GATEPOST

Suffolk-based sculptor Esmond Bingham works across a variety of media both 2D and 3D and on scales ranging from the environmental to the miniature. Although essentially non-representational his work is concerned with the physical, emotional and psychological language and the creative potential of everyday preocupations and materials.

We are currently showing a cleverly conceived series etchings of British native trees by Suffolk-based printmakers Buckmaster and French - all are printed on paper made from the leaves of the trees that they depict. Delicate and ethereal using natural materials, these beautifully framed works present the print between two panes of glass so the intricacy of the paper sheet can be appreciated. They are for sale in our pop-up in the Stables at Houghton Hall until 26 September.

Bringing pop artist Colin Self's collaboration with Marianne Faithfull who used his watercolours of local Norfolk landscapes around Brundell on the album cover for her new release "She Walks in Beauty"

We are showing a capsule collection of Joni Smith's impressive paper cut artworks in our latest pop-up Rock Paper Scissors #rockpaperscissors at ther Stables Houghton Hall. Joni builds fictitious worlds using everyday printed material like maps and charts. Since the advent of digital GPS devices printed maps are seen as redundant, however not by Joni. She sees this devalued material as a rich source for inspiration, and uses maps and atlases cutting into them, reordering them creating new configurations, making landscape more fluid in its interpretation.

We made a much anticipated journey to Great Yarmouth yesterday to see the inaugural show in the new YARE GALLERY situated on the South Quay. Titled WEATHERING: NEW ART FROM EAST ANGLIA, it features  the work of the "Yarmouth 5", artists Katarzyna Coleman, Bridget Heriz, John Kiki, Emrys Parry and Brüer Tidman plus works by other artists from this side of the county of Norfolk. Including Molly Thomson, Esmond Bingham and others. We are currently showcasing the work of several of these artists in our pop-up exhibition Rock Paper Scissors at the Stables at Houghton Hall.

We will be open this coming Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday. Be sure to come and say hello when visiting the Tony Cragg sculpture exhibition, as well as the permanent collection, walled garden and the popular Houghton Horse Trials.

We're opening the doors to our latest pop-up exhibition encompassing art and handmade objects fashioned with the process of their making in mind. We are welcoming visitors from Wednesday19th May, until September 26. Come and discover beautiful, dynamic and thought provoking works from more than 40 exhibitors.

Visit the website for opening times and ticket prices to enter the Houghton Hall estate and to gain entry to the Tony Cragg sculpture exhibition:Houghton Hall Book Tickets

Harriet Vyner of Cheerio, interviewed Marianne Faithfull about her recent launch of "She Walks in Beauty". Produced with composer Warren Ellis, this draws on her passion for the poetry of Shelley, Keats, Byron, Wordsworth, Tennyson and Thomas Hood and features extra special appearances by Nick Cave, Brian Eno and Vincent Ségal. Not to mention artwork created by Colin Self, a long-term friend of Faithfull. We are selling limited edition prints of these illustrations at our next pop-up at Houghton Hall Stables, Rock Paper Scissors - opening 19 May

Sarah Paramor is the first basket maker that C&C have invited to showcase her work as part of our look at the cultural sector on a national level. Sarah lives and works in Applecross, on the coast of West Scotland and has exhibited nationally and internationally and is a regular contributor to Craft Scotland. See more of her work this summer in Rock Paper Scissors in the Stables at Houghton Hall, running alongside the exhibition of sculpture by Tony Cragg in the house, gardens and park.

We are publishing a series of images from collections we are currently putting together for clients. Here is the latest Spring Salon installation showing new work by Norwich based artists working with paper (Joni Smith and Ruth Howes) as well as Molly Thomson who creates these delicious constructed boards that sing with colour through her use of multiple layers of poured paint.

Contemporary and Country’s exhibition Rock, Paper, Scissors encompasses art and handmade objects fashioned with the process of their making in mind. It will run alongside the exhibition by Tony Cragg, opening at Houghton Hall, Norfolk on 19 May and closing 26 September, 2021. Tickets to enter the Houghton Hall Estate are on sale from 19 April (entrance to the Stables will be part of the entrance fee)

We are pleased to present three new paintings by Linda Jamieson from her popular Seahenge Series. Based in North Norfolk this well established artist continues to produce the most beautiful paintings continuing her desire to capture and represent glimpses of the Norfolk coastal landscape in all its colour, light and shade.

The hand-drawn lines on Katharina Klug's ceramics make the work lively, rough, immediate and unique and preserve the moment of mark- making. Inspiration comes from little snippets of observation in her environment. Lines are jumping out at her in almost anything – stripes on cloth, wires and cables, plants and grasses, architecture and streets to name a few.

