Outdoor Gallery @ The Island Quarter is an exciting initiative to showcase the creativity and talent of local artists and organisations that contribute to Nottingham’s unique identity. We wanted to give a platform to artists at every stage of their career, from established names in the industry to Nottingham-based talent just starting to explore their style.
Nottingham artist, Reiss Mallet was appointed to curate and launch the initiative, which has seen him bring the new ‘city within a city’ to life through creative projects. Reiss has overseen the delivery and installation of an outside display below the The Island Quarter plinth on London Road.
The installation consists of a frame in which sit eight large format 4ft x 8ft panels, each painted by one of eight local artists who were selected from a high number of applications. Very much modern-art and abstract orientated, all the pieces displayed are colourful, vibrant and characteristically very different. The overall effect lifts completely what was a drab wall into a point of interest on the site.
The Artists:
Alex Rubes – https://www.instagram.com/alex.rubes/?hl=en
Alex Rubes is a Nottingham based artist who mostly works with spray paint in public spaces, His painting styles are often bold, pattern based with themes of the natural world.
In Nottingham he has been involved in several large-scale murals, most notably on Fletcher Gate on the edge of the Lace Market in the city and on Church Drive in Arnold.
With this recent project with The Island Quarter he wanted to work on a nature theme that reflected the city and a peregrine falcon was perfect, a contrast of urban and nature which is actually a common occurrence in his paintings.
Becca – https://www.instagram.com/sliceofthewilddesigns/
Becca is a self-taught illustrator and loves all things abstract, surreal and make believe; nature is her biggest inspiration and is important to her work.
Becca’s panel for The Island Quarter shows a bunch of unlikely animal friends sitting down for breakfast, a looming city in the background, polluting the air. Becca’s hope with this piece is to provoke change with the way we impact the environment.
Colette Rogers – https://www.instagram.com/colette.rogers.artiste/
Colette Rogers is a Nottingham-based artist and a contemporary abstract painter.
Using charcoal and gesso on canvas as her materials, Colette’s work takes on structural forms.
Given the location of the painting site, Colette felt as though the mark making should be really smooth, reflecting the fluidity of the water. Circular gestures and blue hues are a stark contrast of the surrounding buildings but bring out the brightness and ripples of the water. She wanted for there to be an ebb and flow between painting and the water, a connection to the surrounding environment.
Kynobi & Zena Kay – https://www.instagram.com/kynobio/?hl=en
Kynobi and Zena are a couple living and working in Nottingham, and both have their own freelance art practices. They illustrate, paint murals and make artwork separately, but when the opportunity to work on projects together comes they love it.
The couple used bright colours and bold shapes on this panel so people could enjoy it from the other side of the canal as well as being a splash of colour when walking close to it. The whole process was pretty organic, taking it in turns to add shapes which ended up feeling quite loose and winding, a little like the canal itself. They wanted to avoid over-complicating it or for it to represent anything in particular, just something to hopefully be enjoyed and add a little colour to people’s days.
Laura Decorum – https://www.instagram.com/lauradecorum/
Laura is a multi-disciplinary painter who lives and paints in Nottingham and surrounding areas. She has led creative activities and facilitated workshops for Nottingham City Council, New Arts Exchange, Goldhill Adventure Playground, Bullwell Toy Library, Mencap and Equation to name but a few.
Laura has created a dominant, strong and feminine woman with embellished fine details in true contradictory form the embodiment of vintage antiquity with a futuristic form.
Nicholas Wright – https://www.instagram.com/differingstructures/?hl=en-gb
Nicholas Wright has been a professional artist for over twenty years including representing England internationally in fine art shows all over Europe.
This large-scale drawing is part of a series based on the Latin phrase “Memento Mori” in English this translates to “Remember you must die”. Nicholas wanted to modernise it for today’s audience so within his “Memento Mori” Nicholas has included more modern symbols of decay, destruction, death and sometimes elements of modern technology. Hinting at our modern attitude to nature, as it is all framed in flowers and leaves.
Reggie Pugh & Gina Harries Pugh
Reggie Puge creates art for high street on windows, walls and interiors and enjoys working in a variety of styles, collage, inks and watercolour.
Gina Harries Pugh has a career in teaching, and since retiring, she has been developing a new body of work, exploring the nature of lost and found layers within a painting.
Reggie and Gina worked together to create a piece of art that responded to the natural foliage of the canal bank but in a graphic way that was bold and very visible from across the water. The simplified shapes also connect the art to the cells within the plants.
Ruby – https://www.instagram.com/rubyden.art/
Ruby is a Nottingham born artist whose work explores connection with environment, often through organic sculptural works and the use of found materials. Language has a central role in Ruby’s practice, she often plays with the idea of language expressed as a physicality through mapping and webbing in her works.
The inspiration for Ruby’s panel delves into the archives of Nottingham’s history. The piece is an ode to the rich textiles legacy of the city, which was the hub of the British lace industry in the 19th century. The text is a direct translation from lyrics sung by immigrant workers of the time.
This panel has now sold.
This project aimed to celebrate Nottingham’s creative talent and give an opportunity to those at different points of their artistic careers. We’re grateful to the range of artists that gave their time and skills to the Outdoor Gallery and look forward to welcoming more of Nottingham’s creatives in the future.
To purchase a panel, please email theislandquarter@cartwrightcommunications.co.uk