The Language of Abstraction

About

Gresham (b. 1951, Cambridge) studied art at Newcastle University and Manchester Polytechnic before establishing his first print studio in Manchester in 1975. He has gone on to become one of the most influential printmakers of his generation and was previously director and master printer at both Curwen Chilford Prints (1989-1994) and Gresham studio (1994-2001). He established The Print Studio, Cambridge in 2002.
 
‘The Language of Abstraction’ brings together works by important modern and contemporary painters and sculptors, selected in conversation with Gresham, as a way of highlighting the rich conceptual and visual language of abstract art – a language of colour, form and light - and the potential of the print medium (above all the medium of screenprint) to deepen understanding of this language.  As one exhibitor, American sculptor, Willard Boepple says:
 
‘Layering is key here…Kip opened up a whole world for me by layering thin colours, building forms with layer upon layer of translucent colours that mixed and blended like sorcery…building the form with colour’.

Some of the exhibited artists represented had long, active relationships to the print medium with different collaborators, such as Gillian Ayres and Wilhelmina Barns-Graham. Others such as sculptor Nigel Hall and painters Michael Brick and John McLean developed a voice in print particularly through their work with Gresham. Each artist however is recognised for their sustained exploration of the language of abstraction in both two and three dimensions.  As Kip Gresham comments:
 
‘the image is what counts: not how, why, when it was made. The object, its it-ness, its this-ness, its particularity are the qualities and realities that will make it command attention.’ 

At Fen Ditton Gallery we are building a strong connection to an emerging generation of artist printmakers through our biennial Printmaking Prize, launched in 2021. We are delighted to therefore to be working with one of the established masters of the art and a different generation of artist ‘magicians’ for this forthcoming show.  
 
Exhibitors include:
Gillian Ayres CBE RA(1930-2018); Wilhelmina Barns-Graham CBE (1912-2004); Willard Boepple (b.1945, USA); Michael Brick (1946-2014); Bob Edgson (b. 1945); Nigel Hall RA (b.1943); Kim Lim (1936-1997); Jeff Lowe (b.1952); John McLean (1939-2019); Mali Morris (b.1945)