Cornwall conjures up images of golden-sand beaches, rugged Atlantic cliff tops and picturesque mine-pocked landscapes. But that beautiful backdrop can overshadow the creative talent that lies within. Thankfully, however, Hidden Art helps to bring together the talent of the county in an annual celebration of designers, makers, artists and creatives.
So what is it that Cornwall has to offer that other counties do not? As I made the Sunday morning journey to the weekend-long event, I hoped that Cornwall would offer up a worthy display of talent and the cutting edge of design direction. I had a foreboding that the fair may not show signs of progression and promise but become buried beneath the cliché and the kitsch “designed” purely for the tourist trade. Upon entering the gates of Trereife House, I discovered that my doubts, to my delight, were unfounded. The place felt alive. There was little in the way of designing within the tourist trade’s outdated parameters. Instead, an inspired group of designers were dictating future trends and a more modern approach to representing Cornwall.
Ben Barrell, a sculptor based in Falmouth, set the tone of the fair. His larger works, a cross over between sculpture and seating, proved attractive to passers-by who seemed quite content to sit and enjoy the uplifting tones of a violin. Working predominantly in a marble composite, and in varying scales, the pieces where intriguing and inviting and had a nautical feel.
I won’t claim that the whole experience was one of discovery and groundbreaking work from revolutionary artists: there were some stands that possessed little magnetism and fell short among their contemporaries. The ones who did break the mould, however, were excellent. There was much in the way of jewellery at the show, of which I am by no means an expert. I did, however, find myself drawn to the work of Carin Lindberg of Camali Design. The simple contrast between her use of silver and hand-picked Cornish pebbles gave a slightly muted and understated appearance.
There was something appealing about Rob Baybrooks’s hand-crafted wall art. Working from photographs he has taken throughout the county, Rob creates hand-carved wooden relief art with a canvas backdrop. The delicate grain of the wood helps to portray a sense of texture and the way of falling light. I saw not wood, but mudflats, water or the sky at dusk.
There was a broad range of ceramics at the fair, which made the job of choosing a notable name a tough one. Rick Henham set himself apart with his pure simplicity. His glazed thrown stoneware was clean, crisp and contemporary. The stand-out feature was, by contrast, the almost neon, concentric rings of colour inside a range of bowls, seen on the exterior of the pieces as lateral stripes.
There was an almost theatrical display from the forgers with the anvil, glowing, red-hot iron and the scent of beeswax wafting on the radiance of the forge. Not only was it quite a display but the work produced goes beyond that of a traditional blacksmith. Lisa Harrison uses her expertise to create wall art in the form of Cornish landscapes. The use of textures in oxidising metal and the range of layers in the work simply embody the landscape of Cornwall and tell the story of its mining heritage and its downfall.
It was great to see a diverse collection of work representing a long history of art and design in Cornwall. More pleasing, perhaps, is the way in which the exuberant passion the collective body of artists and designers at the show has a vision for the future and a view to progress. Over the course of the weekend, the exhibitors produced a fantastic display of talent and, unknowingly, provided a tribute to the years of hard work from Hidden Art in its effort to showcase the aforementioned.
Since the event, news has broken that Hidden Art will close at the end of 2011. It is regrettable to see such an organisation meet its demise and does not bode well for the future.
More information on the closure of Hidden art can be found at:
http://www.hiddenart.com/aboutus/hidden-art-closure/
Information on Trereife House and the events at Trereife Park can be found at:
