Comfort Zones

About

Comfort Zones brings together works by twelve artists from the UK and abroad exploring the environment which we might call home. The title of the exhibition is enticing, conjuring up images of warm, safe private places, far removed from the public, open and vulnerable world we live in. Our homes fill a variety of functions in our lives: they are places of comfort and belonging, and they are often reflect the sort of people that we are, or indeed, desire to be - whether that is through the colours we decorate our rooms with, or the objects we place on our mantelpieces.

Comfort Zones mixes video with installation, textile, sculpture, drawing, video and short film. The works in the show play with humour, encouraging us to look at our own homes, belongings, rituals and comforts with fondness and indulgence. Yet not all the comfort zones explored here are all that they may seem. Many of the works are disconcerting, questioning, and often surreal, revealing events, memories and stories far from what we might expect. Our homes are exposed as sinister, unknown places, which can make us feel unsettled or even afraid. The works in this exhibition explore the contrasts of the home: the familiar, private and secure, against the unfamiliar, unnerving, surreal and unexpected.

Exhibiting Artists: Darren Banks, Paul Bush, Maia Conran, Katie Cuddon, Anka Dabrowska, Caitlin Heffernan, Louise Hopkins, Martin Kersels, Nina Saunders, Jennie Savage, Ola Simonsson & Johannes Stjärne Nilsson

Events:

Exhibition Preview
Come and join us to celebrate the opening of the exhibition with a glass of wine.
Date & Time: Friday 30 March, 6-8pm
Free

Curators Talk
Curator Emma Williams will discuss the concepts and ideas behind the exhibition
Date & Time: Friday 30 March, 6.30pm
Free

Exhibition Tour
Join curator Emma Williams for an informal discussion about the works in the gallery
Date Time: Wednesday 18 April, 12.15pm
Free

Easter Holiday Workshop: Homemaking
Get surreal with artist Ingrid Maugham who will lead two holiday sessions, relating to Comfort Zones and exploring fun ideas relating to home life through collage and painting.
Date & Time: Thursday 5 April & Thursday 12 April, 10.30-12.30pm
Cost: £2.50 including materials. Children under 8 must be accompanied by an adult

Life Drawing
These tutored sessions will be led by the artist, Jill Cope, who will encourage working to individual strengths, using a variety of materials in a relaxed atmosphere
Date & Time: Saturday 21 April, Saturday 2 June & Saturday 7 July, 10.15-1.30pm
Cost: £12 / £9 concessions

Children and Families Workshop: Colourful Weaving
Learn basic weaving techniques on cards and frames to make a decorative hanging using fancy and exotic yarns. Led by Steve Attwood-Wright
Date & Time: Saturday 28 April, 10.30-3.30pm
Cost: £3.50 including materials. Children under 8 must be accompanied by an adult