Jayne Jones: New work and New Exhibition 'Material Matters" 22 June-30 July, 2011

 Jayne Jones - Our greater Scheme for Happness - Mixed Media on Canvas - Size 90cm x 90cm

The artist Jayne Jones has a new show of abstract paintings at the Duckett & Jeffrys Gallery in Malton from the 22nd June until 30th July. I have watched her style and approach develop from the early-mid nineties from mixed media/collage  to  acrylic and oil, to  industrial paint. These works featured here are produced using mixed media; oil pigment, industrial paint and resin.

 Jayne Jones - Where Effort & Form Disappear - Mixed Media on Canvas - Size 400cm x 210cm

In the essay "Experiments in Painting"  by David Sweet he states that Jayne's interest in experimentation "stems from her interest in material processes that involve chance and unpredictable outcomes" (Sweet, D, ND).

Helen Frankenthaler, Mountains and Sea (1952)

Alpha-Pi, 1960
Morris Louis (American, 1912–1962)
Acrylic on canvas

102 1/2 x 177 in. (260.4 x 449.6 cm)

Puddle Painting: Mars Black
Ian Davenport 2009
40 1/2 x 31 in / 103 x 79 cm
acrylic paint on aluminium, mounted on aluminium panel

This is what was said of her work at the James Freeman Gallery: "while her practice is strongly indebted to important figures in abstraction such as Ian Davenport and Morris Louis, Jayne Jones articulates these references with a very feminine, and sometimes sensual, undercurrent that makes her work distinctive – many of the more figurative suggestions that seem to randomly appear as a result of her process seems to cohere around ideas of womanhood, which in turn makes an initially impersonal approach to painting seem extremely personal and private. In this respect her work contributes to the cannon of process painting, which is a result of her sustained commitment to experimentation and exploration in the medium".

Is her work closer then to the colour field painting of say Helen Frankenthaler?

Duckett & Jeffreys Gallery

2 Old Maltongate

Malton

YO17 7EG

http://www.duckettandjeffreys.com/

Dave Whatt

Hull Underground original design Dave Whatt for Remould Theatre Company (no date).

It is hard to categorize the Hull-based creative Dave Whatt. He is an accomplished Blues guitarist, a multi-instrumentalist musician and artist, set designer, photographer, graphic designer, illustrator and writer. He is avant-garde, anti- avant-garde, an anti-poet and, he will hate me for this, a poet. I like to think of him as a polyartist, for he is “a master of several unrelated arts” (Kostelanetz, 2001, p. 486) as well as many related ones.

Above: A kid for two farthings by Dave Whatt. This drawing was I assumed, based on a still from the film of the same name directed by Carol Reed in 1955, I believe now however that it is a based on this book cover for the novel of the same name of which the film was an adaptation, written by Wolf Mankowitz:

No doubt Dave Whatt owns a copy.

'Acting' by Dave Whatt

I am not sure about the source for the above picture or the date.

As you can see many of the works here are representational. However there is plenty of his work that I would describe as abstract, recalling the “landscapes” of Yve Tanguy. Unfortunately I do not have a copy of these works. The surreal nature of such works and of his writing made him the ideal founding member of the Hull Surrealist League.

Dave Whatt's website contains examples of his own compositions: music and poetry and a list of his diverse influences that include early nineties rave:

The Plasmatics:

Captain Beefheart:

and

The Cramps:

amongst others! All great bands and artists!

Take a look at http://www.myspace.com/davewhatt

Kostelanetz, R. (2001) Dictionary of The Avant-Gardes, New York and London: Routledge

Wallpaper

No flowers please: wallpaper exhibition exposes the dark side of the home Crime scenes, school bullies and genitalia feature in first UK exhibition of medium:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/feb/06/wallpaper-exhibition-manchester