Although several of the paintings that make up Emma Jeffryes’ sixth solo show at the New Craftsman were made by her from a water-front studio above Crab Rock in St Ives during the recent storms and are filled with a sense of the strong winds and raging seas that threatened the town, particularly Smeaton’s Brave but Beleaguered Lighthouse, there is nothing to be feared in this exhibition. On the contrary, balanced as these stormy scenes are with images of calmer seas and spring blossoms coupled with the artist’s approach, her technique, choice of colours, and actual lively brushwork, it could hardly strike a more encouraging or optimistic note.
Textile
Emma Jeffryes was born and brought up in Hertfordshire and later studied at Middlesex University where she graduated as a specialist in textiles, and at the Royal College of Art, she subsequently worked as a textile designer in London. While the study and practice of textile design claimed a considerable amount of her time and energy, somehow she also managed to continue painting which had always been her first love and it was this which brought her to St .Ives several years ago, first of all as a frequent visitor and then as a resident.
It was when painting on Porthminster Beach that she met her husband Ben. The mother of their two children Sunny and Asa, in common with so many women artists she had to put her artistic endeavours on the back burner for a few years while caring for her young family and it was not until nine years ago that she was at last able to return to the art scene with her first solo show in St Ives which, as it happened, was in this gallery; a most appropriate venue as the first paintings she ever displayed publicly in St Ives were shown here.
Passionate
One who is passionate about painting in St Ives, she paints both indoors and outdoors, and from her title painting From the Lighthouse to Porthminster, springtime there is a sense of high energy and great enjoyment in all that she does.
Talking about her working methods, she says: “Firstly, by working in the studio, building up paintings from sketches, memory and photographs, I’ve found that this works well in that not being directly in front of a view can have its advantage It can be quite freeing in terms of compositions and detail. Secondly, in contrast, getting out into the elements and finding some great vantage points to set up the easel, can be the most exhilarating way to paint… You never know what’s going to happen in front of you, and always being slightly uncomfortable can add a real edge to the work. I still have a fascination with painting fishing boats which I’m also hoping to continue. This may be as a tiny vessel out in the depths of the bay (as in Braving Winter Seas) or from sitting right in front of them moored on the sand, as in Two Fishing Boats, St Ives, where you can get a real feel for the volume and strength of their sturdy hulls.”
Privilege
An artist who sums up her ‘passion for observing and painting all things marine and St Ives’ as a privilege, it is an equal privilege to see her new paintings. As refreshing as they are rewarding, from Crab Rock Seagulls and Blooms at Porthmeor to Winter Blossom and Porthmeor and Downalong, her tilted, somewhat askew and almost naive, sea and landscapes are immensely satisfying.
They are accompanied by a selection of Peter Layton’s glassware. A new series Arrival of Spring, the result of a collaboration with the Royal Academy to interpret David Hockney’s painting of the same name@ another Turquoise paradiso which takes its inspiration from the bold, gestural canvases of Howard Hodgkin, and the third, a series in response to the work of Emma Jeffryes. For good measure, there are also ceramics by Adam Buick, who was one of the only five artists chosen for the Jerwood Makers Open 2013. The works in his splendid new Cornish series are created from materials sourced in the country: china clay from tresowen and Doble’s clay pit St Agnes, granite dust from Castle-an-Dinas quarry, and metal ore from Porthtowan.
Frank Ruhrmund - 2014