VAC Gallery
Brunner Court
Northwich
10.30am - 4.00pm
(Closed Wed and Sun)
VAC Gallery is pleased to present the exhibition ‘Ichi-go Ichi-e’ featuring the work of four North West artists, all recent BA Fine Art graduates, Katie Johnson, Naoise Johnson-Martin, Rhyannon Parry and Jacqui Priestley. All four artists are founder members of the North Wests newest artist led collective ‘Yellow Door Artists’.Creative Director Jacqui Priestley explained ‘In creating work for this exhibition our aim was to question western notions of beauty by offering instead an insight into the Japanese aesthetic of ‘Wabi – Sabi’. This ancient eastern philosophy is centred on the acceptance of transience and imperfection. In contrast to the West’s long held Greek ideals of beauty in symmetry and perfection, Wabi-Sabi celebrates instead the beauty of the imperfect, the irregular and the overlooked.’
Jacqui continued,‘We are thrilled to have been offered the opportunity to show this new body of work at VAC Gallery. I personally have strong connections with Northwich having spent two years living in the area whilst studying for my Fine Art Diploma at Mid Cheshire College. I am amazed at what VAC has achieved in the short time since it opened. It is testament to the endurance and determination of the arts. Sharing our creative practices sustains us when times are hard, in diversity, the real value of art lies not in its commercial appeal but in its ability to lift the spirit and restore the soul’.Wabi sabi is not a style defined by superficial appearance. It is an aesthetic ideal, a quiet and sensitive state of mind, attainable by learning to see the invisible, paring away what is unnecessary and knowing where to stop. The philosopher Lao-Tsu said that 'a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step', we hope that ‘Ichi-go Ichi-e’ will provide the first step on your journey to an understanding and appreciation of Wabi-Sabi.
The exhibition runs from 12 September to 21 September 2103 at VAC Gallery, Brunner Court, Northwich.
There will be a short performance of a Japanese Tea Ceremony on Saturday 14 and Saturday 21 September at 2.15pm and 3.15pm.
Naoise Johnson Martin and Rhyannon Parry performing the tea ceremony at the VAC Gallery exhibition 'Ichi-go Ichi-e' from the Yellow Door Collective
