Mike Gandy Mike Thody Richenda Riches Robert Downie Robert Dunster Sarah Bays Su Summers Tracy Myers
Alison Varley
Trained at Brighton Art College and the Royal College of Art Alison set up her studio workshop in Norfolk in 1980. Her work has been shown widely in galleries and exhibitions in London and across the country. Initially specialising in techniques of metal inlay she now works primarily in silver and gold with an emphasis on exploring many different characteristics that can be found within the metals and their juxtaposition. The use of strong lines and contrasting textures is a feature of her work. She is happy to work to commission both large and small and to discuss design ideas within the framework of her style. Her most recent major commission was to make a carved and engraved finial in silver and gold in the form of the Norfolk Coat of Arms for the top of the Under Sheriff of Norfolk's wand.
Individually-designed pieces combining silver and 9-carat gold with a particular emphasis on line and contrasting textures - from £25 to £200
TBA
Ann Udale
During my working life spent in the South West of London, I studied pottery at the Richmond College of Art for a number of years. Since my retirement to North Norfolk, I have taken up painting and sketching, attending art classes and day courses. My interests extend to pottery, calligraphy, watercolour, charcoal and, most recently, creating miniatures using mixed media enhanced with fine embroidery.
1/538
Bluebell Wood
Embroidered Picture
28h x 23w
£50
1/539
Evening Star
Embroidered Picture
28h x 33w
£45
1/537
Fields
Embroidered Picture
22h x 17w
£30
1/536
Flowers and Trees
Embroidered Picture
21h x 17w
£35
1/541
Mountains
Embroidered Picture
23h x 28w
£40
1/540
Pond
Embroidered Picture
27h x 22w
£40
1/535
Sunflowers
Embroidered Picture
23h x 29w
£40
1/684
Three Flowerpots
Embroidered Picture
23h x 23w
£40
Anne‑Marie Wills‑Wilson
I am a self-taught pet and wildlife artist living in the beautiful North Norfolk countryside totally surrounded by the wildlife that I adore. I've always been dotty about animals and, over the years, have been owned by lots of pets: dogs, cats, budgies, rabbits, mice, chickens, horses and even the odd frog or two!! When I work I pay a lot of attention to fine detail which gives a natural and lifelike appearance to my portraits. The greatest compliment that I can receive about my art is if someone says that they can almost hear the animal breathing or that the fur looks so real that they want to run their fingers through it. I don't just want to paint a beautiful animal, I also want to capture its personality too. Each portrait takes many hours of work and I use the highest quality pastel pencils, soft pastel sticks and paper to achieve the best results.
I am a Norfolk bred wildlife artist, living in Cromer, specialising in mostly bird subjects in acrylic; pencil and ink; and watercolour. Inspiration for my work comes from birdwatching, I am a self-confessed Larophile (a seagull fanatic!), and my passion for and experiences with the natural world. From a young age I was interested in birds and art, I later went on to spend a career spanning nearly thirty years working in nature conservation management for bodies such as National Trust; RSPB; Broads Authority; and English Nature. My many (I have a few!) artistic influences include Roland Green; Keith Shackleton; Robert Gilmore; Jason Partner; Lars Jonnson; Chris Rose; Keith Brockie; and Terrence James Bond. In 2011, I took voluntary redundancy from Natural England, due to ill health, and subsequently started life as a Wildlife Artist.
20/613
Arctic Tern on boat
Acrylic on Board
30h x 41w
£120
20/612
Looking out to sea
Acrylic on Board
20h x 41w
£120
20/614
Pied Avocet flying group
Acrylic on Board
41h x 30w
£120
20/611
Atlantic Puffin couple
Acrylic on Canvas
13h x 18w
£30
20/607
Blending-in Bittern
Acrylic on Canvas
20h x 61w
£120
20/610
Kingfisher
Acrylic on Canvas
20h x 25w
£60
20/606
Pied Avocet pair snoozing
Acrylic on Canvas
20h x 25w
£60
20/608
Pied Avocet wading through rushes
Acrylic on Canvas
25h x 20w
£60
20/609
Puffins on the rocks
Acrylic on Canvas
20h x 25w
£60
Chris Carrick
Chris discovered the possibilities of art glass rather late on in her life. She began with leaded windows and has had several commissions, particularly for skylights. Her main interest now is kiln work, and she is looking forward to years of experimentation with her new kiln. Chris is a member of the Contemporary Glass Society.
