Art Shack Bargains

With 25 Years behind us as the prime Fine Art Gallery  in Dubai we have, as you can imagine, quite a bit of old stock.  We want you to benefit from the fact that our artists would like these pieces to find new homes at 50% of the listed price. Click Here to see Art Shack Bargains Portfolio

Jo Kearney

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Jo Kearney has lived in the UAE for four years and has made a point of seeking out interesting places to photograph away from the glitz and glamour of Dubai. Jo loves to travel and has done photo projects all over the world.

As well as taking photos Jo is a video journalist working for Associated Press Television.  She has covered major global events for the news agancy for the 20 years she has worked with them.

She is married with two children.

Judith Holmes Drewry

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Judith’s legacy as a sculptor is deeply embedded in the way she lived her life with her husband, fellow sculptor, Lloyd Le Blanc at Manor House Saxby, Her instinct for good hospitality was at one with the self-discipline that underpins what she achieved. Her work enables us to see something of what it is to be that particular girl or boy, young man standing smiling, woman sitting hidden by a hat or whatever, as well as something universal we can recognise, enjoy or reflect upon.

Judith’s clarity of vision shines through in her work. Many people who have encountered Judith’s figures, whether wandering through gardens or in the formal spaces of a gallery, have been inspired to use her pieces to create something special in their own gardens or home. Whether as a gift, a memorial, fun for the grandchildren, an impressive sculpture garden in the Blue Mountains of Australia or a small piece in a corner of a room, people find ways to bring something of Judith’s spirit into their own space and lives.

Judith’s life as a sculptor, wife, mother, friend, mentor and bon viveuer was lived to the full. She and Lloyd loved nothing more than a day spent working in the studio, garden or foundry – capped by an evening with patrons, friends, family and students around a table laden with home cooking and home grown vegetables. Judith also spent a good deal of her time encouraging and supporting young people, especially dyslexic students, through work experience and educational projects. It was alongside the excitement of watching others learn and grow that her own work developed.Judith’s models were drawn from people she knew as well as those she was commissioned to portray. Clients invariably became friends, and Judithís work attracted increasing attention beyond this immediate circle. It is through sensory pleasures, whether from the earth or its produce, and how they help us to feel better about ourselves and others, that we can appreciate how Judithís work contributes to an understanding of ways to live well.

Denise Dutton

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Alison first met Denise in the late 90’s when as a very enterprising young artist she brought a collection of her work to the very first Arabian Horse Show. Then as now she came across as a very modest artist with extreme talent and dedication. She was showing the most stunning full sized horse balanced on one foreleg, quite a feat for a horse let alone a sculptor. Sculpture has been an integral part of Denise’s life along with drawing and an admiration of the horse in particular. Committed study is the bedrock of her work. Daily refreshment through observation and drawing assures a familiarity which informs her art. Capturing the life and spirit of the subject, whether horse or human, is her reason to sculpt.

After a foundation course at Cambridge, Denise studied at the Sir Henry Doulton School of sculpture in Staffordshire. Here she studied both the figure and the horse.

The majority of her work is to commission and includes life size pieces such as Amberleigh House, the winner of the 2004 Grand National and the last Maharaja of India, Duleep Singh on horseback unveiled by Prince Charles, on Button Island, Thetford, England. She has just completed a Memorial to honor the work of the Land Girls and Lumber Jill’s of the first and second world wars which is now sited at the Staffordshire Arboretum and was unveiled by the Countess of Wessex last October.

When not working on commissions she returns to the subject of the horse which constantly inspires her, studying the animal anatomically aesthetically and behaviorally. Working on any scale from small to more than life size – attention to detail underpins the processes of sculpting modeling and casting.

Cristiano Alviti

Cristiano-Alviti

Owning a gallery is a cross between being a fisherman and a gambeler. One never knows what a day may bring. The day Cristiano came through our big wooden door we knew we had a hit lucky. Here was a young man so full of creativity, energy and enthusiasm. He had brought himself to Dubai to explore and discover what he felt would be an interesting multi cultural city. His drawings were so powerful and timeless and the photos of his sculpture so exciting that we just knew that the opportunity to work with him would present itself.

Cristiano was born and still lives in Rome. His youth was spent surrounded and influenced by the beauty and cultural history that personifies this iconic city. He drew and painted from a very young age and used his talent as an artist to pay for his university studies. In 1995, Cristiano decided to drop out of university and established a company with his brother and fellow artist Patrizio, inspired by old-style renaissance workshops. Since 2003, he has a displayed his work through personal exhibitions and with public and private institutions.

His fountain in the Piazza Appio was commissioned by Rome’s City Council. His participation in the Venice Biennale and numerous other commissions have established Cristiano firmly in the lineage of the Italian Sculptors. We look forward to a long relationship with him and with Rome.

Sanna Swrat

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We are often asked how we find our artists, Susanna or Sanna, as she prefers to be known, is a very close friend and colleague of Lynette ten Krooden. Lynette often talked of the work and on her last visit brought us some samples of exquisite bronze shells modelled and cast by Sanna. We were entranced by them, their weight, tactility and patina.

