By Glen Screeton
If you like Art & Photography then why not pop along to the exhibition currently running at The Gateway Centre in Warrington.
It features works by seven artists and photographers (mainly from Warrington) who focus on the music scene and there are some stunning works on display.
Contributors include Matt Grainger (aka Vinyl Soul) who’s art is instantly recognizable by the faceless performer and many of his pieces can be seen around the town in restaurants and bars. Matt’s collaboration with Paul Weller is on display as are many other notables and the striking colours and graphic design are very pleasing to see and will certainly brighten your day.
Renowned photographers – Warren Millar and Jeff Jolly have also displayed many pieces and readers might well have been present when the photographs were being taken so if you come down look out for yourself! The clarity and thoughtful angles of the shots are truly breathtaking and visitors to the exhibition should allow 30 minutes to stand back , observe and appreciate the work displayed in this clean, well lit and safe environment. A latecomer to the exhibition is young photographer Edie Lees who at just 18 years of age has arranged a large display of her framed work. Many pictures incorporate clever manipulation of light and effects and at the time of writing several visitors have said ‘they have gained inspiration and ideas’ from Edie’s work – watch this space!
I am delighted to welcome artist/photographer Paul Evans (aka Painted Papillon Smile) whose work is phenomenal and ranges from black and white photographs to high definition art in beautiful colour. Paul draws his inspiration from the lyrics of songs and he has included them in the frames to give some context, but if you can’t make the exhibition his work can be observed and purchased through his website at www.paintedpapillonsmile.co.uk. To add more variety, mixed-media artist Lucy Evans (not related to Paul) is displaying her work from sessions with Northwich band ‘The Zangwills’ and includes interesting collages and early drafts of LP/Single cover artworks and although they aren’t the originals the prints on show demonstrate Lucy’s thought process with clear pictorial references to the song title.and lyrics. It’s well worth taking the time to stand back and work them out!
Sadly, local artist Cameron Brown couldn’t make the exhibition due to a bout of Covid, so who else but Warrington Radio’s ‘The Rock God’ himself – Gary Skentelbery, stepped up to fill a slot with a small but very colourful collection of his iPhone 14 photos blown up to A3 & A4 size. They weren’t planned for the exhibition but the prints have turned out very well and it just shows how far mobile phone photography has come,and if Gary’s work inspires others to have a go on Instagram then the message has been successfully received.
The exhibition is showing at The Gateway, 89 Sankey Street ( opposite the Golden Gates ) , Warrington, WA1 1SR and is open from 10-4pm ( weekdays only ) until Friday 16th Aug. Follow Warrington based @unsignedhub.com on facebook and tiktok for news of future events.
@garyskent @Unsignedhub.com #arts and #photography #music exhibition at The Gateway #warrington until August 17 Monday-Friday #modernworld #thejam #mods #rockers @warringtonworldwide @paulwellernews ♬ The Modern World – The Jam