72/691
Bowl
Fused Glass
11h x 11w
£20
72/687
Dish - Large
Fused Glass
19h x 19w
£35
72/692
Dish - Small
Fused Glass
12h x 12w
£12
72/696
Flower Tile
Fused Glass
13h x 13w
£10
72/693
Lion Dish
Fused Glass
10h x 10w
£12
Chris Hann
My current work is an amalgamation of workbook drawings, memory, photographic prompts, Hepworth's sculptures, collage, as well as influences from some of the St Ives artists. Some pieces start with the placing of two beer mats on a board. The beer mats determine to some extent what the composition might be, although references to drawings of boats and their interiors, Hepworth's work and photographs play a part, as well as memories of harbours, beaches and coastlines. I use colour to open up space or close it down, or to project certain shapes from the surface. The beer mats are subsumed into the overall scheme of the work. Colour is applied in thin layers to build up depth as well as history, and I attempt to compose works that have strong relationships of colour, form and shape, so things change as the work progresses. All my work comes from observation and drawing is the foundation of my practice.
67/550
Doom Bar
Mixed Media
26h x 45w
£250
67/551
Penrith
Mixed Media
40h x 60w
£250
67/549
Porthgwidden
Mixed Media
23h x 23w
£120
67/554
Divided Forms
Oil and Collage
33h x 44w
£250
67/553
Gap
Oil and Collage
33h x 44w
£250
67/552
Marine
Oil and Collage
33h x 44w
£250
Chris White
Chris has had no formal art training although excelled in art and technical drawing. He trained as a mechanic servicing all kinds of office machinery working in the City of London. Later he turned his attention to the electrical retail trade. He moved to Norfolk in 1991 to run his own grocery/newsagent shop and post office. After ten years he sold on this business to pursue his love of glass crafting. As a trained and qualified adult education tutor he has seen many of his students take up this fascinating and rewarding craft all producing excellent work. Chris exhibits his work with the National Trust and numerous other private gardens. He exhibits his work every year as part of the North Norfolk Open Studios event.
Returning to art was my millennium promise to myself. Whilst working as a gardener I was initially inspired to capture the sense of being up close to a flower, in a botanical style. Recently, however, I have turned to other aspects of nature - shells, butterflies, animals and fungi - but particularly birds, following a long-standing interest. I paint in high detail, in watercolour. Using many layers I feel I can achieve a vibrancy of colour with a transparency that allows other colours to show through. Please visit my website to see more of my work.
I have recently moved from South to North Norfolk and am lucky enough to have found a studio in Slippery Bottoms Boatyard overlooking Womack Water in Ludham. The views are stunning but the temptation is to gaze out of the window at the marshes, boats, water, sunsets and endless array of wildlife! My artwork currently is mostly in acrylic or pastel, and is inspired by the countryside and rambles along the rivers and coast. Paintings vary from portrayal of recognisable subject matter to fairly abstract representation with colour exaggerated or invented. I also create abstract textural collages sometimes in grid format, where my aim is to achieve a balance between colour and texture. My paintings are in private collections in the UK, USA, Australia, Ireland, Canada, Germany, France and Greece.
71/671
Beneath the Surface
Acrylic on Paper
45h x 45w
£75
71/670
Sunny Riverbank
Acrylic on Paper
45h x 50w
£75
71/667
A Breeze on the Heath
Pastel on Board
50h x 50w
£95
71/669
Sunny Reed Dyke
Pastel on Board
40h x 40w
£60
Doreen Hebron
Once upon a time, many years ago, and a long way from here - I graduated from the much loved and ill-fated Glasgow School of Art. I have toiled gainfully as a graphic designer and illustrator ever since those halcyon days. Now, however, I find myself trawling back to the foundation years trying to re-discover the compulsion to paint that got me to GSA in the first place and helped me through the duration of the course albeit with the advice of one of my eminent tutors ringing temptingly in my ears - 'Try having a whisky before coming into the painting class Miss S'.
After a lifetime spent teaching Art to children in London, I've returned to Norfolk and, now, in retirement, I am fulfilling a lifelong ambition to paint. Norfolk, with its myriad of wonderful land and seascapes enthrall me, as do my feline friends. Using acrylic, ink and paint is my preferred medium. What a wonderful life!
