Year: 2024

Doone Valley Gallery Presents: Sir Alfred Munnings and the Exmoor School An Exclusive Selling Exhibition Showcasing the Artistic Heritage of Exmoor

Doone Valley Gallery is proud to announce the opening of Sir Alfred Munnings and the Exmoor School, a captivating selling exhibition celebrating the artistic legacy of Exmoor’s landscape, featuring works by some of the most influential artists and craftsmen of the 20th century. The exhibition will run from 16th November, with a private view for invited guests on 15th November at 6pm.

The exhibition brings together an exquisite collection of paintings, drawings, and pottery by Sir Alfred Munnings, Robert Bevan, Charles Knight, Lucy Kemp-Welch, Rachel Ann le Bas, Frederick Hall, Harry Phelan Gibb, and the celebrated potter Waistel Cooper. Each artist, renowned in their own right, lived or worked on Exmoor, a region that profoundly influenced their work and style. This exhibition highlights their shared connection to this picturesque setting, while also offering collectors a rare opportunity to acquire pieces from this esteemed group.

Exploring the Exmoor School

The ‘Exmoor School’ is a loose term used to describe a collection of artists and craftsmen who were drawn to Exmoor’s rolling hills, dramatic coastlines, and timeless rural life. They found inspiration in the region’s natural beauty and distinct atmosphere, which is vividly captured in their works. This exhibition celebrates the diversity of their interpretations and their contributions to the artistic narrative of the area.

A Focal Point for Art and Craft

Sir Alfred Munnings, best known for his equestrian paintings and as a former President of the Royal Academy, is the centerpiece of this collection, representing his deep love for the countryside and equine subjects. The exhibition is complemented by the works of his contemporaries and fellow artists, including Robert Bevan, a founder of the Camden Town Group; Charles Knight, noted for his sensitive portrayals of rural scenes; and Lucy Kemp-Welch, celebrated for her depictions of horses and rural life.

Also featured are Rachel Ann le Bas, whose works depict the softer, lyrical side of Exmoor; Frederick Hall, known for his romantic landscapes and rustic scenes; and Harry Phelan Gibb, a pioneering figure in early 20th-century modernism.

The exhibition also includes the works of Waistel Cooper, one of the most distinctive studio potters of his generation. Cooper’s tactile, sculptural pottery, created during his time at Culbone, echoes the organic forms of the landscape, blending artistry with craftsmanship. His inclusion broadens the narrative, highlighting the region’s influence not only on painters but also on those working in three-dimensional mediums.

A Historic Setting

The Doone Valley, immortalized in R.D. Blackmore’s classic novel Lorna Doone, provides a fitting backdrop for this exhibition. The idyllic hamlet of Malmsmead, nestled in the heart of the valley, adds a historical resonance to the artworks and ceramics, further enhancing their connection to the land that inspired them.

Event Details

• • Exhibition Title: Sir Alfred Munnings and the Exmoor School

• • Venue: Doone Valley Gallery, Malmsmead, Exmoor

• • Public Opening: 16th November 2024

• • Private View: 15th November 2024, 6:00 PM

• • Exhibition Type: Selling Exhibition

• • Featured Artists and Craftsmen: Sir Alfred Munnings, Robert Bevan, Ethelbert White, Charles Knight, Lucy Kemp-Welch, Rachel Ann le Bas, Frederick Hall, Harry Phelan Gibb, Waistel Cooper

The gallery invites art and craft enthusiasts, collectors, and members of the public to explore this unique collection, celebrate the region’s rich artistic and artisanal heritage, and perhaps acquire a treasured piece of Exmoor’s cultural history.

About Doone Valley Gallery

Doone Valley Gallery is situated in the heart of Exmoor’s picturesque Doone Valley, a landscape rich in history and inspiration. Known for its important curated exhibitions, the gallery also aims to promote the artistic talent connected to Exmoor and the surrounding areas, providing a platform for both established and emerging artists and craftsmen.

For more information, please contact:

Doone Valley Gallery
Email: tim@timwilliamsfineart.com
Phone: 07539906442
Website: www.doonevalleygallery.co.uk

Doone Valley Gallery are delighted to present an exhibition of landscape photography by Mark Asprey with an opening drinks reception at 5pm on Saturday 7th September.

Born in Taunton in 1962, Mark St.John Asprey has dedicated his professional and personal life to the art and craft of photography. His journey began studying Photography at Filton College in Bristol, and subsequently at Salisbury College of Art and Design.

Mark’s professional career took a significant step forward when he became the first assistant to renowned London-based food photographer Vernon Morgan. After gaining invaluable experience, he launched his own business, St.John Asprey Photography, in London. Specialising in food and editorial photography for books, magazines, and part-works, his clientele included high-profile names such as BBC’s Ready Steady Cook, celebrity chef Gary Rhodes, publishers Haldane Mason, Whitecap Books, Japanese Esquire (including front cover), and Waitrose.

