighten up unloved or troubled areas of towns and cities.

Sam said statistics show levels of crime and anti-social behaviour can be reduced if hotspots are improved, prompting more local pride among the community.

His inspiration comes from the world around him, which he began to appreciate more during the pandemic.

“It was during lockdown I reconnected with nature a lot. There are a few things about that time that I miss.

“Obviously it was grim, but for the first time ever, you were told, ‘you don’t have to do anything and you aren’t expected to do anything’, so I focused in on some things I loved and started looking at nature again.

“I became aware of how lucky we are with what’s around us – so much beautiful countryside.

“I like bringing nature back into an urban environment. I think that’s really what needs to happen in the world, in order to save it. You need to live with nature, rather than keep on harming it.”

Postman Pat illustrator to display work during Knaresborough arts festival

Local artist Ray Mutimer will be opening his home gallery to the public during the Knaresborough FEVA festival next month.

Mr Mutimer, a professional freelance illustrator and artist, is best known for illustrating Postman Pat for 14 years. His work appeared in eight Postman Pat annuals and in BBC magazines.

Some of this artwork will be included in a free exhibition of his lifetime’s work at his home in Calcutt from Friday, August 11 to Sunday, August 20. Details are available here.

Between 1975 and 2002, Mr Mutimer illustrated 207 books for various publishers including, Collins, MacMillan, Ladybird, and Scholastic. He was also head of art at St. Aidan’s Church of England High School.

A central part of the exhibition will be Mr Mutimer’s unusually shaped paintings, which he calls ‘landSHAPE’.

Mr Mutimer told the Stray Ferret:

“In the 1960s, frustrated with having to confine my images to square or oblong framing, I painted pictures on boards and began to cut them out.

“At the time they were semi abstract. Recent shaped pictures are realistic, and create a greater, sometimes amazing, illusion of depth and space.”

This will be the largest collection of landSHAPE installations he has ever displayed.

The exhibition can be viewed at 8 Whiteway Head, Calcutt, Knaresborough HG5 8LE from 11am to 4pm daily during the 10-day FEVA festival.

FEVA is a festival of entertainment and visual arts that includes art exhibitions, workshops, music and spoken word events.

Nidderdale art workshop to raise money for autism awareness on Saturday

A Nidderdale artist who uses art for therapy is donating fees from a workshop this weekend to the National Autistic Society.

James Owen Thomas, who has autism, is artist in residence at Fishpond Wood in Bewerley, near Pateley Bridge. His JOT Gallery was highly commended at this month’s Stray Ferret Business Awards.

He holds monthly workshops, the next one of which on Saturday will donate all £25 fees of those taking part to the society as part of World Autism Acceptance Week, which begins on March 27.

James uses recycled materials to highlight nature and the importance of protecting the environment.

James Owen Thomas

He works with unwanted, discarded materials and turns them into something unique. He also uses art to make a difference to mental wellbeing, reducing stress and anxiety.

James said:

“I am on the autistic spectrum myself and have always found art therapeutic.

“There will be a full spectrum of colourful materials at the workshop and we will be creating textured photo collages of trees and nature for you to take home.”

Pateley Bridge environmental artist meets Monty Don in Harrogate

Nidderdale environmental artist James Owen Thomas met Monty Don when the BBC Gardeners’ World presenter visited Harrogate.

Mr Thomas spoke recently on Gardeners’ World about being an artist in residence at Fishpond Wood in Bewerley and the importance of being in nature for his health and wellbeing.

At An Evening With Monty Don at Harrogate Convention Centre last Friday, Mr Thomas was able to meet the famous gardener shortly before he went on stage.

He presented him with one of his original collages of a garden scene, and received two books signed by Monty Don.

Mr Thomas, who will be opening a gallery in Pateley Bridge shortly, added:

“He knows I spoke on Gardeners’ World about mental health problems.

“It was good that some of his talk on stage was about mental health and the importance of being out in nature.”

Sneak peek: Artist Lucy Pittaway’s new Harrogate gallery

North Yorkshire-based artist Lucy Pittaway is ready to open the doors at her debut Harrogate gallery this weekend.

The gallery, which sells original works of art as well as prints, homeware and stationery, had a preview night last night.

The shop replaces the former menswear shop Austin Reed on Prospect Place, which had been empty since 2016.

It’s been a long wait for Ms Pittaway, who has had her eyes on a site in Harrogate for five years.

Speaking to the Stray Ferret ahead of tomorrow’s official opening, she said:

“We have been wanting to be in Harrogate for some time now but we are finally here, and in an absolutely fabulous location.

“The response we have had from local businesses and shoppers has been amazing. We are absolutely thrilled with the interest we have seen already.

“It wasn’t easy but we have managed to get this space turned around in just three weeks which is a testament to our amazing team. I feel very proud looking around.”

Ms Pittaway’s best known works are her signature sheep art and her work on the Tour de Yorkshire and UCI Road World Championships in Harrogate.

