The annual show of the Tuesday Painters Club of Rye got underway on Friday August 18 and runs until August 28, 10am-5:30pm. The exhibition is at St Mary’s Centre, Lion Street and complements that of the Rye Society of Artists (RSA), open until August 27. Winchelsea holds its summer art exhibition in the Lower Court Hall on August 24-26 as well. We are certainly a hive of artistic activity locally.
The Tuesday Painters Club was founded in 1962 for amateur artists to work and exhibit together, whilst RSA is for professionals. There is some overlap between the two, as some Tuesday painters do exhibit with the RSA occasionally.
This year’s exhibition has 180 entries, in all types of media, watercolour, oils, acrylics and prints. It does not have ceramics or sculpture. Set out across two rooms in St Mary’s centre, it features works of different styles, which makes an absorbing collection of great variety. On visiting on August 19, twelve works had already been purchased and there were a number of enthusiastic visitors, some questioning Priscilla Ryan, vice president and exhibitor, who was on the desk and the other members of the club who were helping her.
For the 50p entrance fee, works of a high quality can be seen, and the triptych “In Memory of Ada” (main picture) by Dr Richard Manwaring Baines, DPhil, President of the Club and past president of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, greets you on entry. The amusing story behind the painting is there for you to read and enjoy as well as the triptych itself.
There are a lot of landscapes, to be expected of beautiful East Sussex and Kent and some lovely small paintings, already sold. One screen has a number of arresting lino prints, a different form from the other exhibits, and all the watercolours are grouped together in one of the rooms, giving good light to see the pictures. Possibly, a catalogue might have been of help, but each item is clearly marked and the prices are wide ranging, making this a more affordable show than some.
This was an interesting exhibition with a wide range and quality on show. It is well worth visiting and is open from 10am to 6pm daily, including August Bank Holiday Monday. The pictures really tell the story.
Among the landscapes, many artists have painted the red hut (above, left) on the nature reserve, this time in acrylic, but Linda Graham’s lino print of Strand Gate at Winchelsea (below left) provides a different sea vista, and medium, while Colin Bailey’s oil “Outpost” (below right) is yet another sea view.
Photos of paintings: Gillian Roder and John Minter