Sarah Wiseman Gallery is proud to announce ‘Spellbound’ an exploration of myth and landscape by two prominent contemporary artists: Daniel Ablitt and Flora McLachlan, with ceramics by Marina Bauguil.
‘We brought these two artists together as each works in their own distinct way tapping into and responding to landscape, but in a deeper sense, revealing the magic within real world settings,’ explains Sarah Wiseman, director of the gallery.
Bristol-based Daniel Ablitt focusses on scale and wonder playing on the viewer’s sense of yearning and wanderlust. He creates fleeting, story-like scenes featuring distant figures engaged in conversation or small boats lit up on a starry lake. They give the impression of a story in progress, rather than a fixed narrative. His paintings are informed by his extensive travels across the globe, each work containing the awesome landscapes of Latin America, South-East Asia and the birch forests of Northern Europe.
Flora McLachlan is well known for her interpretations of myth and the embedding of ancient stories and legends in the land under our feet. However, more recently she has been exploring the playful magic in nature, immersing herself in the sappy, scented greenery that teems with life. Flora’s latest work is looser and more expressive, exploring weedy ‘edgelands’ that she recalls would cover over her head as a child, but now is waist high. To Flora, it’s a transformative place where she becomes rooted in its midst, eye level with the tiny beings that live there.
She says: ‘I can enter this magical world at will, loop myself with goosegrass and move empowered through the dew of every morning.’
Sarah Wiseman Gallery is preparing an e-catalogue where you can preview all available works and texts about the artists. Sign up via our website, or email us to request a link: info@wisegal.com

Marina Bauguil

In addition to new works by Daniel and Flora, we are delighted to present striking new pieces by the acclaimed ceramicist Marina Bauguil. Marina’s work is mostly figurative, creating serene, gently smiling spirit-like creatures. Each is individually sculpted in an intuitive way. Some have crowns or antlers, or are decorated with flowers.

Raised in France, as well as Africa and England, Marina draws inspiration from different cultures and a deep connection with nature. It is her understanding that we were once deeply connected with forests, rivers, mountains, plants and animals and that we in contemporary society are losing that connection.

At the core of Marina's creative practice is a sense of animism, aiming to imbue her pieces with a spirit that will inspire the viewer to rekindle a connection with the natural world.

Working intuitively, Marina will use hand building methods to shape her figurative pieces from paper porcelain and stoneware clay bodies. Once bisque fired, each piece is hand decorated using underglazes, coloured slips, glazes, lustre and fired multiple times in the process.

Marina Bauguil is based in Manchester and trained in Fine Art, majoring in sculpture at Falmouth School of Art and Design, followed by studies in Ceramics in Nottingham.