Adam Gallery is delighted to present 'Trees, Rivers and Spirits' - an exhibition of Jim Whitty's recent works. 

This series of paintings continue Jim’s ongoing exploration of the woods around his Somerset home. They are places of constantly shifting light and mood according to weather, time and season, and Jim has reflected this by using a variety of styles and colour pallets; some are finely drawn to create the endless detail of a forest scene, while others are loosely painted at speed to capture the energy of a sunlit spring morning.

There is a sense of ambiguity to many of these works; in some, the colours are pushed to hallucinatory levels, while others hint at an elusive narrative that is only half glimpsed through the trees, leading the viewer on, or drawing them back into the personal mythologies and tales of woods that we all carry with us from a very young age. Nothing is explained, and conclusions lead off in various directions, like the myriad of wild paths that wind through the forest.

But these paintings remain, largely, immersive visual impacts of colour and form, evocative of fleeting moments of wide eyed wonder, when an experience of nature can leave you feeling energized and glad to be alive.

Born in 1970 Jim Whitty grew up travelling. His father’s work with the British Council led him to he spent his childhood in Belgium, Nigeria, Malawi and Greece. Later he studied painting at Glasgow School of Art. where he ‘responded to the contrast between the city and the wilderness in the surrounding countryside’. Since that time he has exhibited widely in the UK and Europe and has work in many private and public collections.

"Much of the inspiration for my work comes from exploring the Somerset countryside, discovering secret places, chasing sunlight and its magical effects and wallowing in the enveloping gloom of twilight as it passes into night reducing the colours and spaces around us. I try to reduce an image, often leaving it empty of detail but full of colour and mood, giving it a meditative quality to which the viewer can bring their own thoughts and emotions'. - Jim Whitty

Adam Gallery
24 Cork Street
London W1S 3NJ United Kingdom
Ph. +44 (0)20 74396633
info@adamgallery.com
www.adamgallery.com

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Saturday from 11am to 3pm