Works in the exhibition Heavy Weather

An exhibition of works by Carol Rhodes, Lucy Skaer and Hanneline Visnes at Gallery Grim in Amsterdam. The title of this exhibition “Heavy Weather” has its origins in a 17th century almanac of weather that formed part of the framework for works that were presented by Skaer and Visnes, along with others, in the Talbot Rice Gallery exhibition “The Green Man” for the Edinburgh International Festival of Arts in 2018. Recontextualised with works by Carol Rhodes in Gallery Grimm in Amsterdam. Presenting a slightly evolved body of paintings, that are concerned with themes of temporality and landscape meditating on nature, how it is altered and effected by human vision and action. The research questions that are embedded within these woks may be described thus: Repeating the shape, and agitating the surface with colour – when will the motif disappear? If it disappears, how much more information is needed before it appears again? How is the motif altered when subjected to these methods? Is it possible to transform the simple materials of pigment, wood and plaster into objects that embody and emanate energy? The body of paintings presented at this exhibition are descriptions of natural forms - trees, foliage and flowers as ornamental patterns, The paintings themselves are objects made from fibreboard cut into various rounded shapes, suggestive of fragments – these are primed with thick gesso. Creating patterns require set rules: forms must be simplified and abstracted, repeated and mirrored. There are also set rules for the application of paint in each painting: Some the shapes are amplified by lines of different colours repeating the shape until they completely cover the surface and become patterns within the pattern (“Mandrake”). Some of these paintings have a surface heavily loaded with paint, and in others it is thinned down paint utilising the white gesso ground to create matt luminous surfaces