We are delighted to continue to work with a selection of established and new artists and makers in 2021. We are also working hard in reaching out to new creative talent from our area, east of England. Some are struggling to keep up their practice under the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions but many are working on creative expressions of hope.

Many thanks to all the artists and makers we have worked with over the past year. We also send our best wishes for a creative year ahead with all the challenges we face together. Happy New Year to our supporters for a prosperous and healthy 2021.

Having supported East Anglia's Children's Hospices for a number of years for the Nook Campaign, through to on-site fundraising during our 2018 season at Houghton Hall, we are delighted now to have been able to help source artworks from artists' C&C work with to donate towards their next fundraising auction to be held in February / March 2021. More details will follow early 2021.

Very best wishes for Christmas and the New Year to all our friends, customers and those artists we've met and worked with over this past year. Join our mailing list and be the first to hear about our 2021 events or add something unique to your home from our Anglian Collection.

We are delighted to be able to offer a small number of Maria Pavledis' "Owl Sanctuary" prints this year - from a limited edition of 100, all signed by the artist. The print is taken from one of her smoke drawings created by the transfer of carbon from the burning flame of a candle held close to the surface of the paper.

Pick up this limited edition set of laser cut decorations depicting the 12 Days of Christmas by Norwich based artist Ruth Howes. Ruth studied Fine Art, specialising in sculpture and over the years has shifted to painting and illustration in her work. All her work has the paper cutting process at its heart.

As Suffolk-based sculptor Roger Hardy says "As individuals we have a great desire to project our own humanity and emotions onto the most primitive human form". This is certainly true of Roger's many sculptures now available as part of our Anglian Collection.

Revisit our pop-up via our walk-through tour or view our "Anglian Collection" via our website - see link in bio. Pick up something to grace your home or delight a loved one this Christmas.

Colin Self has been a long standing friend of Marianne Faithfull since they first met in the 1960s. Colin has provided some of his wonderfully lyrical and dreamlike landscapes to illustrate the cover and booklet accompanying Marianne's next CD when she will be narrating verse by England's greatest poets.

We are delighted to see this new series of work by Norfolk-based photographer, Debby Besford. Brought up in Great Yarmouth, Debby herself was a junior champion of roller skating as a teenager and knows all too well about the community of competitors seeking to excel at this sport.

We are delighted to present more new work in our pop up at Houghton Hall. From beautiful design for the home with Katharina Klug's ceramic creations; to amazing handmade paper cut works by Ruth Howes; to breathtaking large photographic art by Gareth Hacon and new painted landscapes from Kate Giles. We are also pleased to have installed new sculptures by Jonathan Clarke.

Peter Wylie, currently included in our pop-up exhibition at Houghton Hall Stables, has had a painting selected by artist Jane and Louise Wilson, for their Curated Room at this year's Royal Academy Summer Show - October 2020.

We are delighted that Keron Beattie, currently showing in our pop up in the stables at Houghton Hall, has been nominated for the Sir John Hurt and Sworders Art Prize, Holt Festival this year. Keron  gained a First Class BA (Hons) in Contemporary Art and Design (2016) and a MA Fine Art with Distinction (2018) from NUA. His work for A Fine Balance is concerned with the natural world under pressure including disconnection with nature and natural cycles.

As we expand our work with artists and makers from East Anglia we are entering the second half of our pop up event alongside Anish Kapoor at Houghton Hall, Norfolk - open until November 1.  At the time of writing there have been over 50,000 visitors on site and we have secured over 300 sales for local artists and makers. As works are purchased and taken away we are able to fill gaps to keep our exhibition fresh - making sure that any return visit will not disappoint!

The painters we are showing in A Fine Balance at Houghton Hall Stables, capture the splendor of the natural landscape; depict the beauty of coastal reaches; open fields, fens and woodland. Some work in an abstract style while others are more figurative in representing the landscapes they see and wish to convey.

Springs Fireplace Road is the title of the group of etchings by Colin Self and printed by master printer Maurice Payne at Editions Alecto between 1968 and 1971. We are showing this incredible print edition at A Fine Balance, in the stables at Houghton Hall. Payne has printed for Hockney for over 40 years and it was at a chance meeting with Self in the 1990s at a David Hockney private view, that reconnected them.

We would love to see you in person to show you the works by local artists in A FINE BALANCE - running alongside the Anish Kapoor exhibition at Houghton Hall this summer. You can visit us online too… take a virtual tour of our exhibition with hot spots that link through to each artist on our online shop, so you can see each work that interests you in detail.