The Harrogate store will be open Monday to Saturday from 9.30pm to 5.30pm and from 10am to 5pm on Sundays.

A number of promotions are in the pipeline for Christmas and various other initiatives are also on the horizon, including a meet-the-artist event and debut showings of original pieces of art.

More pictures from the preview evening:

Lucy Pittaway with husband Neil and the rest of her team.

The new store looks ready for Christmas.

The gallery also sells homeware, stationery and more.

You can also find some of Ms Pittaway’s original work.

Oatlands community artwork to be unveiled in Harrogate this weekend

A ceramic tree mural created as part of a community arts project will be unveiled this weekend in Harrogate.

Oatlands Community Centre was awarded funding from the Arts Council to run the project in June, marking the Queen’s platinum jubilee.

Local ceramic artist Anna Whitehouse ran free workshops at the centre, teaching people about the history of brickworks in the Oatlands area and how to process the locally-dug clay.

They then created pieces of art themselves, putting together a ceramic tree mural which will go on display outside the community centre. Anna said:

“The tree design was chosen for its symbolism, with Oatlands Community Centre being rooted firmly at the heart of the community.”

The centre and its volunteers are the supportive framework; the roots, trunk and branches, but can only grow leaves and flourish through the engagement of the community and their sense of ownership.”

Oatlands Community Centre was previously a Methodist chapel, located near the top of Mount Street, just off Leeds Road. The street used to be the access road to the Harrogate Red Brick Company, which operated from 1860 to 1936.

The church itself was built using bricks from the works, which were taken from the heavy clay which lies in the ground across the area.

Since the workshops were held in June, the ceramic pieces have been dried, fired in the kiln and assembled into a mural ready for the unveiling tomorrow between 10am and noon.

Anna will be on hand to talk about the project, and Oatlands Community Centre will be offering coffee and cake to visitors.

Funding was organised through Two Ridings Community Foundation. Its CEO Jan Garrill said:

“This was a great and very creative way to celebrate Her Majesty’s platinum jubilee. All credit to Oatlands for embracing both the spirit of the jubilee and the Let’s Create funding from Two Ridings.”

Garden seeks artist for year-long residency in Harrogate

Artists across the Harrogate district are being sought by RHS Harlow Carr as the garden aims to appoint its next artist in residence.

The year-long appointment would see the chosen artist encouraged to take inspiration from the landscape, as well as the charity’s scientific and biological work.

Education and learning manager Kirstie Blything said:

“We are looking for an artist to present a personal interpretation and perspective of Harlow Carr, creating new work that is innovative, pushes boundaries and inspires well-being.

“We hope this new work will inspire the public to examine their own vision of the gardens and encourage them to engage in new, creative conversations, continuing the development of Harlow Carr as a site that inspires creative practice.”

The artist would spend at least three weeks on site, carrying out research and demonstrating their practice at the garden.

They would be able to work closely with the garden’s team as well as discussing their work with the public. The role includes creating a programme of workshops, talks, open studios and more to encourage visitors to take inspiration from the gardens for their own creativity.

The year would end with an exhibition at the RHS Harlow Carr Flower Show in 2023.

Previous artists in residents include Nel Whatmore and Anita Bowerman.

For further information about the role, click here. Applications close on Friday, May 20 at noon.

Deaf Harrogate artist picked to design clothing for Comic Relief

Deaf Harrogate artist, Luke Christian, is one of eleven artists picked to design homeware and clothing for Comic Relief.

Mr Christian was born deaf and, since setting up his fashion brand, Deaf Identity, in 2019 has been passionate about using his creative talents to break down barriers surrounding the deaf community.

He was first approached to work with Comic Relief in July 2021 and thought the email was spam and said “it didn’t feel real at the time”.

His designs will be printed and embroidered onto homeware and clothing and sold online and in store at TK Maxx.

Other artists including Gok Wan and Supermundane have been picked.

Mr Christian’s design shows the word ‘love’ in British Sign Language in a simplistic, modern, line drawing. He said:

“The charity said they wanted to work with 11 designers/artists in total that had special backgrounds to what they do and with me being deaf and raising deaf awareness, this is why they approached me.

“At first it didn’t feel real, but now that it’s sunk in I just feel extremely grateful to be able to show everyone what a positive thing being deaf really is and I want to be able to use this opportunity to empower other deaf people to run their own businesses and to not allow society to tell us ‘you can’t do this because you’re deaf’.”

The deaf gene runs in Mr Christian’s family so his mum and sister are also deaf. He said growing up he was often told he doesn’t sound or look deaf and felt like he didn’t fully belong in a hearing or deaf world.

He said one of his biggest motivators behind his brand is to show that every individual defines their own deaf identity adding “there’s no right or wrong way to be deaf”.

He was brought up oral and went to a hearing school until year 9 before moving to a deaf boarding school. He began learning British Sign Language (BSL) three years ago to help him communicate with other deaf people. He added:

“This opportunity is helping me to share more of who I am and why breaking down barriers surrounding the deaf community is so important to me.

“We can do anything!”