G R A E M E B L A C K
TRUNK SHOW III BLACK ON WHITE
G R A E M E B L A C K
Dedicated to my father, Ernest James Brand Black.1932-2023. Always supportive and enthusiastic. A man of few words that spoke volumes.
Low wood #08 and Low wood #09
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Graeme in his Yorkshire studio.
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TRUNK SHOW III. Black on white
Winter on the bitter cold, windswept Yorkshire moorland is tough. Tougher still for an artist whose inspiration comes from a rapt connection to nature that he feeds by walking in the woods. Last year, though, the season’s short days and weak light inspired Graeme to try something new: simple, black and white studies of the leafless sections of trunk and branch he could see from inside, between the sash bars of the windows in his 18th-century home. ‘You’re never seeing the tree completely,’ he explains. ‘It’s split up, dissected. It began as an exercise: four bits of paper to represent the panes, tracing the stark shapes of the branches and the way they moved around the composition – and just black oil paint on raw canvas or ink on handmade paper.’ Before long, these experimental sketches grew into larger pieces, then a substantial body of work that will christen a new gallery space in the grounds of the Grade II listed farmhouse near Hawes that Graeme and his partner, the interior designer Jonathan Reed, have been restoring since 2017. Thorns Gallery is named for the original farm and situated in one of several former barns and outbuildings on the site that the pair have slowly been converting – Graeme’s studio, now waterproofed, whitewashed and heated, was once the cowshed. Old thorn trees surround the Gallery and Graeme and Jonathan have planted more along a bank behind. Visitors will also be greeted by a sprawling mosaic of a hawthorn by local artist Ruth Wilkinson that extends from the doorway into the room. Picturing the life of the tree over four seasons, its knotted brown-grey branches hide a flight of berry-eating birds, such as the fieldfare, finch and redwing. The building is neat and airy, with a large skylight. In the summer months, when the meadow beyond the Gallery is a yellow haze of wild flowers, its two glass walls can be opened up on both sides. The exhibition marks the soft launch of the space, which will open fully in spring 2024. Graeme and Jonathan envisage it as ‘a type of creative hub to which we can invite other artists, put on digital as well as physical exhibitions, or run a two or three-day pop-up restaurant [the site also has a kitchen]. A place where we can try things out.’ Working in black and white has been a transformative experience for Graeme, who is known for large-scale oil paintings that transmit the flood of colours in a piece of bark via thousands of daubs and scrapes of the palette knife. ‘When you take away colour, you have to create form in a different way,’ he says. ‘Black and white intensifies form, and the way light and dark play out across the trunks. You see much more clearly how they differentiate from one or other. That no tree trunk is the same.’ He begins each picture by isolating the form of the branch or trunk, then applies black paint to create texture and a sense of three dimensionality. A scattering of finer brush strokes brings the drawings a lightness. The speed at which he is able to create these new compositions – compared to the laborious process of painting in oils – has been enthralling. As has the discovery of new handmade papers: heavy coarse watercolour stock that he buys in rolls and lays out in huge sheets on his studio floor. Some are three metres long. ‘The way it works, the way that ink reacts on the surface – you’re creating form in water. I love the surprises you get.’ Trunk Show 3 is at Thorns Gallery Nov 16 - Dec 7 2023. Graeme Black
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Studio. Bosco III. Set of six. Ink on hand made watercolour paper. 1.20mt by 2.42mt. £9,800 + vat.
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Studio. Bosco I. Ink on watercolour paper. 1.20mt by 1.20mt
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Low wood #08. Oil paint on linen. 44cm by 64cm. Oak frame. £2,600 + vat.
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Low wood #09. Oil paint on linen. 44cm by 64cm. Oak frame. £2,600 + vat.
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Bosco II. Quadritych. Ink on handmade watercolour paper. 145cm by 185cm. £6,900 + vat.
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Woodend bark #17. Ink and acrylic on hand made paper. 71cm by 92cm. Oak frame. £1,800 + vat.
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Woodend bark #18. Ink and acrylic on handmade watercolour paper. 71cm by 92cm. Oak frame. £1,800 + vat
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Low wood #11. Oil paint on linen. 63cm by 88cm. Oak frame. Sold.
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Low wood #12. Ink and acrylic on watercolour paper. 1.28mt by 2.60mt. Oak frame. £5,600 + vat
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Bosco I detail. Ink on watercolour paper. Bosco II. In situ. Ink on handmade watercolour paper. 1.45mt by 1.85mt. Cherry with black lacquer finish. £6,900 + vat.
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Low wood #13. Oil paint on linen with gold gilding. 53cm by 78cm. Oak frame. £3,400 + vat. Low wood #14. Oil paint on linen. 55cm by 80cm. Oak frame. £3,400 + vat.
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Bosco II detail. Ink on hand made watercolour paper.
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Low wood #15. Oil paint on linen with gold gilding. 70cm by 115cm. Oak frame. £4,800 + vat.
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Woodend bark #16. Ink and acrylic on hand made watercolour paper. 71cm by 92cm. Oak frame. £1,800 + vat. Low wood #16. Oil paint on linen. 64cm by 64cm. Oak frame. £2,800 + vat.
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Woodend bark #19. Ink and acrylic on hand made watercolour paper. 71cm by 92cm. Oak frame. £1,800 + vat. Low wood #17. Ink and acrylic on watercolour paper. 1.28mt by 2.60mt. Oak frame. £5,600 + vat.
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Woodend charcoal I. Acrylic and charcoal drawing on coloured board. 79cm by 105cm. Oak frame. £1,800 + vat. Woodend charcoal IV. Acrylic and charcoal drawing on coloured board. 79cm by 105cm. Oak frame. £1,800 + vat.
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Woodend bark #15. Diptych. Ink and acrylic on hand made watercolour paper. Each 48cm by 56cm. Oak frame. Sold.
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Bosco III detail. Ink on hand made watercolour paper. Bosco III. Set of 6. Ink on hand made watercolour paper. 1.20mt by 2.42mt. Metal frame with oak veneer. £9,800 + vat.
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Thorn tree #01. Acrylic and charcoal drawing on watercolour paper. 1.30mt by 1.30mt. Oak frame. £2,400 + vat.
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Thorn branches at Thorns Gallery - Semerwater.
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Enquiries at info@graemeblack.com Website - Graeme Black.com Instagram - Graeme Black72 Photography at Thorns Gallery - Semerwater by Whitfield Benson.
THORNS GALLERY - SEMERWATER
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