We were lucky enough to be working at the Affordable Art Fair in Hampstead Heath last month. A huge marquee was erected amidst the beautiful, lush heath overlooking the ponds where the ever-brave British swimmers were dipping their toes. There were over 100 exhibitors showcasing art works for hundreds of famous and new emerging artists. It was a fast and furious 5 days but one of the things that we noticed, and really enjoyed, was that dogs were allowed to come into the Fair. It varied from huge friendly huskies to tiny timid dachshunds, but the common denominator was the love that the owners shared for their dogs. They were stopped at most exhibition stands to have a little tummy rub and an odd treat here and there!
This made me think of our artist Peter Clark. His quirky portraits of dogs are among his most popular works. Peter finds, folds, and layers recycled paper to sculpt collages of animals, garments, and people. The collage can be created in everything from maps, labels, discarded tickets, gift wrapping, musical scores and love letters. Highly detailed and precise, his collages are composed of paper sourced from various places, whether it’s from a car boot sale in Chiswick, an antiques fair in Sussex, or further afield to flea markets in France, the United States, Japan, and India, Peter travels far and wide to source materials for his next pieces.
Peter does not use any paint to create his vibrant compositions, instead carefully forming likenesses using the existing patterns and palettes of his humble materials. His objective is turn ordinary printed matter into exquisite works of art with character, beauty and wit.
When we returned from the Art Fair to our Shenfield Gallery this week it was fast and furious again. For many years we have shared our gallery, but in May we were fortunate enough to take over the entire space so we have been really busy filling it with a huge variety of art which now includes sculptures, glassware and unique gift ideas in a fabulous friendly environment. We also have a new framing room too!
Want to read more about Peter and see his availbale work, CLICK HERE.