We are delighted to announce that our pop up event A FINE BALANCE will open 12 July in the stables at Houghton Hall alongside Anish Kapoor's much anticipated exhibition. Please see the main Houghton Hall site to see opening times and ticket prices. All tickets need to be purchased in advance of your arrival under COVID-19 guidance. Social distancing measures will be in operation.

There has been an unprecedented amount of interest generated by the decision to hold a major exhibition of sculpture by Anish Kapoor at Houghton Hall. Many media outlets ran broadcast reports on the evening of 9 July - read on to view just two of them, with more promised...

Just as we are contemplating the last lentil at the back of the store cupboard, today is World Environment Day – (see links for more information at the end of this newsletter).  For many this concern stretches way beyond a single day of course, but it does give us pause to consider this incredibly important challenge we will all share in the months ahead, as life opens up again.

Thanks to Dominic Castle, Editor of Norfolk magazine. It's June edition, just published, features Contemporary and Country on pp52 and 53 - take a look when you get your copy of the magazine this month. We hope you enjoy the range of work we are able to show online. There are some extremely talented, creative people in this part of the country. If there is an artist's work you are particularly interested in, let us know and we will put a collection of their work together for you to view on screen that only you will have access to, in the comfort of your own home.

Each of the painters featured in our latest newsletter capture the splendor of the sea and landscapes of our region, depicting the beauty of coastal reaches, open fields, fens and woodland. All examine aspects of familiar places now distant and yearned for as we observe lock-down conditions. Read on to discover more about Kate Giles, Will Cutts, Natalie Odile Lang and Pandora Mond

Zarya Austin-Fell is a multi-media artist whose work explores the relationship between everyday life and the objects that accompany it. Like many of us and from an artist's persepctiveexperiencing this unusual period, Zarya is looking at life from the inside out.

Springs Fireplace Road is the title of the group of etchings by Colin Self and printed by master printer Maurice Payne at Editions Alecto between 1968 and 1971. We are delighted to be offering this immaculate limited print edition consisting of six individual images created by Self. They are presented here in beautiful painted wooded frame and protective UV glass.

Our latest e-newsletter presents more about some of the artists we are showcasing in our online showroom. Colin Self is born and bred in Norfolk while painter and printer Peter Wylie was born in Lowestoft and continues his fascination with the Suffolk landscape and the North Sea. Katargyna Coleman and Roger Hardy moved from London to Norfolk and Suffolk respectively. All find ways of articulating a sense of belonging and have uncovered and maintained a deep connections with our region.

Heather Connor lives with learning difficulties that have made it impossible for her to find regular employment. To generate an income she has has been making these beautiful cushions since 2016 and been helped by her family and friends to sell them to build her own support network.

Many of the artists we are showcasing online at the moment have long held concerns about climate change and the environment. All four of the artists in this post record the beauty and fragility of the natural world. View works by Kate Giles, Liz McGowan, Pandora Mond and Paul Wolterink.

Read our latest e-newsletter about our hastily re-arranged season for online only exhibits. The selection of artists and makers in this edition have been preparing work for A FINE BALANCE for several months so we wanted to give you the opportunity to see this body of work and to support artists and makers during these newly compromised times.

On a studio visit to see sculptor Rachael Long as we prepared for our showcase - A FINE BALANCE - 6 weeks ago, we were fascinated to learn more about a scheme that she and her family have been involved with on their farm land that lies to the south of Norwich. She explained that they had been working with Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (FWAG) and Norfolk Wildlife Trust (NWT) since 2010.

We are delighted to be able to take orders for some unique ceramic pieces from North Norfolk based ceramic artist, Laura Huston. Take a look at her ceramics in our home collection .We are delighted to be able to take orders for some unique ceramic pieces from North Norfolk based ceramic artist, Laura Huston. Take a look at her ceramics in our home collection .

Rachael Long is an award-winning artist with many public commissions across the UK including "Lifeboat Horse" at Wells next to the Sea. We are delighted to be showcasing her smaller sculptures of horses and deer in our current online showroom.

Amidst this current crisis we are all trying to find a positive way forward. Whether you, your friends and family are working from home or just trying to catch up with family matters, we hope our e-newsletters will help make things during this extraordinary time feel just a little bit better. Join our mailing list to keep in touch as we reveal more about our showcase online.

As some of you will already know, our showcase #finebalance will not open at Houghton Hall until this current health crisis has abated. However you can still support our artists by viewing and buying their work online to nurture the cultural talent across our region.

