Artists Drawn to Torbay

December 4 to January 22, The Gallery, Torbay Hospital
Ten artists from the Drawn to the Valley group have been selected to stage a mixed exhibition for Christmas and the New Year at The Gallery, Torbay Hospital.
The Drawn to the Valley group is centred on the Tamar Valley, on the Devon-Cornwall border, but these 10 members have been persuaded to exhibit farther afield than normal, bringing together some of their brightest and most colourful work in this special one-off show.
The Drawn to the Valley group of artists was formed in 2003 by the artists themselves, partly to promote the Tamar Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and it now has over 160 members, ranging from painters and printmakers to ceramicists, sculptors, calligraphers, jewellers and textile artists.
For this Christmas show, the 10 artists will be Jeannine Allen, Valerie Burns, Martin Clark, Tessa Clarke, David Greenhalgh, Diane Harkins, Dorothy Hanna, Marcia Pirie, Tessa Sulston and Teresa Wicksteed.
Between them, they will be showing a very wide range of media - painting on silk, stitched canvas, found objects, torn paper collage, printwork, digital print, oil pastel, acrylics and oils.
Binding the exhibition together will be a theme of bright colour, to bring seasonal cheer to the hospital and welcome in the New Year. Within it, will be an eclectic mix of subject matter and styles, from abstract to realistic, local to foreign landscapes, floral to marine, animal to mineral.
Gallery co-ordinator Caroline Hill said: "We have brought together as wide a range as possible, so there can be something to match most tastes and interests."
All the work on show in the exhibition will be for sale, and available to purchase in time for Christmas, with prices for original framed works ranging from just £60. More artwork is waiting in the wings to fill the spaces left by pre-Christmas sales.
Members of the public are welcome to visit and The Gallery is easy to find, leading off from the hospital's main entrance. The exhibition will be open daily from the evening of Friday December 4 and will continue until Friday January 22.
To contact The Gallery call 01803 654557.

For more information visit http://www.sdhct.nhs.uk/aboutus/newsandpublications/pressreleases/2009/