Artists paint up a storm in just 36 hours

Saturday 09 February 2019

A group of local artists have been tasked with translating the rhythm of dance to gallery walls in just 36 hours to celebrate the Arts Centre's 36th anniversary.

Exhibition 'the dance', which has just opened in the Berni Gallery, aims to celebrate the rhythmic art form in a multitude of different ways.

Artworks range from intricate paper cutting to clever metal work, vibrant paint splashes and an absolutely stunning mural.

All of these are affixed to the walls, so when the exhibition concludes (on the 23rd of February) they will be painted over and lost to history, which is why islanders might wish to grab their chance to head down.

Two of the artists explained the rational behind their works...  

'Waiting' by Helen Ryan 

"I wanted to create a new and different piece of art for this exhibition- something I hadn’t done before and explored in a different way. I have been inspired by my faith as a Christian but also, more recently, by Asian Art- most notably Korean and Japanese art.

"I have tried to capture the essence of the simplicity of line, the use of subtle colour as well as the lyricism of pattern of Asian art. I have also tired to grasp a certain spirituality in this piece by attempting to encapsulate the stillness of the portrait of my daughter and juxtaposing her image with the movement of the wave and the dance of the words throughout."

She also said that the song 'Touch of Heaven' by Hillsong Christian Worship might help people better understand her painting.

'Dance through colour' by Kirsty Garcia

"I have never painted to this scale before so this was such an amazing experience and I loved every second of it! As this is such a special opportunity, I felt really eager to go bold and cover the walls in vibrant colours creating movement and depth.

"Contrasting the dark, rich blue tones with bright fluorescent colours was inspiring and I especially enjoyed creating the drip effect as it shows the movement and travel of the colours.

"I was very relaxed with my process and didn’t plan out the end result as it’s much more exciting and spontaneous that way. Being able to paint on such a large wall was a very exciting and enjoyable challenge and it allowed my creative process to flow naturally. I love that it’s all going to be painted over at the end of the exhibition - makes the whole experience feel very freeing!" 

GALLERY: What the other artists came up with in just 36 hours...