Gallery Exhibition: Rob Chappell & Kath Williams
Come and see beautiful wildlife-inspired pictures in our visitor centre, and treat yourself to a work of art to take home.
Entry included with admission, open daily.
Rob Chappell's Artist Summary:
I am a Welsh artist, born and brought up in Swansea and now living in Penarth, near Cardiff.
Having been an Architect, I now have time to devote to my art. The rigour of observation I have gained over the years has helped in my transition as an artist.
For a large portion of my life, I have lived near the sea. I am inspired by the birds, the landscape, the changing of the seasons and weather. Birds are the central focus of my work, with visits to Slimbridge WWT reflected in a number of my paintings. I work solely in watercolour. It allows immediacy but is a challenge as mistakes are difficult to remedy!
I sell my paintings at venues like the National Museum of Wales; the Nature in Art Museum, Gloucester; Chepstow Art Festival; and St Fagans National History Museum.
We live on the edge of the Atlantic. There is always something out there beyond us. In my drawings and paintings I try to communicate something of that vision. I hope my work conveys not just of the beauty of birds, but also a feeling of being inspired by the nature that surrounds us.
“The hardest thing of all to see is what is really there.” — J.A. Baker, The Peregrine
Kath Williams' Artist Summary:
I am an artist, jeweller and teacher based in Stroud.
Like many, I find great solace in the natural world. My work is inspired by the ebbs, flows, light and space found in nature. I am continually in awe of the sky, the sea and local landscape and can happily while away the hours just gazing at the ever-shifting light. I enjoy attempting to capture something of their magic in a range of media including oil, acrylic, watercolour and vitreous enamel.
Having been lucky enough to experience the awesome phenomenon of starling murmurations, I felt compelled to attempt to capture the sense of escapism and peace these experiences evoked. Watercolour felt like the obvious choice of medium as the forms the paint takes as it flows across the paper are not dissimilar to the movements in the murmurations themselves.
This exhibition is dedicated to my Grandad—Dave Williams (1927—2021) who was a great inspiration to me. Some of my fondest early memories are of visiting Slimbridge and learning to paint with my Grandad who was a wonderful artist and keen bird-watcher. I feel deeply connected to him each and every time I paint a murmuration.
