A new pop-up gallery at Houghton Hall showcases the work of almost 50 East Anglian artists and makers
There may not be a big headline-grabber of an art installation on show at Houghton Hall this year – at least not yet – but there is still a very good reason for art-lovers to head to the great estate in its 300th year.
Because inside the handsome setting of the former stable block is Contemporary & Country’s new pop-up show, Avant Gardeners, curated by partners Paul Vater and Paul Barratt, which celebrates the shared space of gardening and art.
“A lot of artists are very keen gardeners, so it is one of those things that goes hand in hand with art – cooking is another thing. A lot of artists are good cooks,” says Paul Barratt. He jokes that in contemporary art terms there is no longer any such thing as avant-garde but the name came about because “it just seemed like a corny way of hanging the whole thing from a convenient hook!”
Inspiration also came from a beautiful Norfolk garden book, says Paul Vater. “We got hold of a book published by the Norfolk Gardens Trust called Enticing Paths: A Treasury of Norfolk Gardens and Gardening,” he says. “it's edited, and some of the essays are written by, Roger Last, who owns a garden at Corpusty Mill and is a garden designer.
“The book might be expected to be just about gardens and planting and the usual stuff but what is interesting is that a lot of the essays are about all the stuff behind what makes a great garden. It talks about the architecture of the garden, the collecting of plants, the use of water and it brought to mind how artists work.
“They often will think outside the box and look slightly left-field at solving a problem and the materials they use are quite interesting in the way they are used. They’re very much about the place where they live and work and the techniques they use are quite intriguing.”
He’s not wrong. For example one of the many striking pieces on show is a large piece by Norwich artist Maria Pavledis, an ethereal image of a moth which she has created by holding a piece a paper above her head, holding a lit candle beneath and tracing the shapes in the soot from the flame.
The show features work from a wide range of artists and makers, from creatives in their 20s up to one who is 88, and covers many different media. “The items by established artists tend to be more expensive,” says Paul Vater, “but we always put things here which are affordable and at realistic price points.”
They show crafts alongside contemporary arts because so many people do both, says Paul Barratt, which broadens the appeal.
His working background included spells abroad and at high-end ‘white box’ galleries - “the first one I worked in had no prices on anything!” but he is very happy to do the reverse with C&C. “We don’t want to create a bazaar but it just needs to have a bit more of a coherent cross-section of what is being made at the moment rather than being specialist.”
A tour of Avant Gardeners reveals the delightful blend of the works, both inside the stables and outside. Indoors there is tactile pottery, photographic works, paintings, drawing and prints, objects for the home and sculptural pieces.
Around 50 East Anglian artists and makers are represented, including artists like Colin Self and Kate Giles, and there are mesmerising kinetic works by Andrew Jones in the formal gardens, all in a spectacular, but unintimidating, setting.
There may be no blockbuster on show but if you enjoy contemporary work which won’t necessarily empty your bank account you will enjoy an afternoon at Houghton.
Avant Gardeners runs to September 25; the curators are also fundraising for the Vasseur Baltic Artists Award, established in memory of the late Isabel Vasseur, a champion of contemporary work who lived in Aylsham. More at contemporaryandcountry.com
