Susan Macarthur

&  

Rachel Sargent

May 2004

Susan Macarthur

Rachel Sargent

Having Susan's work here in Gillingham is a real privilege. Although she is locally based - just over the border in Wiltshire - her work didn't come to our attention until earlier this year when she exhibited at The Mall Galleries in London at the Society of Designer Craftsmen show (which was the first London exhibition for The Slade Centre's  own Anne Hitchcock ).

Her work has to be seen to be believed. Generally they are stitched and painted textiles. The piece (above left): 'Nude male resting on a glass plinth' is 200cm by 130cm (OK - over 6ft tall) and was literally stopping people in their tracks at the London show.

Most of the work on show during DAW 2004 is on a smaller more accessible scale, but with the same amazing feel to it.

Susan has a life drawing and painting background. She took a BA in Art in California, and then City & Guilds I and II in textiles. Her work uses a combination of fabric, paper, acrylic paint, charcoal, fabric dyes and stitch. She has exhibited and sold throughout the UK.

Rachel Sargent is based in Shaftesbury, and has exhibited at The Slade Centre before during Dorset Art Weeks 2002 and the 'Out of the Woods' exhibition, but this is her first exhibition here as a lead artist.

If anyone locally deserves the 'multi-talented' epithet beloved of the BVM's Fanny Charles, then it is Rachel. She manages several parallel creative careers with clients often blissfully unaware of the full range of her talents. We are just pleased that she still finds time to create the multi-media landscapes that we love, and that grace the walls of many of her local admirers.

The piece above is  'Late Afternoon' (mixed media 10" x 10").

Rachel did her BA at Roehampton, and has exhibited throughout the south west, and in London, Bristol and Winchester. She is a member of Sherborne Contemporary Artists.

The exhibition ran from
Saturday 29th May through to Sunday 13th June