Born in Pretoria in 1967 Susanna graduated from the University of Pretoria in 1989 with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts degree majoring in sculpture and visual communication. She then pursued a four year apprenticeship at the Johnson Atelier Technical Institute of Sculpture in New Jersey, USA, receiving her technical certifications in all aspects of foundry work in 1994. She also gained valuable experience in working with various materials including bronze alloys, mild and stainless steels, aluminium, cupro-nickel, cast iron and silver.
Europe then beckoned but after working for two years in Belgium, Sanna returned to South Africa and now produces sculpture that encompasses her love of the land and its people. The veld, its metaphysical beings, and the ancient mysteries of Africa are all reflected in her work.

Sanna has been active in showing, guest lecturing, judging and curating competitions in South Africa. She has been awarded the ABSA/Association of the Arts (Pretoria) Medal for Achievement for contribution to the arts. Her sculptures are in private collections worldwide and in the last few years she has completed commissions for the Development Bank of South Africa, the National Archives R.S.A. North-West University, Aardvark Award for Theatre 2012; and the ATKV Awards for the Stellenbosch Woordfees (language festival) as well as the Media and Author’s “Veertjie” Feather Awards.

“Spiritual and emotional elements are embodied by the visual aspects in my work. Such characteristics are intended to function as primal memory triggers opening forgotten internal dialogues within the viewer.The limitless technical possibilities with bronze are an enticing challenge to me as an artist. The durability of a bronze, which when executed and finished will last thousands of years, fuels my feeling of the ongoing connection with the earth. The earth will outlast me and so will my sculptures, the cycles of birth and re-birth will continue.” Roll one of her shells in your hand and you will understand.

Hannes Loots

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Hannes Loots is a medical doctor, executive consultant, student in philosophy, traveller and above all a sculptor. He lives and works in Stellenbosch, South Africa. His delightful bronze sculptures have been shown through The Majlis Gallery for many years. An Afghan hound, a Saluki and several Bulls have all moved on to become talking points in homes around the world.

Hannes studied sculpturing techniques by attending evening-classes at the Art School of Port Elizabeth Technicon’s Faculty of Art and Design (now Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Port Elizabeth, South Africa) under the guidance of David Jones and Andriete Wentzel. From 1992 through to 1995 he completed advanced courses in sculpturing techniques, moulds and design using different media. In 2012 he took an art vacation and did marble sculpturing in the studio of the master sculptor, Severino Braccialarghe, in Croce/Caldarola, Italy. He works in different media but prefers to make his art in indigenous woods, bronze, stone and soft metals. A small bronze Maquette will often be enlarged into bigger sculptures to reach life size proportions.

Since 1996 he has taken part in many combined and solo exhibitions in South Africa and Dubai. He was awarded the Dave Macgregor Trophy for sculpturing by the Eastern Province Society of Fine Arts (South Africa) in 1993. His art can be seen in many private collections, internationally and local, as well as selected art galleries.

Patricia Millns

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Daragh Dulra

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Daragh’s interest in photography originally developed while scuba diving in 1992, when he was awestruck by being under water and the sights he beheld. Life under the sea was like another world, where he made an instant and profound connection with nature.
Determined to share this experience, Daragh bought a Canon camera, now a thirty year old model that he still uses, and began taking photographs. Aiming to capture nature’s finer detail and convey some of it’s abstract beauty, Daragh’s work is a gentle reminder for us to appreciate our beautiful planet.

In 2007, Daragh embarked on a photographic expedition to the Sahara in Morocco and the glaciers of Iceland, in order to take photos of the contrasting climates and conditions. A collection of these images was then launched as an acclaimed exhibition called Sand & Ice.

Jewellery Box – Ireland’s Hidden Gems, Daragh’s latest work, shows his evolution as an artist and his continuing development as a professional nature photographer. The concept of a rock pool portrayed as a Jewellery Box is an idea that Daragh has brought to life with these images and brings us closer to the wonders of Ireland’s seashore.

Daragh has exhibited throughout Ireland, the United States and Europe. Private collections are held in Ireland, UK, France, Holland, Belgium, South Africa, Hong Kong, Dubai, USA, Australia and New Zealand. Daragh sells his work under the banner of Dúlra Photography which he established in January, 2003.

Daragh Muldowney

E: daragh@dulraphotography.com
T: +353 87 293 9374
W: www.dulraphotography.com

 

 View Daragh Dulra Portfolio

 

Dancing in the Wind and Playing with Fire

An exciting juxtaposition of Photography by Diane Aftimos and Naked Raku Ceramics by Celia Potoudis Macpherson. Both new artists to The Majlis Gallery but ones we are delighted to welcome to the fold.

We met Diane through Alison’s daughter in law Kate who works with Diane’s brother Roy, this was in late November. We loved her enchanting photographs and were even more convinced of the synergy of doing an exhibition with her when a few days later Celia walked into the gallery with 2 of her  dramatic pots.

 Click Here to go to Celia’s Portfolio

Click Here to go to Diane’s Portfolio