"Playful" exhibition to allow visitors to touch work

Sunday 29 December 2019

A local fine arts graduate is aiming to turn the idea of an exhibition on its head in 2020 with tactile textiles visitors can play with, rather than just look at.

Heather Brown, who says she has a passion for "bringing creatives together", is now encouraging local artists to submit their work to an interactive exhibition being held at Fort Regent next February.

A former Highlands College and Fine Art student, Heather is part of the RampArts collective, founded in 2015 to represent likeminded local artists, musicians and writers interested in sharing their creativity and talents.

At the time, Heather approached her friends for a collective exhibition at the newly renovated gallery in Fort Regent. 

Pictured: The exhibition will take place at ‘The Art Gallery’ in Fort Regent in February 2020.

A visual artist, Heather specialises in installation-based works and has a passion for organising events, particularly those offering networking opportunities for like-minded people.

She is once again putting her passion to use to create a collective interactive exhibition around textile work. 

“I want the focus to be on the exploration of textures, from rough felt to smooth silk,” she explained. 

So far, four artists have been selected, including Cara Smith - who recently created a series of ceramic pill bottles to spark conversations about mental health - and another second-year student from Highlands College, to whom Heather wanted to give an opportunity to show their work.

“When you are in education, a lot of things are planned for you,” Heather explained. “I wanted to give them an opportunity outside of what has been arranged.”

The selection process for the exhibition is still open to new submissions until 19 January. “I would encourage anyone with creative work in textile-based media to get in touch with me!” Heather said.

Pictured: The exhibition will include faux floral display from 'To the moon and back'.

Explaining the idea behind the exhibition, Heather said she didn’t want it to feel “clinical” but rather “relaxed” and that people will be able to play with the work.

“The exhibit will focus on the exploration of texture, scale and movement, with an invigorating impact of colour and design,” she explained. “We want to encourage the audience to touch the works and venture playfully through the space.”

“Gallery spaces can sometime be clinical and intimidating, you can only go in and look,” Heather added. “I want this exhibition to a be a little bit more inviting.”

The work on display will be complimented by soft furnishings from ‘The Loving Chair Company’, faux floral displays from ‘To the moon and back’ and hand painted stones by Berni Martin.

Pictured: Musicians Rory, Ivor and Eds jamming at RampArts last exhibition. 

For the exhibition’s opening night, Heather is planning a ‘Jam Room’ installation, complete with a variety of instruments supporting live music and local musicians such a Rory Hughes, Brice Harris and the Electric Brick boys.

“We will be covering a lot of ground, with music, visual art and work,” Heather added. “I hope RampArts can enable different types of creative to get ideas flowing and maybe put on more shows through the new year.”