Mark’s expertise caught the attention of Getty Images, where he was offered a role during the pivotal transition period from film to digital photography. At Getty, he was taught scanning, retouching, and the business operations, while also testing cameras for suitability for submissions and serving as a consultant. Despite his responsibilities at Getty, Mark continued his professional photography work, focusing on advertising and packaging. After six years, he decided to dedicate himself fully to his business, catering to design companies with a specialization in packaging and advertising. His impressive roster of packaging clients included Pataks, Asda, Colemans, Blue Dragon, Knorr, Askeys, and Doritos. In advertising, he worked with renowned brands such as Smirnoff, Marmite (with an award-winning Guinness Marmite advert), Schweppes, Carte D’Or, Bovril, ASK Italian, Starbucks, Nivea, Fox and Fox English Wines, Paramo Clothing, Nikwax, and Birds Eye. Mark’s work also graced the front covers of Argos catalogues, and he contributed to London Transport promotional campaigns, including posters for Seven Trent Water. Mark’s accomplishments have been recognised through his election as an Associate of the British Institute of Professional Photography.

Throughout his career, Mark honed his skills using a variety of cameras, from 5×4 and 10×8 technical cameras to 120 Medium format film cameras. His current arsenal includes the Fujifilm GFX 100S and Fujifilm GFX 50R medium format cameras, as well as a Leica Q2.

Despite his commercial success, Mark always made time for his passion for landscapes and scenery, frequently visiting Exmoor, whose captivating beauty eventually led him to move there. Now retired from commercial photography, he devotes his days to capturing landscapes, staying true to his unique style. Inspired in part by the incredible photographs he saw at Getty, Mark views his landscape photography as works of art. He emphasizes in-camera techniques with minimal Photoshop work, controlling the entire process from visualizing and capturing the image to post-processing and printing. His meticulous attention to detail extends to choosing the perfect paper, frame, and glass for each piece.

Mark lives in Lynton with his wife Beverley and their border collie, Heather, where he continues to pursue his lifelong passion for photography, capturing the natural beauty that surrounds him.

Saturday 30th March – Tuesday 30th April

You are warmly invited to join Lawrie and ourselves for an opening drinks reception from 5pm Saturday 30th April

Doone Valley Gallery are delighted to present an exhibition of paintings by Lawrie Baldwyn.

Born in London in 1942, Lawrie Baldwyn is a British artist currently residing on the edge of Exmoor National Park and in Mortagua, Portugal.

Lawrie’s artistic journey began at the Ealing School of Art, where he studied from 1958 to 1963. Lawrie’s first exhibitions were at the Artists International Association in 1961 and 1962 at their Lisle Street venue in Soho, London. Also in 1962 Lawrie was included in Young Contemporaries at the RBA Galleries, an important exhibition that promoted the best young talents in contemporary British painting. The exhibition, largely run by students, was traditionally a spontaneous and somewhat chaotic event, often lacking in funding and organization. Nevertheless, it managed to attract considerable attention. The 1962 exhibition, served as an early platform for British Pop Art. Amongst the fellow exhibitors were Peter Blake, David Hockney, Frank Bowling, Derek Boshier, Patrick Procktor and R. B. Kitaj. The review of the exhibition in The Times observed, ‘if this year’s brilliant “Young Contemporaries” exhibition is anything to go by, British art is in for a healthy, lively period. The exhibition (particularly the far room) fairly bubbles with bright ideas and visual excitement, which is more important than the fact that some of the talent may prove to be a flash in the pan. Derivative influences abound, but that, too, is irrelevant; one does not ask an apprentice artist to spring fully armed from the head of Zeus but only to be discerning in his choice of exemplars and intelligent in his use of them. Intelligence of this kind is noticeable throughout the exhibition, and it is interesting to see in what directions it is currently aimed’.

Lawrie was also included in the 1963 Young Contemporaries exhibition as well as that year’s touring exhibition which visited Cambridge Art Gallery, Ferens Art Gallery, Midland Group Gallery, Towner Art Gallery, Bradford Art Gallery.

Lawrie subsequently worked for Harkers Studios, London. Painting scenery for opera and theatre productions, including the Royal Opera House, Glyndebourne, Welsh National Opera and various west end productions. Between 1965-1967 Lawrie shared his expertise teaching drawing at Ealing School of Art.

In 1976 Lawrie was shortlisted for the prestigious John Moores Painting Prize held at the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool. His painting Nebeul Kasr took third place, with a £2000 prize. In second place was Sir Howard Hodgkin (1932-2017) with Cafeteria at the Grand Palais, and the first place prize was awarded to John Walker (b.1939) for Juggernaut with Plume for P. Neruda.

Nebeul Kasr was later purchased by The Atkinson Art Gallery in Southport.

Other group shows included two at Scribes Cellar in 1980 and 1981, before a major solo exhibition at the Chenil Gallery in Chelsea in 1982.

After a hiatus of three decades, Lawrie resumed exhibiting in 2011, focusing on local venues and marking a new chapter in his artistic journey.