I’m very pleased to have had two paintings selected for the RCA‘s forthcoming annual open exhibition, starting 6th January 2024. ‘Quench‘ and ‘Fragments‘ are from my portfolio of smaller paintings and aim to draw you in to their reflective world. Are you an observer or outsider, or both maybe?
‘Quench‘ features dark clouds so low you can almost touch them. Rain falls on the hilltops and mountains against a brighter sky beyond. Mist arises from the valley. In ‘Fragments‘ there is a city (and landscape beyond) shrouded in heavy rainclouds. Shapes of buildings emerge in the foreground and a river leads away to a bay and hills in the distance.
Spaces like this appear when I paint without a plan. As the paint settles I begin to recognise elements from memory. Fragments of cities — Belfast and Liverpool — or maybe somewhere you know. It doesn’t matter except to evoke a feeling of being in raw nature and some emotions too, maybe a sense of being inside looking out, which is as much being outside looking in (depending on your perspective and values in that moment).
Royal Cambrian Academy of Art, Crown Lane, Conwy, LL32 8AN – 6th Jan 2024 11-5 Tue-Sat
This year over 60 artists are taking part across Wirral in 36 venues – shared spaces and studios – on 10-11 June (Saturday 10-5 Sunday 11-5). You can download the brochure with listings and maps 
SCI’s theme for the fair is consumerism and branding and the exhibition, titled ‘CODED‘ includes work from 22 UK artists in addition to Soup Collective’s six members. In keeping with the theme, artists have used food packaging as a basis for their contributions (which also seems apt, given the group’s name!). I found this an exciting proposition, given my concerns about the food industry, packaging, processing and environment. 
janine pinion 