Kate (Alex's Mum) told me about an exhibition at Calke Abbey that included some work by Alex's aunt and cousin, Diana Shepherd and Zoe Spowage. So I thought I'd definitely go and see it, and as Thursday's are Mum's day off, and I can't drive, I dragged her along for a day out.
Unfortunately, I'm a bit crap and didn't take any photos of the exhibition, so the above photo is from her
Facebook page. The charcoal piece on the far left was there, and was by far my favourite. Diana also used to sell her pieces in NASH as well in Hockley, where I fell in love with her greyhound pieces most, and the Nowicki's have pieces dotted around the house for me to admire. I also really liked her collection of orchids, insect and seashell pieces, there's something very surface pattern-y about them which really appeal to me after FMP... maybe I really have gone all surface pattern mode. They'd make stunning wallpapers! But I actually prefer the smaller pieces at the Nowicki's, they have something much more delicate about them...I'll try and remember to take a picture when I next visit.
As animal lovers, Mum and I also loved the drawings by
Nicola Lidstone, and they are totally, totally up my street, I would happily wallpaper my house in them. There's something so organic and rich about them, yet very quiet and just....comforting. Her hares reminded me of my research for my stop motion project way back when in November, I may go back and do some more animal drawings just because of seeing these pieces.
The venue was really lovely too, this massive echoing barn house. I would LOVE to show in a place like that one day.
We'd done the house before, and seeing as it was a lovely day, we took a walk around the gardens. We're both very impressed with all the fruit and veg, and I've made it a lifelong ambition to have a fruit and veg patch in my future garden. I think that would be pretty groovy.
We got hungry... and the restaurant is pretty top notch. This is a Chicken, Lemon and Herb Oatcake. The only way to describe it is DIVINE.
