March 2016

March Newsletter

cellarIf you read my newsletters regularly, you’ll know I’m a great believer that if something supposed to happen, I believe all the doors will fly open easily for you. Whether you believe it’s a deity at work or just plain luck, we all know the feeling of something ‘just feeling right’.

ben_taffinderI’ve had so many battles in my youth, trying to force something that just doesn’t want to happen, so I know just how wonderful and easy it is when something really flows… and the past few months have bought just that for me and the gallery!

I knew at the end of last year I needed more space in the gallery, but didn’t want to move premises. So how? Then I decided to take the bull by the horns and ask the impossible of my landlord below me: would he push off, so I could have his shop! (A brazen audacity, I know.)

stephen_higtonAstonishingly he not only said yes, but that it would also do him a favour! (That was the first sign that the ‘flow’ was happening) Since then, I’ve had tradesmen in, putting in stairs, cladding the walls and decorating the new space to get it ready in time for our planned opening with the Ben Taffinder exhibition at Easter.

Blow me down if the organisation of these wonderful people (which can easily go awry) went as smoothly as butter and now all will be done well in advance of Ben’s Good Friday 6.30pm exhibition start (we hope you can make it!).

But it didn’t stop there! The Gods were with me even more so when it came to finding my first assistant. I wanted someone who was first and foremost, lovely… someone we’d all get on with. Secondly, they should be able to do the computer and paperwork side of things whilst also having some knowledge of how to run a shop/gallery.

DeborahBlow me down (again!) if that person wasn’t just meters from me… having just moved to the village! So it is with great pleasure that I introduce you to the lovely Deborah Bradshaw. If having some of those assets wasn’t enough, turns out that last thing she did before moving to Cornwall was run a gallery… talk about the luck of the Gods!

ruth_langenbruchSo Deborah will be starting in the brand new gallery this month, helping me run the now 150% bigger space over two floors for the coming season. Am I a lucky fella, or what??

Added to that, we have 5… yes FIVE new artists starting with us very soon. You met the wonderful Philip Tyler last month. This month I’d like to introduce you to the exceptionally gifted German jeweller, Ruth Langenbruch.

clairehenleyOn my last trip to Germany, the last thing on my mind was getting involved with jewellery here at the gallery, but when you see how simply stylish Ruth’s work is, I think you’ll realise it was a temptation I couldn’t pass up on. We have a small collection here for you to see and more will be on their way soon, so I hope you enjoy her artistry as much as I do!

joearmstrongAs for the rest of our smashin’ motley crew, we have some incredible new pieces this month that Deborah and I will be hanging over the next week or two. These include works by Mike Hindle, Stephen Higton, Claire Henley, Joe Armstrong, Robin Mason and of course Ben Taffinder.

Ben’s exhibition work will go live the day before his opening on Good Friday here, so make a date to check those out if you want to get an early-bird butchers! Oh, and the dates for our summer Fisherman’s Shelter exhibitions are now live here, so remember to book your date to meet your favourites!

robinmasonAs for the other three artists, I shall hit you with their incredible offerings later in the month. But if you want to be first in line to see them, just keep an eye on our website. The first of the three will go live within the week, and live in the gallery on 14th, so keep yer eyes peeled, me lovelies!

In the mean time, have a cracking month and Deborah and I look forward to seeing you soonest.

Mark

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February Newsletter

differenthatsAs I grow older, it never ceases to amaze me how abundant life can be when we don’t listen to our own limitations. For example, when I was a budding musician and songwriter back in the day, I believed that’s all I wanted to do. I wouldn’t even entertain anything else because that’s how I saw myself.

This unwavering belief in my future made me block any other ideas I had of who I could be, because I believed doing anything else would only ‘water down’ my true potential… read more.

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