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Summer Exhibition at the Clock Tower Gallery Sheffield

Sheffield’s Northern General Hospital has a great ‘Arts in Health’ programme and as part of this, operates The Clock Tower Gallery, which is going from strength to strength and is gaining a reputation for showcasing some excellent work by a wide range of artists. The gallery is open to everyone, not just hospital staff and patients.

Their latest exhibition is the Summer Open, which commences on 15th July and will run until 5th August and will include work from artists of all kinds, including painting, fine art, jewellery and photography.

I will have three pieces in the exhibition and have selected the favourites from my recent ‘Aspects of Africa‘ solo exhibition.  The last exhibition in which I participated at the Clock Tower Gallery had some terrific work on show and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone’s work at this latest show.

Most work is for sale and 25% of the sales proceeds are donated back into the hospital’s Arts in Health programme, so it is a good chance to get a unique piece of art work for your home whilst also supporting a very good cause.

The Clock Tower Gallery is at the Northern General Hospital, Herries Road, Sheffield and can be found in the clock tower, near the entrance to the Chesterman Wing.

Top 5 places to stay

Whether it’s five star luxury in a hotel or free camping in the wild, holiday accommodation is a big part of the travel experience and it can make or break a trip. I’ve been lucky enough to stay in a wide range of different places over the years, experiencing the extremes of luxury, to the most rudimentary hostel imaginable and I’m developing a list of favourite places, starting with my present top five.

 

Number 1 – The Okavango Delta – bush camping 

Forget fancy hotel and lodges – for me, bush camping is the only way to stay when visiting the awesome Okavango Delta in Botswana. Travelling in quietly by Mokoro canoe reveals wildlife watching opportunities that simply wouldn’t be possible in a 4×4 or plane, giving anyone who is willing to get back to basics a real chance to be at one with nature for a few days.

There is something quite spectacular about camping in the wild and hearing lions roar and hyenas call in the early hours of the morning – scary but overwhelmingly exciting at the same time.  Added to this, few things can top the sight of elephants coming to drink at the river, just feet away from camp.

With no loo, shower or any other creature comforts it it takes guts to give it a go, but our guide was a wealth of information about the local wildlife and habitat, making it a privilege and pleasure to be there.  Using guides from the villages helps to sustain local communities, protecting traditional lifestyles and supporting conservation work.

If you don’t unpack unless you’ve checked out room service and the mini bar, it’s probably not for you, but it’s out of this world if you have a spirit of adventure.

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Aspects of Africa – solo exhibition April 2009

I’m now putting the finishing touches to work that will be included in my forthcoming exhibition at the Peak District National Park visitor centre in Castleton.

The exhibition is called Aspects of Africa and will showcase some of the images I have created during visits to Africa over the last seven years, including Kenya, Zimbabwe, Botswana, South Africa and Namibia.

I absolutely love Africa and find it an endlessly fascinating place to be, with its miles of stunning landscape and wealth of wildlife.  The exhibition will touch on all these defining characteristics of Africa, but will also include a reminder that there is still immense hardship and poverty for many people there.

Responsible tourism is one way that visitors can do something to help reduce this poverty, by planning trips with local companies or by using tour operators who support and use local companies, to ensure that communities get a fair share of the income from tourism, rather than it being swallowed by a faceless corporate entity.

The Aspects of Africa exhibition will be on show from 1st April to 30th April 2009 at Castleton Visitor Information Centre, Buxton Road, Castleton, S33 8WN. 

A series of my local prints and greetings cards are also available from the visitor centre shop.

Art in the Pen

This weekend saw me travel up to Skipton to exhibit some of my fine art photography at the ‘Art in the Pen’ art show 2008.

Skipton Auction Mart, more commonly used for the sale of livestock, underwent a mini transformation, as artistic swags and finishes were applied to the pens by more than 50 regional artists who were on hand to showcase and sell their work. With everything from paintings and photography to textiles and ceramics, there was unique art to suit all tastes and budgets.

For me, it was an interesting two days. I hadn’t done this particular show before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but as several thousand visitors turned up during the two day event, there was ample opportunity to meet and chat to some very interesting people, including a couple who spotted my fine art print of a Sunset on Bonaire and explained that they are shortly moving out there and this view will be the one that they have from their terrace!

It’s a small world… emphasised by the fact that in the ‘pen’ next to me was a very talented photographer called Jon Scurrah, who specialises in 360 degree panoramic images – whilst chatting we discovered that we had both owned houses on the same street in Leeds within the last decade.

If I met you during the show, thank you for dropping by to check out my site and my other work. If you bought something from me during the show, I hope that you are enjoying your purchase, but either way, if I can be of any help, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me.