The exhibition “Dirt” takes inspiration from the practice of three artists, Tina Reid, Faye Munroe and Karen Picton who met when they were fellows at The Digswell Arts Trust. The exhibition is an opportunity to observe how each artist has interpreted and used materials found within and from the ground in their practice, whether it be mud painted directly on to the canvas, clay manipulated to create ceramic objects or iron oxides mixed with ink and paint pigments on paper. The work on display shows an experimental and contemporary exploration of texture, form and colour using what many may simply think of as dirt!

Tina Reid is a multi-disciplinary fine artist. Within her art practice she uses varied mediums to create works of art that range from drawing, painting and sculpture. Her main themes are the body and gesture. The works being displayed in the show ‘DIRT’ are based on a small gestural movement created with one sweep of a paintbrush. They were an experimental series exploring the reaction of inks and the natural pigments of iron oxides when used together.

Faye Munroe’s collection of ceramic works is an observational response to the architectural forms in the urban environment and the traces of life that once dwelled there. Exploring this concept and the theory in her practice, Faye uses different clay bodies to create varied textures on the clay surface. Working extensively with porcelain and black stoneware, the final outcome of each piece is then determined on the reaction that occurs during the firing process and how this manipulates the shape and form.

Karen Picton is an artist who uses earth as her primary painting medium to capture a fundamental character of the British Landscape through using only the materials from the ground in each particular place. Her paintings offer an honest reality of the land but also seek to expose deeper layers of an internalised landscape to reveal the mind in the land.