12/570
Sheringham
Acrylic
41h x 51w
£75
12/569
Dance Trio
Acrylic Ink
48h x 56w
£85
12/567
Field of Rape Seed
Acrylic Ink
41h x 54w
£80
12/566
Sunset in North Norfolk
Acrylic Ink
56h x 56w
£95
12/568
Sunrise
Acrylic Ink and Paint
48h x 56w
£80
Gillian Francis
Gillian studied an Art Foundation at Cambridge CCAT, specialising in Graphic Illustration, Textiles and Ceramics. At Croydon College she studied Design Ceramics at HND Level and developed her sculptural ceramics work further at Portsmouth Polytechnic in a BH Honours in Fine Art Sculpture. After returning to Cambridge CCAT to study a Diploma for Artists working in Secondary schools, she began a residency at Norwich School where she taught Fine Art, Product Design, Ceramics and Sculpture. As her conviction for the importance of arts education in schools developed, she completed her teacher training at Cambridge University. During her part time teaching career, Gillian developed work in film, theatre and Live Action Role Play, creating scenery, environments, props, special effects make up and costume. Her passion for Textiles led her to become Head of Art Textiles at Wymondham High Academy, where she pushed forwards a broad range of both fine art and technology based practices for her students to explore. Whilst studying an MA in Textile Design at NUA, Gillian developed original processes for combining graphic design, devoré and laser cutting to create rich geometrical surface treatments. Her current work explores aspects of political history through a range of techniques and aesthetics.
70/695
A Confusion of Coppers
Digital Print
25h x 30w
£75
70/665
Go Easy, Step Lightly, Stay Free
Digital Print
25h x 30w
£75
Graham High
My earliest creative excitement was the discovery of paint. Since then I have never abandoned painting, but, due to following my career in the film industry, I have of necessity produced work in short intensive bursts. My output from different periods exhibits a continual moving on from one set of concerns and styles to another. I have, however, always aimed to produce a consistent body of work in each recognisable stylistic period in order to exhibit in one-person shows, which I have done intermittently over the years both in Britain and internationally.
I was born in Shetland and studied for my degree in Fine Art at Falmouth Art School, Cornwall. I taught in Norfolk for a few years and now work full-time as an artist, painting and making prints. I now live in Norfolk and much of my work is based on the places where I have lived. My paintings often evolve through a process of working quite intuitively relying on memory, photographs or minimal sketches. This allows me to use paint in abstract ways, preferring to suggest or emphasize certain things, rather than literally describe them. I like to use oil paint, collage and sometimes acrylic.
I have been painting for many years as an amateur, experimenting in many different mediums. Having lived in Lincolnshire for many years I was inspired by the fabulous skies, the dawns and sunsets. Watercolours were ideal for this, which I mainly concentrate on now. Now, enjoying most of my time in North Norfolk I love the variety of light, venues and charm of the Norfolk landscapes. I just love being in the landscape and do virtually no studio work. You can see more of my work on my website.
Jane has been an active potter for about thirty years, supplying local galleries and other retail outlets. Although Jane makes functional stoneware, she is especially fascinated by the drama and spontaneity of the Japanese Raku technique of ceramics, which represents a significant proportion of her decorative work. She currently concentrates on making small-batch production of tableware in stoneware and porcelain and creating individual pieces, taking inspiration from anything and everything around her - from textile surface design to the forms of ancient and contemporary ceramics and is especially influenced by the surrounding landscape and East Anglian coastline. Examples of more work can be seen on her website.
I worked as a Librarian, gift shop proprietor, Post Office worker and full-time carer. Now retired and, when time allows, following my interests which are playing the piano, walking in our lovely Norfolk countryside and on the coast and pursuing my artistic endeavours. Currently my main interest in that direction is creating pencil drawings of those most difficult of creatures to draw, namely cats, but I also work on some still life subjects and flower drawings.
31/619
A Comfy Seat
Pencil
17h x 22w
£20
31/618
BiBi
Pencil
17h x 22w
£20
31/616
Cleo
Pencil
17h x 22w
£20
31/620
Concentration
Pencil
22h x 17w
£20
31/617
From the Sea
Pencil
17h x 22w
£20
31/615
Foxgloves
Watercolour
22h x 17w
£15
Janice Wolf
I am partially self taught but have also attended The Academy of Arts in Laren, The Netherlands, where I received tuition from the Dutch sculptor Jos Oosterhout. I have lived in Norfolk for three years and as I do not have the good fortune yet of owning my own studio I have gone back to working in clay and am experimenting with different medias as this enables me to work from home on the kitchen table! I am at present also experimenting in glazing. My real passion is sculpting in wood which somehow tend to be large pieces and mostly organic forms. I get my inspiration from the garden or by observation during my many nature walks. These I sculpt by hand as I feel I lose contact with the wood when using electric tools.
