The new exhibition at Rye Art Gallery, Timely Connections showing the work of two local artists, painter David Crew and ceramicist Tony Bennett, opened on Saturday October 6 and runs until November 4.
It is a show full of surprises. At first there does not seem to be a connection between the two artists. However, despite the obvious difference in style, medium and subject matter, storytelling lies at the heart of both artists’ work, and it is this that makes the juxtaposition so original and thought-provoking.
In his series of paintings, Finding Mathias, David Crew explores the connections between the past and present, between his family and a German PoW artist, Mathias Hess, and between East Sussex and Germany. It is an amazing story, told in the paintings and in text alongside the paintings, and in the catalogue, The Mathias Connection. They are well-worth reading as they detail the almost magical connections that have enabled David to tell Mathias’s story.
David tells of his memories of his grandparents and of Hess’s paintings hanging in their house and the influence they later had on his own work; of his fascinating research in Karlsruhe; and of the memories from his and the artist’s family that helped him to find out more about Mathias. David’s paintings incorporate elements of Hess’s drawings of his time in East Sussex – the artist shimmers across time from the black and white of the past into the colour of the present. A further chance conversation revealed another connection: Mathias had made a drawing of David’s hometown of Rye, of Lion Street and St Mary’s, which hangs in the church (see Rye News article Timely Connections – finding Mathias).
The ceramics of Tony Bennett also tell a story, each work returning to the theme of the struggle between “our inheritance from our animal origin and the incredible advancement of our intellectual capacities. This has become even more pertinent with the codification of all aspects of lives and the rapid development of AI.”
Not only are the objects themselves symbols – there are heads of people and animals, an army tank and toys and games from childhood, but many are covered with symbols and patterns – numbers, letters, computer code. It is hard to believe that some of the objects are ceramic, Toy Gun and Cowboy Teeshirt are so skilfully rendered.
A wonderful show – the images, ideas and stories stay with you long after you leave the gallery.
Image Credits: Tony Bennett/Rye Art Gallery , David Crew/Rye Art Gallery , David Crew , Tony Bennet/Rye Art Gallery .