About

The event is free to enter, and open to all ages. Alongside the opening of the exhibition we will also have prints and cards for sale in our shop. Hot drinks and pastries will also be available. The exhibition will run for two weeks, ending on Saturday 16 September. Children are welcome to join in with our family activity guide, aimed at 5yrs+, materials included.

//About the Exhibition//
Rufus Newell and Zoe Spowage are both artists based in Leeds who make paintings, drawings and sculptures that often feature larger-than-life characters, loose narratives and a rich variety of colours. The exhibition features recent large and small-scale pieces that showcase their shared interests in gender, motifs and the playful act of painting.

Rufus layers, combines, and reworks his paintings to create textured images that are thick with energetic gestures and vivid focus points. In the past he has explored Greek statues and mythology as a means to explore maleness, and his paintings and drawings continue to feature vessels, tables and busts. The smaller works in this show present the viewer with empty rooms, flattened into shape and pattern. Rufus focuses not only on the subject of the painting but how it is made, often-employing oil bars and thick chalk pastels to build up and exaggerate the surface of a painting.

Zoe’s creates bold and expressive paintings focusing on the female form, often inspired by fashion advertising, Japanese comics and theatre design. Hairstyles, hats and high heels feature prominently in Zoe’s recent paintings, where she often uses text to create humour and characters to create mood. Curves and sharp angles take centre stage in her images, brought to life in pastel hues and brash neon tones, creating paintings that are both flamboyant and sensual.

//About Modern Painters, New Decorators//
Modern Painters, New Decorators is a new not-for-profit art organisation running projects and building community in Loughborough, East Midlands. We run a monthly programme of art related activities including exhibitions, talks, events, markets and workshops with the aim of bringing colour to Loughborough and supporting and developing opportunities for regional artists. We are currently funded through donations from the general public.

You can find us at Modern Painters, New Decorators, Unit 33, Carillon Court Shopping Centre, Loughborough, LE11 3XA. You can also search for us on Facebook and Instagram @mpndprojects.

Please email mpndprojects@gmail.com for more information or if you would like to donate to the project.

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