Read more here about C&C who have worked together for the past 5 years to bring artists and makers to a wider audience. Contemporary and Country (C&C) brings together the organisational talents of curator Paul Barratt and designer Paul Vater.

Our designer-makers create beautiful decorative furniture, soft furnishings and objects for the home using a diverse range of materials, often natural, associated with the eastern region. From basket weaving, seashells and furniture, to hand-turned wood and textiles.

There are a number of local sculptors we are showcasing in our online showroom. Each artist has chosen a medium through which to express their particular point of view. From stone, forged iron, steel and aluminium to wood, textiles, glass and lead.

As we move into 2020 we invite you to take another look at the wonderful collections we have put together covering the artforms of painting, print, sculpture, drawing, photography and design for the home.

More to come later this month but we begin with a look at WORKS ON PAPER

We have added new paintings to our collection for 2020. Take a look at works from artists from across the eastern region. Each captures the splendour of the natural landscape, the beauty of coastal reaches, open fields, fens and woodland, employing traditional painting techniques in figurative and abstract styles, including oil, watercolours and acrylic paints.

Join us at Art Fair East - St Andrews Hall, Norwich. From 29 Nov to 1 Dec 2019 (PV on 28 Nov) See website for opening times and details of all the exhibitors we will be showcasing at this event. Drop an email via the website if you want to come to the Private View on Thursday 28 November (6pm-9pm)

We are showcasing a number of artists and makers - old and new - at Art Fair East this November at St Andrews Hall, Norwich. Let us know if you would like to attend the Private View on Thursday 28 November by sending an email via our website. Art Fair East closes on Sunday 1 December

Don’t miss the Henry Moore exhibition at Houghton Hall that ends tomorrow, Sunday 29 September. Come and pick up a work by local artists, designers and makers. Huge thank you to our sponsors including Norfolk Cottages, ArtOffice, Cheffins and Original Travel and of course for the support of Lord and Lady Cholmondeley and their staff for making this all possible.

Nicholas Serota talks more about this in his article published in The Guardian newspaper, dated August 26. We have always looked at promoting the contemporary and country based artists and makers across the eastern region.

Each of the works for the home we are currently exhibiting in our pop up in the stables at Houghton Hall is unique and shows that in order to have something beautiful, handmade for the home you needn't necessarily spend a fortune.

Still life, nature morte: the image of a fruit just before it tips to rot, roses plucked at the height of their blossoming. The refrain “still life” gradually acquires another meaning — “not yet, still here". Take a look at these paintings by Joceline Wickham - Norwich based artist.

We are delighted to be offering new works for sale by Norwich based artist Molly Thomson. Painting for Molly is a process of construction, reconfiguration, application, observation and assessment. It is a process she repeats until the point is reached when each individual painting achieves a balance between its painted surface and object presence.

Oystercatchers fly along a beach, and Swifts swoop over rooftops. Gannets fly fast over the sea and Redshanks call over the marshes. The Birdflight series of artistʼs books can each be made to commission, they are all individually hand painted no two will ever be quite the same. See more of Judith Ellis' work in our pop up at Houghton Hall until September 29

Christopher Marvell's works impose themselves as seemingly blunt facts, but on deeper reflection they initiate a subtle dialogue that cajoles us to contemplate not only the relationship between human and animal, but also between the human/animal archetype and the human/animal condition itself. We are showcasing his sculpture and drawings in our pop-up exhibition in the stables at Houghton Hall until 29 September 2019.

Colin Self attended the Royal College of Art (RCA) in the early sixties – as Pop Art emerged in London. He exhibited at the influential Robert Fraser Gallery, along side Peter Blake, Richard Hamilton and Clive Barker. He sees potential in the everyday objects that surround us and calls himself a ‘hunter’, seeking out connections between objects he has selected out from the detritus of mass consumption.

We are delighted to have featured in this great article on the contemporary art scene in the Eastern region - a snapshot of activities from Great Yarmouth, Waveney Valley sculpture park, through to Moore at Houghton Hall and our pop up in the stables, and finishing off in King's Lynn.

Educated at the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art in Oxford Pandora Mond has painted all of her adult life. She lived for many years on Exmoor before returning to her roots in Norfolk. We have a number of her framed works for sale during our "Festival" pop up at Houghton Hall. Open until September 29. Check opening times and charges to enter the Houghton Estate here.