57/688
Birds of a Feather
Fired Clay on a Branch
£125
57/690
Fantasy Cow Dish
Glazed Ceramic
10h x 12w x 18d
£95
57/689
Fantasy Peacock Dish
Glazed Ceramic
19h x 20w x 20d
£135
57/668
Owl on the Prowl!
Wood
30h x 18w
£145
Karen Pearson
Karen has a diploma in Design Ceramics at the Royal Forest of Dean College and a BA Honours in Visual Arts from Falmouth University. Karen has a home pottery studio and prior to this worked as a potter and pottery teacher.
58/646
A Selection of Ceramics
TBA
Keri Lowe
I have always made something, ever since I was a child. I enjoy the freedom of flitting from one medium to another and love to try everything new. My passions are working with clay, felt and textiles and papier-mache but that may be because there's other things I haven't tried yet! I don't really have inspired ideas... I just have to fulfill urges which is why there never seems to be a thread to anything I do.
34/654
Gordon - Giraffe Head
Faux Taxidermy Papier Mache
46h x 36w x 45d
£200
34/655
Steve - Swan Head
Faux Taxidermy Papier Mache
50h x 20w x 25d
£90
34/656
Large Button Moon
Part-Glazed Stoneware Candle Holder
35h x 27w x 27d
£120
34/657
Medium Button Moon
Part-Glazed Stoneware Candle Holder
23h x 19w x 19d
£80
34/703
Coastal View
Wet and Needle-Felted Picture
43h x 53w
£150
34/702
From the Sea
Wet and Needle-Felted Picture
66h x 53w
£245
Krys Leach
Born in Sydney but raised in London, I was taught by Kyffin Williams RA before attending Norwich School of Art. Although painting since childhood, I've exhibited professionally since 1996 and shown all over England and parts of the Irish Republic. Although I'm best known for my landscapes and maritime subjects, I'm gaining a reputation for collectable figure work. Distinctive for their rich colour and evocative use of light, my images often suggest hidden narratives or unguarded moments. Varying in size between several feet and several inches, my work is held in a number of East Anglian Hospitals and private collections around the world.
3/683
Algarve Fisher
Oil & acrylic on canvas board
£60
3/681
The Way to Wells I
Oil & acrylic on canvas board
£125
3/682
The Way to Wells III
Oil & acrylic on canvas board
£125
3/666
A Southern Light
Oil & acrylic on stretched canvas
£245
3/680
Broken Tether
Oil, acrylic & marble dust on canvas board
£175
Lesley Ash
Lesley has been making figurative sculpture in cold-cast metals for over 12 years. She works them in clay, before making a mould and casting them in either bronze, brass, iron or copper. Inspired by her grandchildren, her larger work documents the children's development. She also makes animals, sometimes commissioned by their owners but often because a particular dog or creature catches her eye. All the cold-cast figures are outdoor sculpture and are left outdoors all winter with no ill effects.
I have always loved art: my mum said I started painting before I started walking! I have always lived in Norfolk and love every part of Norfolk life, this is where my inspiration comes from.
73/704
A Sunflower Sun
Linocut
38h x 49w
£110
73/705
A Teaselled Web
Linocut
36h x 37w
£100
73/706
Nearly Time for a Nap
Linocut
31h x 38w
£95
73/707
Spring Hare
Linocut
51h x 40w
£110
Merry Hart
I am self taught and have been painting for only a few years mainly in oil but I also love pastels and have dabbled with acrylics. Seascapes and landscapes are my favourite subjects and occasionally a wild animal or two. Returning to Sheringham after living here as a child has been a delight. It has made me determined to get outside and paint on the beach and in the countryside as well as from photos and from my imagination.
53/563
Meltdown on the Underground
Mixed Media
49h x 64w
£95
53/564
Millie's Sunflowers
Oil
41h x 51w
£75
53/562
Moonlit Shore (after Ivan Aivazovsky 1817-1900)
Oil
60h x 85w
£205
53/565
Rage
Oil
66h x 48w
£75
53/697
Autumn by the River
Pastel
33h x 41w
£75
53/698
Cornwall Cove
Pastel
33h x 41w
£75
53/699
Stange Light
Pastel
33h x 41w
£75
Mike Gandy
I started to paint when I was training to be a nurse. I have used watercolour, but now prefer oil or acrylic and tend to use ideas from places visited, or imagined.
