Two new free exhibitions by local artists has begun in the Sock and Sockette Galleries at the Loughborough Town Hall this spring.

Buildings in a Landscape, hosted in the Sock Gallery, is a collection of water colour art by Felicity Jackson. Felicity paints on-the-spot, taking in the colour and feel of the moment. Within a landscape she likes to seek out buildings which are mellowing and blending into their surroundings. Watercolour is her favourite medium, giving a lovely delicacy and spontaneity, but she has recently discovered pastels too. Most of her subject matter is strictly representational, but whatever the subject, she tries to capture the essence and spirit. (Runs from 20th April – 10th June).

In the Sockette Gallery take a trip into the unknown with the Beasts of Solaris by Tom Walker. Inspired by Stanislaw Lem’s science fiction novel Solaris (latterly filmed by Steven Soderbergh in 2002) this series of images seeks to explore the mysterious consciousness that lies in parallel to this planets mutating landscape. Tom believes that people’s inability to represent their own experiences of nature accurately, is due to the limitations of whichever medium chosen, and is therefore crucial to his disinterest in attempting to depict reality. Tom chose to present a fictional landscape that the senses desire to explore. (Runs from 4th May – 9th September).

The Sock Gallery and Sockette are free to enter and are open Monday – Saturday from 9am – 5.00pm and when the Town Hall is open for shows.

Loughborough Town Hall is marking the New Year with two new art exhibitions in its Sock and Sockette Galleries beginning this January.

A Passion for Pastels (running 5th January – 25th February) is a collaborative exhibition by the Leicestershire Pastel Society, made up of artists who reside in Leicestershire and Rutland. Exhibitions staged by the Society boast a high standard of art in the dry mediums of pencil, charcoal and soft chalks and members are looking forward to sharing their work for all to enjoy.

Upstairs on the first floor the Sockette Gallery for Emerging Artists is hosting Pencil Artwork by Jon Allcock (runs from 11th January – 29th April). Jon’s lifelong interest in pencil drawing only really surmounted to sketches when he had the time. A couple of years ago, Jon began taking a more focused approach to his drawing, working on detailed shading, which he really enjoyed. Being encouraged by his family and friends, Jon finds himself exhibiting some of his first ‘proper’ drawings for everyone to enjoy at Sockette.

The Sock Gallery and Sockette are free to enter and are open Monday – Saturday from 9am – 5.00pm and when the Town Hall is open for shows.

There’s an exotic family theme to the latest art exhibition at Loughborough Town Hall’s Sock Gallery this winter.

Rita Sadler and Ingrid Kleins-Daniels are cousins whose mothers settled in Leicestershire from Latvia after the Second World War.  Continuing the family tradition of creativity, both are experienced art tutors who are developing their own artistic pathways through a similar love of colour, texture and experimentation with different materials.

Rita and Ingrid share an interpretative style of work that expresses both the spirit felt in the landscape as well as in dance. Rita uses her local landscape and the area around Garendon Park, Loughborough as a source of inspiration, whereas Ingrid’s focus is through the dynamics of the human form in movement and dance.

Kindred Spirits runs from 24th November to 2nd January. The Sock Gallery is free to enter and is open Monday – Saturday from 9am – 5.00pm and when the venue is open for shows.

A new solo exhibition featuring some familiar feathered friends by local artist Jannice Read opens in the Sock Gallery at the Loughborough Town Hall this week.

Jannice began painting in watercolour when she retired, starting with the study of botanical illustration.  More recently, the subject of her work has been birds and the paintings she will be exhibiting in Sockette for Emerging Artists at Loughborough Town Hall will focus on that very subject, depicting birds native to Great Britain that we all know and love.

The exhibition is running until 7th January. The Sock Gallery can be found within the foyer area of Loughborough Town Hall and is open Mondays – Saturdays 9am-5pm and when the venue is open for shows and events.  Entry to the Gallery is free of charge.

Loughborough Town Hall’s Sock Gallery annual Open Exhibition begins today.

The Open Exhibition offers the opportunity for local artists both professional and amateur to apply and exhibit two-dimensional work ranging from paintings, photographs, drawings, original prints and mixed media work in a professional gallery.

The exhibition is running from the 6th August to 3rd September and many of the wall pieces will be for sale. The Sock Gallery is free to enter and is open Monday – Saturday from 9am – 5.00pm and when the venue is open for shows.

A collection of sketches of familiar Loughborough landmarks by local artist Paul Gent are now available to view via the website of the local town newspaper, Loughborough Echo.

Paul draws the buildings from eye in pen and then colours them in afterwards. He has drawn a variety of places so far from the Loughborough Carillon to the Sock Man in Market Place. He has since been commissioned by Charnwood Borough Council to create a collection of pictures of the area.

You can visit an online gallery of Paul’s work via the Loughborough Echo’s website below:

http://www.loughboroughecho.net/news/local-news/love-loughborough-captured-sketches-11633657

A new exhibition with a nature theme by local artist Kevin Shepherd has just opened at the Sock Gallery in the Loughborough Town Hall.

Kevin works from his studio at the Ferrers Centre for Arts and Crafts on the Staunton Harold estate in Leicestershire. He has been a professional artist for over thirty years and seeks inspiration in the beautiful countryside of Leicestershire and Derbyshire, often taking his camera to capture wildlife in its natural habitat.  Although Kevin’s wildlife paintings are traditional in their subject matter, their composition gives them a contemporary feel.

The exhibition is running until 7th May. The Sock Gallery is an exciting exhibition space within the foyer area of Loughborough Town Hall and is open Mondays – Saturdays 9am-5pm and when the venue is open for shows and events.  Entry to Sock Gallery is free of charge.