Owie Simpson / Sarah Hall 7 – 11 September

7 – 11 September

ISN’T SHE A DOLL: Owie Simpson

On a recent trip to Africa I was fascinated by the unusual hand-made dolls many little girls carry. These strange figures were toys but also important talismans - symbols of fertility given to young girls in the hope that in time they would bear children of their own. Fertility in Africa is highly prized in contrast to Western society where fertility is often controlled, postponed or left deliberately unfulfilled as women pursue wider aspirations.

The longing for children and the heartache of infertility is a phenomenon which crosses the boundaries of all societies, Western or otherwise. This series of paintings explores the symbolism of the African dolls, the fragility of fertility and the wider pattern of life as it affects all cultures.

AND I FLY: Sarah Hall

AND I FLY is about young adulthood, in particular about fledglings leaving the nest, spreading their wings and soaring out into the endless blue horizon of the future on their own chosen air currents.

This series of oil paintings depicts figures flying in the sky. It is painted from the nostalgic yet proud and joyful perspective of a parent watching her children preparing to fly away and is a commentary on what is effectively the voluntary redundancy scheme signed up to by all parents on the day their child is born.

OPENING: 5.30 pm Tuesday 7 September

OPEN: 10.00 am – 5.00pm Tuesday to Saturday

ENDS

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