59/634
Ice Cold Blue
Acrylic (Print)
40h x 50w
£95
59/635
Kitchen Picture
Watercolour
55h x 50w
£150
Mike Thody
Since early childhood art and design have been part of my life. After retiring early from my career as a building surveyor, I chose to take a degree in fine art (painting and sculpture) at Hertfordshire University. In 2002 we moved to North Norfolk and I was lucky to have a garden studio to continue my work painting in oils, watercolour and pastels and making sculpture. In 2003 I started making sculpture in Holt Country Park using found materials and timber supplied by North Norfolk District Council. In 2008 I started a small charcoal drawing class in Hempstead at the village hall to inspire new artists. Having concentrated on watercolour painting inspired by North-Norfolk churches, country side, sea and boats for the last few years, my current work explores the use of charcoal and pastel.
16/700
Coffee & Gossip
Pastel
85h x 65w
£100
16/573
Mare's Tails and Sea Mist, Salthouse
Pastel
65h x 85w
£100
16/574
Mid Winter Willows, Wiveton
Pastel
65h x 85w
£200
16/571
Prisoner of the Marsh
Pastel
65h x 85w
£200
16/701
Salthouse Church
Pastel
85h x 65w
£100
16/572
The Street, Hempstead
Pastel
65h x 85w
£200
Richenda Riches
Richenda is a Fine Artist and Teacher in a local school for children with complex special needs. Richenda completed an MA in Fine Art at the Norwich University College of the Arts in 2012 and was awarded the Bishop of Norwich's Art Prize in the same year. She works on private commissions alongside her teaching.
69/601
Mary and Christ
Etching
43h x 50w
£60
69/600
Madonna and Child (after Bellini's Madonna)
Monoprint
49h x 46w
£60
Robert Downie
I began making art as a child and now feel I have come almost full circle. In my work I seek to simplify local land and seascapes until they become classic templates for our childhood memories, allowing each and every viewer to draw out their own story from the image. I seek only to recall the simplicity of our childlike state in forms and structures sometimes reminiscent of the classic beach postcard or fairytale book illustration, all certainly from a more innocent age. A common thread throughout my work is telling of the sense of magic, of wonder and awe in everyday life, then leaving it to the viewer to weave their own tale around the image. Go to my web site to see more of my work.
I am a Potter by inclination, but an engineer by training, from a family with a tradition of craftsmanship in wood and metal, though from an engineering rather than artistic perspective. My interest in hand-made ceramics goes back to childhood, having been introduced to the tradition during family holidays in Cornwall. I have been producing ceramics for over 20 years, currently from a private studio in West Beckham, Norfolk. My main interest is in functional stoneware, with the aim of producing useable pots that 'sit in the hand' and rely on form, texture and the gestural application of glazes rather than explicit decoration. My glazes are influenced by the Anglo-Japanese tradition, and are intended to reflect the changing effects of light on water, foliage and landscape by the use of deep glazes that are affected by ambient lighting. Since moving to Norfolk I have been using local materials, particularly ash from thatching reeds, investigating how these can be used in a way that replicates the chemistry involved in wood firing.
I am a printmaker living in Norwich producing prints from a small etching press on a tea trolley in the corner of my dining room. I find my inspiration in my surroundings: the Norfolk countryside, its wildlife, birds, farm animals and coast. I am often inspired by my morning dog walks, the pattern of light through the trees and the shadows cast by the morning sun and of course holidays provide further sources of inspiration in new surroundings. Recently I have found myself increasingly drawn to the immediacy of monoprinting. I find myself working in a slightly more abstract way taking a remembered landscape as a starting point and adapting the image as I go along.
A retirement promise was to learn something new. It turned out to be more than one 'something', starting with learning to play the harp, and then by learning to work with glass. Both have been a challenge, but immensely satisfying. I love the natural world and my work in glass usually reflects this.
42/544
Butterfly
Stained Glass
4h x 7w
£10
42/642
Japanese Flowers
Stained Glass
20h x 20w
£85
42/542
Puffin by the Sea
Stained Glass
22h x 30w
£110
42/543
Snowdrop
Stained Glass
16h x 16w
£50
42/694
Yacht on the Bure
Stained Glass
22h x 22w
£85
Tracy Myers
Tracy Myers went to St Albans College of Art and Design in the late 70s, where she fell in love with printmaking. She had a varied and successful career in TV production, while continuing to paint, draw and decorate furniture. Moving to Norfolk in the mid 90s with her husband Krys Leach enabled her finally to set up a studio space of her own and to return to printmaking. She creates small limited-edition hand-made prints on her beloved etching press - which she named Melrose, after the original owner. Subjects are varied, mainly based on photographs and drawings from her travels. She also produces graphic work created within the computer, which are professionally printed - labeled photomontage when she breaks down the photo into layers or composes a piece from multiple images; altered image refers to a photo which has been heavily altered using digital filters.
