Torcross Archives - Salcombe Art

23 July 2018 In Art

Anna Ventura at the Tidal Gallery, one month on

The Tidal Gallery preview evening on Friday 22 June 2018 was so well attended it was hard to take in all the wonderful material gallery owner, Anna Ventura, had assembled.

Anna Ventura Tidal Gallery In the days that followed, though, it was great to pop back and study the impressive range of artists’ work on display.

It is a beautiful space, full of beautiful art!

And a long list of featured artists:

Leanne Ball
Susan Brown
Ani Buckland
Simon Dobbs
Graham Fish
Penny Hardy
Steve Kenna
Shirley Kirkcaldy
Louella Moore
Steve Robinson
Susan Steele
Vera Stride
Mark Weston Lewis

More about gallery owner, Anna Ventura

Anna Ventura originates from Barcelona but her love for Devon brought her to Kingsbridge over a decade ago. She studied Fine Arts at the University of Barcelona where she also specialised in graphic design.

Anna then carried out her final project in Illustration at The University of Plymouth.

She has exhibited in the Devon scene since 2013, with works in several galleries and now works from her studio at the Tidal Gallery where she produces exclusive work in a variety of media.

More about Anna’s artwork

Inspired by the Devon landscape, fauna and flora, Anna has applied her artistic flare to ink work, charcoal, acrylic and oil.

Her subjects are often of the flying variety – the birds and the bees – demonstrating her fine pen work and attention to detail.

Anna Ventura

Anna also produces landscapes of local scenes: Dartmouth, Kingsbridge, Totnes, Torcross, …

Here is Inner Hope and Outer Hope, Hope Cove. Anna puts an interesting slant on these well-known vistas!

Anna Ventura

WHERE IS THE TIDAL GALLERY?

The new Tidal Gallery is situated at 1 Victoria Place, The Promenade, Kingsbridge, Devon.
Its central location, the bottom floor of a Victorian building, near the Kingsbridge town square and in the Estuary Promenade, makes the visit most inviting, with great views over the water.

WHEN IS THE TIDAL GALLERY OPEN?

Closed Mondays

Tuesday to Saturday: 10am to 5pm

During August, as part of the Kingsbridge Traders’ Open Sunday initiative, open on Sunday: 11am – 3pm

More information – and an online catalogue – can be found online at the Tidal Gallery website: www.tidalgallery.co.uk.

6 November 2017 In Art

Sold! Torcross Sunrise

Torcross Sunrise

Torcross Sunrise was purchased during the SHAF Arts Trail – a two-week exhibition at Beacon House from 13 October until 29 October.

WHAT IS THE SHAF ARTS TRAIL?

The SHAF Arts Trail is an annual event in which SHAF members open their studios, or inhabit galleries and other exhibition spaces, and welcome visitors to see their art. At each venue, artists were happy to discuss their art-form, explain the processes involved and provide the opportunity for their visitors to view, appreciate and buy unique pieces of work.

Following the Arts Trail also gave visitors an unusual opportunity to explore the glorious South Hams as they mapped their route and discover more and more artists’ venues (as well as cream tea venues).

This was my third year with the SHAF Arts Trail. Having two weeks instead of one – and coinciding with half term week when we have more visitors to Salcombe – has provided us with more than double the number of visitors in previous years.

I’ve also enjoyed greater success in that four paintings have been sold – and many, many of my fine art greetings cards too.

Why did I paint Torcross Sunrise?

Prior to purchasing Beacon House four years ago, Anne and I had three years of upheaval. We had a flat which we couldn’t occupy due to renovations imposed by the management, and then our attempts to sell the flat took forever. We had to rent somewhere to live instead. And we had four different rentals in the space of three years.

Seven weeks were spent in Torcross and this view was what greeted me at dawn. How could I not paint it?

Are there other paintings done at that time?

Slapton Ley

Torcross

Yes, I painted two other paintings during that 7-week rental: Slapton Ley and Torcross.

Between them, they show the view from the upstairs lounge window of that rental.

To the left, Slapton Ley shows the Ley, and the causeway which separates it from the sea beyond.

To the right,Torcross shows the tank memorial and then the houses at Torcross.

You’ll notice that I didn’t include the public toilets!

Both paintings are watercolours and capture the variety of weathers seen from our rental.

Torcross was sold some time ago but Slapton Ley is still for sale.

Affordable art

Both designs are available as fine art greetings card, although the images have been cropped to fit the square design of my cards.

Torcross card

Slapton Ley card

Are there other paintings of that coastline?

Torcross Wave

Yes: an acrylic called Torcross Wave.

This acrylic painting is still available for sale but is one of the designs that I did not use for a greetings cards.

24 July 2017 In Art, Exhibition

EXHIBITION TIME: Michael Hill’s Watercolour Class Exhibition: Now until Saturday 5 August

Michael Hill’S Watercolour Class Exhibition is on now, until Saturday 5 August, in the Little Studio at the Loft Gallery, Salcombe.

I have three watercolour paintings on display, as well as those already hanging in the main exhibition.

Watercolour: Slapton Ley

Slapton Ley was one of two watercolour paintings completed when I was living temporarily in Torcross. As you can see, from the upstairs lounge window, we had the most beautiful view across the Ley to the sea, towards Blackpool Sands and beyond that, Dartmouth.

Watercolour: Ebb Tide at Batson Creek

Ebb Tide at Batson Creek shows a dilapidated boat house in a secluded part of Batson Creek. I admire this picturesque scene every time we take a stroll from Salcombe down to Batson. It is quite beautiful, whatever the state of the tide.

Watercolour: Salcombe Dawn III

Salcombe Dawn III, as the name suggests, is the third painting of the view across to Salcombe from Snapes. The other two were both oil paintings and one has sold already.

This image of Salcombe was captured very early one morning. I’d invested in a photography course with Bang Wallop, and a small group of us drove up to Snapes in the early hours so we’d be in position as the dawn broke. I’d never before sat in the dark, with a group of strangers, cameras ready, waiting for the sun to appear on the horizon. It was a magical experience, and provided a series of wonderful photographs.

WHERE IS THE LOFT GALLERY?

The Loft Gallery is situated behind the Fortescue Inn, and above a popular shoe shop, on a delightful footpath called Victoria Quay, which overlooks one of the best views in the UK including the mooring berth of the RNLI lifeboat Baltic Exchange III.

AFFORDABLE ART

All three images are available as a fine art greetings card, although the Salcombe Dawn card uses one of the oil versions of this composition.

My cards are stocked at Bonningtons (the newsagents) and Salcombe Information Centre (both a short walk from the Loft Studio). Further afield, my cards are stocked by Malborough Post Office, The Gallery Project at Avon Mill and at Noss Mayo, and in Bloomers, the florist in Kingsbridge.

Just think: for less than 1% of the sales price of an original painting, you can invest in a fine art greetings card. Send it to a friend or frame it for yourself.