Unexpected Encounters at Stapleford Granary, RHA Summer Exhibition, a Certain Critical Period seminar, and some recent life drawings

Top-left: Strachan, Becoming V, 2022; top-right: NM, Sheltering a small remaining trace of fire through a dark period, oil on linen, 60x60cm, 2025; bottom-left: NM, A certain critical period, etching, 22x18cm, 2025; bottom-right: Strachan + Zolghadar, Vessel I & II shifted, 2022

I'm really excited to be exhibiting with Sarah Strachan, who is among other things, a fantastic ceramicist and printmaker, in a joint exhibition at Stapleford Granary, opening next Friday 16th May. Stapleford Granary is a beautiful arts centre just outside Cambridge, if you're thinking of making the trip, feel free to let me know and I can advise on getting there. The show is called Unexpected Encounters, although our working (and I think more fun) title has been Moss Animals.

The exhibition is the outcome of a conversation between the artists and an eerie encounter with bryozoa or moss animals along the shore of Lake Vassivière on a recent trip to the Centre International d'Art et du Paysage in France. Bryozoa (from the Greek βρυόν ('moss') and ζῷα ('animals') are aquatic invertebrates, which take a vast range of forms, in this case jelly-like clumps dotted along the lakeshore or hanging from branches. They are not "native" to France but have perhaps arrived due to increasing temperatures and plankton populations.

Both of us will show work which responds to this theme - Sarah will be exhibiting her beautiful ceramic forms, which are both abstract and figurative, as well as prints and drawings, while I'll be showing (mostly new) paintings and etchings. We'll also be producing a collaborative installation piece which I'm especially excited about.

The opening event is Friday 16th May 5-10pm, and the show runs until 24th June.

RHA Summer Exhibition and printmaking seminar

Wren Boys at Wendy's, oil on linen, 70x50cm, 2025

I was lucky enough to have a painting, Wren Boys at Wendy's, selected for the Royal Hibernian Academy Summer Exhibition. For the non-Dubs, it's a bit like the RA Summer Exhibition in London, but I would say it feels quite distinctive in representing Irish art. The show runs from 26th May to 3rd August, if you're in Dublin I'd strongly recommend it, last year's was brilliant and inspired me to apply this year. I had one more painting pre-selected and de-selected, so that had to go over and back to Dublin, but that means I can now show it in the Stapleford Granary show.

While I'm in Dublin I'll also be giving a talk/seminar, on Friday 24th May, about my moving image piece a certain critical period, discussing some of the context and the printmaking and digital processes I used. Places are limited so please let me know if you're interested in attending.

Recent Life Drawings

Here's a couple of recent life drawings, which show the power of the "ground", that is, the plain layer of colour (or just white, as on the right), on which you paint. A mid-tone ground like the green on the left is much more forgiving to work with than the white paper on the right. When drawing (with paint in this case, but I'd still call it a drawing) on white paper, the paper itself will be brighter than anything you can achieve with the paint, so you have to be very careful about not filling in your highlights. When working on the green on the other hand, you can sketch things out much more freely, and add your highlights in white paint at the end. Both are effective, but I really like the dreamy lightness of working on white paper... it just goes wrong very easily!

Just a reminder I've still got some copies left of 50 Life Drawings, my limited edition book of life drawing, all the info on that is here, please reach out if you'd like a copy.