blackpool arts scene Archives - Page 6 of 7

18 Jul

Exhibition Review: Artist Rooms – Louise Bourgeois

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsart exhibition, Blackpool, blackpool arts scene, grundy art gallery, louise bourgeois

One of the great figures of modern art, Louise Bourgeois’ embrace of duality is revealed in a posthumous exhibition that brings work owned by the Tate and National Galleries of Scotland to Blackpool’s Grundy Art Gallery. Louise Bourgeois' Artist Rooms exhibition is clearly a must see show, so Saturday 8th July 2023 saw me defer the two weekly trip to Tesco and catch my usual service 3 bus down to Blackpool and the Grundy Art Gallery to catch the first day of this magnificent exhibition. Stepping through the door, I was greeted by a video loop introducing me to the…

05 Jul

Exhibition: 20 years of Inkden tattoo studio

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & ExhibitionsBlackpool, blackpool arts scene, Exhibition, inkden tattoo parlour, tea amantes

Our friends at the Tea Amantes tea room and art gallery are frequently featured in these pages for hosting a string of excellent art exhibitions. Now they are hosting a show to celebrate 20 years of their partner business, the Inkden Tattoo Studio. The studio first opened as the Dragons Den and was founded by Keith Butcher in the heart of Blackpool and quickly gained recognition and became one of the most renowned and respected tattoo studios in town. Over the past two decades, the studio has witnessed significant changes, one of which was the takeover by one of Keith's…

14 Apr

Exhibition: Structures by Kev Walsh

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsart photography, Blackpool, blackpool arts scene, digital photography, photography

Thursday 13th April evening, I finish work, boots on and trot down for the service 3 bus to The Hive, for this excellent exhibition from former Blackpool Gazette and Citizen photographer, Kev Walsh. On arrival a good crowd are viewing the pictures, framed in thin black boxes which contrast the images to good effect. These pictures have been taken over the last 18 months on Walsh's Fylde Coast walks between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries. His award-winning shot of the beached Riverdance ferry is the exception, being taken in 2008. All the images are brilliantly composed and executed with technical…

10 Apr

Photo essay: Blackpool’s South Promenade

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsblack and white photography, Blackpool, blackpool arts scene, blackpool promenade, blackpool south promenade, monochrome photography, rangefinder cameras, zorki 4

As anyone who's read my articles will know, I am a fan of retro-photographic equipment and materials and a stalwart of film-based monochrome photography. I'd fancied another 35mm camera that was, well, more expendable, for a while. On a trip to Manchester to buy film and art materials, I returned with a Soviet made Zorki 4 rangefinder camera. This camera is based on the Leica series with a focal plane shutter and is very simple. It does have a split image focusing, but no exposure metre; I have a hand-held metre to contend with that. The camera weighs a ton,…

27 Mar

Theatre Review: King Lear’s Fool’s Tale

David Simper0 CommentsTheatre, Dance & PerformanceBlackpool, blackpool arts scene, blackpool theatre, king lear, king lear's fool, old electric theatre, Theatre

Friday 24th March finds me once more on the service 3 bus to see this excellent one-person, King Lear focused, show at The Old Electric Theatre. Although I knew elements of this play - two nasty daughters, one nice, he goes mad, there's a storm - I've never seen or read it, so a quick search for a synopsis was necessary. The daughters' names often come up in the crossword. Gosh, a lot happens and a lot of it brutal. A small but select gathering was ushered up the stairs to a conveniently sized bar/cafe area above the main auditorium.…

13 Mar

Exhibition preview: Join the Dance

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsart exhibition, Blackpool, blackpool arts scene, oil painting, painting, silk painting

This excellent show is a joint enterprise between the Mrozowska family – Monika, Alicja and Hubert at The Hive on Church Street. I toddled down for a peek at this excellent work on the 2nd March 2023. The exhibition is built around a quote from self-titled 'philosophical entertainer', Alan Watts: "The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance". It was indeed time well spent to view this excellent work. As usual I am left jealous of this artistic virtuosity. Just the compositions would be beyond me. A…

27 Feb

Theatre review: Barely Visible

David Simper0 CommentsTheatre, Dance & PerformanceBlackpool, blackpool arts scene, dance, Fylde Coast, LGBT, the old electric

I wolf down a chip supper after work and catch my usual service 3 bus for my first visit to The Old Electric venue and a radical, one-woman dance show. On entering, I had no idea what to expect. Entering the stageless auditorium, I find myself on the front row of this intimate space – as a shy person, not necessarily good for me, but hey, I try and go with it. The only scenery was a metal disk with a protruding pole. Right on cue, choreographer and performer, Rowena Gander, appears and the show is on. It consists of…

30 Jan

Tempting Timber: wood carver, Ian Currie

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsarts and crafts, Blackpool, blackpool arts scene, carving, crafts, fine timbers, hand made, spoon carving, spoons, wood carving, woodcraft

Ian Currie's wooden carvings occupied another stand out stall at the Christmas markets back in December, covered with a host of hand made things, all smelling of lovely finishing oil. I had to discover the roots of this craft and approached Ian for an interview. So Ian, what was the initial spark that got you into making wooden products?Several years ago, I collected Japanese Netsuke after a lucky bid at an auction got me started. There are worlds in the intricate carving involved in these beautiful objects and over the years I gathered a small collection, which I love. Fast…

21 Dec

Exhibition: Acrylic Wonders by Peter Hughes

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsacrylic paintings, art exhibition, Blackpool, blackpool arts scene, painting, tea amantes

Monday 5th December, 2022 saw me brave the cold and take the service 3 bus to the ever welcoming Tea Amantes gallery for the latest in its art exhibition series, this time featuring Dr Peter Hughes who has produced a large body of work during the recent pandemic, its lock downs and the recent summer of 2022. The work is self-described as modern art influenced by Milton's poem Paradise Lost, the mythic symbolism of the tree of life and the tree of knowledge featuring heavily. I would agree that these are thought provoking, colourful and moving images. It was particularly…

25 Nov

Exhibition: Guggenhive 2022

David Simper0 CommentsVisual Arts & Exhibitionsart exhibition, Blackpool, blackpool arts scene, christmas market, guggenhive, the hive arts collective, the hive urban farm shop

I take the service 3 bus to join compadres at The Hive Urban Farm Shop on Church Street, Blackpool to enjoy this open exhibition of fine art work by excellent local artists, working under the umbrella of The Hive Arts Collective. The exhibition is on the cafe's ground floor with diners able to view the work while eating. A fine and varied selection of work is on offer. It must be said that the original works here would make great gifts for those of an art collecting temperament. I should declare an interest here, as I've got a piece on…