Happy News!

So 2011 has been a bit of a handful for many of us.
I thought as the year slips away we would end it with a little snippet of innocent and happy news.
Look at this smile:

Eleanor Horton is the daughter and mini muse of artist Olivia Irvine and can now take her place in the UG 'hall of fame' (the toilet).

I thought it would be nice to place her alongside heavyweights Philip Braham and David Hosie.
Well done Eleanor.

Happy Christmas to you all and best wishes for 2012!

Messengers from Paradise

Hello everyone,

I admit that I wasn't fully aware that in Greek Mythology bees were considered to be messengers from Paradise: not until award-winning artist Jenny Matthews tipped me off.  It makes sense really, given the importance of their role here on earth - such a shame that we don't hold them in such high regard now.

It is with this sentiment in mind that I'd like to show you what I believe to be one of Jenny Matthews' finest paintings to date:

'Skep Needle Book', acrylic on canvas, by Jenny Matthews.
I think this beautiful painting more than holds its own without further comment from me, but the clincher for me is the honey-sweet story behind it.  'Skep Needle Book' was created for our exhibition 'Plight of the Bumblebee', at the same time as Jenny's parents were preparing to move house.  Whilst clearing the attic of their house, Jenny's parents came across her Grandmother's needle book with a picture of an old-fashioned skep on the front - perhaps a message in itself....

Here's what a bee skep looks like: 

The highly decorative jug featured in the painting belonged to Jenny's Great Aunt, and I love how both objects have been painted with such care and sensitivity.  Indeed, I love this painting.

A mince pie to the first person to tell me how many bees there are in the painting....if you want a closer look, it's currently hanging in our window at the gallery.

Speak soon.

A Labour of Love II

Hello everyone

Do you remember this?

and this.......

'The Hunt' by Hannah Haworth.

And the bees knees......

All created by the extremely talented sculptor and knitting giant (although she's tiny), Hannah Haworth.
Last Christmas we displayed Hannah's spellbinding and large scale installation, 'The Hunt' and it thrilled all who viewed it. This year we are lucky enough to have 2 beautiful knitted doves from Hannah which again are proving to be a big hit.

'Doves', handy dyed silk yarn and merino wool by Hannah Haworth.

Hannah knitted each feather (of which there's over 100) individually and then seamed them together to create the tail and wings. That's a lot of knitting and sewing people! The doves bodies were then wired to create a sense of movement and flight.
When The Hunt was here last year I practically lived in the gallery. I couldn't get enough of them.
This year, on the arrival of the 'doves from above', I couldn't resist the chance of getting some cuddles (they are super soft) in early, and so took them home for a night before the Christmas opening.
Here they are:

I had to be extremely careful of UG hounds Tommy and Harry who were more than a little interested. Eek, perish the thought!
Naughty doggies:

The Doves, at £120 each, would make an ideal and very beautiful present for someone special this Christmas, as would many of the superb paintings on display. We are open until the 23rd so you have plenty time to come in and pick your favourite.

Speak soon x

A real cracker for Christmas.....

See you on Thursday!

A Bear Faced Cheek!

Hello everyone, and welcome to our new follower,

We thought that, as Edinburgh prepares to go Panda mad this weekend with the long anticipated arrival of Tian Tian and Yang Guang (Little Sweetie and Ray of Light to you and me), we would show you something to celebrate.

Nothing could be more fitting than this:

'The Relaxing Pleasure of Shitting in the Woods', oil, beeswax and enamel on board, by Derek McGuire.

Genius!  And an all-time favourite by Derek McGuire.

Still three days left to come and see Alison Auldjo's  stunning solo exhibition.....  The perfect  way to warm you up on this cold, cold weekend.