These and more figurative ceramic pieces are a feature of our current pop up in the stables at Houghton Hall. As a sculptor, Suffolk-based Michael Wood's work is focused on the form and shape of the ancient pottery traditions, realised in a contemporary style using the ancient techniques of the hand built coil pot in stoneware, He works to achieve various textures and decorates with natural oxides, accentuated with contemporary glazes.

Bridget Heriz trained at Goldsmiths College and Ravensbourne College of Art and Design (1973-77), after which she returned to Suffolk to work at Clock House Fine Art Studios. She moved to Great Yarmouth in 2002. After a period working with traditional methods to evolve an earthy and spirited approach to figurative sculpture, Bridget has returned to experimenting with constructions using wire and card or balsa wood.

The Royal College of Art was the starting point for Brüer Tidman's long career as a figurative painter, with references to earlier art movements effortlessly rendered in his own rich visual language. One of the three notable Great Yarmouth based artists we are showcasing this year in FESTIVAL 2019.

We are showcasing the work of artists who employ paper cutting at the core of their practice. Both are Norwich based. Joni Smith bases her work on mapping and topography and has produced intricate cut town scapes of Wells, King's Lynn as well as Italy and Spain incorporating knotted ropes. Ruth Howes cuts paper plans of buildings - Holkham and Houghton Halls feature strongly and her cut schematic of the Houses of Parliament features paper figures jumping off the terrace into the Thames.

On this Easter weekend we are marvelling at the Henry Moore "Nature and Inspiration" now in its final stages of installation at Houghton Hall. We are busy building our exhibition featuring local artists in the stables, alongside this great event. With just 10 days left before we open to the public - on May 1st. We have been taking in works from exhibitors including the vital Kate Giles ... take a look.

Keron Beattie gained a First Class BA (Hons) in Contemporary Art and Design (2016) and a MA Fine Art with Distinction (2018) from Norwich University of the Arts (NUA). His work is concerned with drawing elements together, reversing fragmentation, remaking and bringing a sense of wholeness to disparate materials, changing or transforming them into objects that display their component parts without apology.

Trained at Central st Martins and privately with Francis Pratt, Linda Jamieson has exhibited in London and Norfolk and undertaken numerous commissions. This is her third inclusion at our pop-up at Houghton Hall Stables.

We are grateful to Norfolk Cottages for their generous sponsorship this year. As with our previous events, we have secured supported that are recognized businesses with interests in raising their profile in the arts at this level. Read on to see more about ArtOffice and Cheffins who have also come on board to make this event happen.

We are all set to showcase the work of Cambridgeshire-based kinetic sculptor Andrew Jones. his work relies on mainly linear elements balanced and articulated to move simply in the wind, light or strong. When visiting Houghton Hall this year you will find some of Andrew's kinetic sculptures in the walled garden.

Debby Besford has been recording the changing yet enduring face of Great Yarmouth. She was born in Yarmouth and has recently been given exclusive access to document the ever changing face(s) of the town's Pleasure Beach.

Jonathan Clarke was born in 1961 in Suffolk, UK, where he continues to work today. At the age of 16 he took up an apprenticeship with his father, the sculptor Geoffrey Clarke (RA). He has works on commissions across the country including Colchester, Ely Cathedral, St James' Square, London and Southwell Minster.

Ruth Howes is taking part in FESTIVAL this year. Her paper cuts are made with an absolute economy of materials and an intricate cutting process. The results are finely detailed and deftly finished.

We are delighted to be showing a selection of work by Norwich resident Colin Self. As Calvin Winner observed: ‘Perhaps the most striking element of Self’s art is that his entire output remains remarkably current and contemporary. His concerns are our concerns, and he continues to reveal and expose art as the essence of life.’

Earlier this week we went on a road trip. The treat ahead of us was a visit to 4 of the ‘Yarmouth 5’ artists in their studios in the docklands of Great Yarmouth. Here are some images of their stunning work.

Take a look at our "Collection Guides". If you have someone who is particularly difficult to buy for, a Norfolk by Design Gift Voucher may be the answer - our Gift Vouchers are redeemable online or at our forthcoming pop up events throughout 2019.

The best part of our job is when we get to visit the artists, makers and designers we showcase as part of our series of pop up events.We recently had a chance to look at the work of Kate Giles who we are showing in our upcoming “Beach House Bazaar” in Brancaster (November 15-18)

Lorraine Bewick has taken tried and tested techniques in the tradition of figurative landscape painting and applied them to her own perspective of the English landscape. Based in North Norfolk her interest in interpreting Norfolk’s expansive skies and coastal reaches as liminal space treads a path mapped out by acknowledged masters of the genre, such as John Robert Cozens and JMW Turner.