Discover work from leading artists at local venues

St John Street Gallery

‘Startled’ is the title of Alyson Telfer’s solo exhibition at Ashbourne’s St John Street Gallery & Café. Essex-born Alyson lives in Barnoldswick, Yorkshire, and describes her art as records of, ‘glimpses of ordinary things that suddenly seemed extraordinary to me.’ She says, ‘When I try to describe that moment later through painting or drawing, I am aiming to evoke both the visual and sensory impact of that moment. It is important that my pictures record my memories, and aren’t just a copy of a place or object. I want to give a sense of my emotional response at the time along with the physical sense of being there.’

The gallery is open Tue-Sat 9.30am-5pm, Sun 10am-4pm. Alyson’s exhibition runs from 26th April-17th May, with a private view on 25th April, 4-8pm. St John Street Gallery is also running a Lewis Noble Painting Workshop on 12th and 13th May and Wendy Darker’s ‘Paint a Cow’ Workshop on 20th May.

Derwent Gallery

From 3rd May, the Grindleford gallery is staging an exciting combined exhibition of Peak District photography by Robin Ashmore and paintings in acrylic by Janet Bassindale.

The artists have approached the Peak landscape theme from completely different angles. Janet sketches from a vantage point above the view to capture rooftops and dwellings set into the landscape and then returns to her studio in Sheffield to transfer them onto canvas in vivid colour. Robin’s photographs are taken from a closer viewpoint. Hidden within the landscape are countless small images found in rocks, walls, trees and even the earth. Robin focuses his camera on these details, then mounts and frames them in triptych form. Both Janet and Robin will be at the gallery as part of the Open Arts bank holiday weekend from 24th to 26th May. Derwent Gallery is open Wed-Sat 10-5, Sun 10-4.

Ingleby Gallery

Leading artist Steven Mcloughlin makes a welcome return to Ingleby, near Melbourne, from 18th May to 1st June. Steven works primarily in oils, developing the paintings on location and completing them in his studio. The British coastline and countryside has been his inspiration for many years, taking him from his home county of Derbyshire to Norfolk and Cornwall. He says, ‘I try to captivate the mood of a scene, often through weather or light and its effect on the surroundings. I like to have a narrative running through some of my paintings, letting the viewer put themselves into the scene.

Derby Cathedral Centre

‘My Village’ is the title of Kamal Koria’s exhibition in the Cathedral Centre on Irongate, Derby. The paintings of Leicester-based Kamil reflect his childhood memories in Gujerat. He came to the UK as a young man and made his reputation as a designer of Diwali cards, wedding invitations and Bhangra CD covers. A recent graduate of C N College of Fine Arts, Ahmedabad and now nearing retirement, he is creating a portfolio of work of his original homeland in a distinctive contemporary style. The exhibition runs from 1st to 31st May, 9- 5, Mon to Sat, closed Bank Hols.

Derwent Art Group

Members of the art group based in Derby’s Derwent and Chaddesden neighbourhood are staging a one day exhibition at the Methodist Church Hall on Mayfield Road, Chaddesden, on 10th May, 10am to 2pm.

Peak District Artisans’ Barnstorming Quartet

Peak District Artisans’ members Michéla Griffith, Janet Mayled, Sue Prince and Cheryl Wilbraham have joined forces for the annual Derbyshire Open Arts (DOA) event from 24th to 26th May. The artists are taking over the picturesque Haybarn at Beechenhill Farm, near Ilam, from 10.30am to 5pm each day – offering a good morning coffee and afternoon tea stop. It promises to be a vibrant and eclectic selection of work comprising mixed media images, narrative folk art, botanical paintings and fine art photography. DOA veteran Cheryl said, ‘Derbyshire Open Arts is a great way of sharing what you do and some of the ideas and processes that are entailed in producing a work of art with other people.’

For details visit www.peakdistrictartisans.co.uk or for a DOA 2014 brochure go to www.derbyshireopenarts.co.uk.