Eleri Mills, EM Ar y daith (On the journey). photo: Twenty Twenty Gallery
Since opening Twenty Twenty Gallery in Ludlow we have enjoyed over 20 exhibitions by artists from all over the country. Our aim is to give our customers a gallery which selects and promotes professional, original, contemporary art. From paintings, sculpture, artists prints and ceramics you can start a collection from under £100 and for established collectors we have regular exhibitions by major artists and London galleries.
Our March exhibition is one of several major shows in 2020 and we are delighted and honoured that the International/Welsh artist, Eleri Mills has selected Twenty Twenty Gallery as the gallery to hold her solo exhibition ‘Landscape: Real and Imagined.’ Eleri has exhibited widely in the UK and abroad including the Museums of Modern Art Kyoto and Tokyo, Museu Textil d’Indumentaria, Barcelona and the Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas, Madrid. She has exhibited with Ruthin Craft Centre at Collect, the international art fair organised by the Crafts Council, firstly from 2004 to 2008 at the Victoria and Albert Museum and most recently in 2017 and 2018 at London’s Saatchi Gallery.
Yn y dyffryn – yn ymyl y nant, ailymweliad (In the valley – near the stream, revisited) photo: Twenty Twenty Gallery
Mid Wales – the heart of her work
I recently spoke to Eleri about her upbringing, how her work has developed and why she has chosen Ludlow for her exhibition.
Having been born on a farm, at what point did you decide to depict the landscape rather than work it?
I was born and brought up on a hill farm in Mid Wales…and this connection to the landscape has always been at the heart of my artwork …..it is my ancestral landscape therefore a highly potent subject matter. However, I consider landscape to be universal – a glorious, precious and fragile thing.
Was creating art inherent in your upbringing?
My upbringing was very creative due to my mother’s artistic nature and her love of music and poetry. I was taught many craft skills and encouraged to play the harp and to participate in all aspects of cultural life.
Your work combines stitch and paint, which came first and how has it changed?
Embroidery was among the skills I was taught as a child. During my period in art school in the 70s I started to combine hand stitching with painting – it is a process that continues to evolve, and I see it as an on-going adventure.
Is the geography of where you live, on the Welsh borders, essential to your work?
The landscape of Wales and the Marches has always inspired me …..not only the look of it, but the feel of it, the layers of history, and the bardic traditions that relate to the place.
You have been exhibiting at the Thackeray Gallery in London and Ruthin Craft Centre at Collect for many years. What attracted you to exhibit at Twenty Twenty Gallery in Ludlow?
I have always thought of the borderland between Wales and England as a place with its own distinct spirit and its own distinct edge….it fascinates me. The silent layers of time, and the to-ing and fro-ing over the centuries – a landscape familiar with the exchange of ideas in both directions. Ludlow (the old administrative capital of Wales) therefore feels like the perfect place to show my work, and I look forward to my first solo exhibition at Twenty Twenty Gallery which has such an excellent reputation amongst both artists and collectors.
Halima Cassell, Urn, hand carved, unglazed stoneware clay photo: Twenty Twenty Gallery
Whilst Eleri Mills will be on the walls of the gallery we have also selected some of the best contemporary sculptors and three-dimensional artists for this exhibition: Halima Cassell (who has just completed a solo exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery), Jo Sweeting stone sculpture, ceramics by Dennis Farrell and Gail Altschuler, and glass by Louise and Colin Hawkins.
ELERI MILLS ‘LANDSCAPE: REAL AND IMAGINED’ – 7TH MARCH – 4TH APRIL 2020
4 Quality Square, Ludlow SY8 1AR Tel: 01584 875363
OPEN Tues to Sat 10.30am to 1.30pm
Instagram: @twentytwentygallery