Winter Newsletter

I’m super excited to share the news that I have been invited for a residency by Caroline Wiseman, owner of the Caroline Wiseman Gallery; in 1988 Caroline founded Caroline ‘Wiseman Modern and Contemporary’ and deals in paintings, drawings, sculptures, and original prints by major British and International artists. 

Caroline relocated to the town of Aldeburgh on the East Suffolk Coast where she runs her Gallery and by invitation is a venue for artists to further explore their creativity at the Aldeburgh Beach Lookout and Art House.

I have been a visitor to Aldeburgh for over 30 years and call it my spiritual home so I am particularly delighted to be spending two weeks at the ‘Lookout’ exploring new ways to express my environmental and humanitarian concerns.

Overlooking the North Sea for two weeks will I’m sure inspire me.

I will be in residence from 17-31 March 2022.

I am currently working on a new series inspired by a poem written by Jenifer Toksvig; the  poem ‘What They Took With Them” emerged after Jenifer’s extensive conversations with refugees relating the last thing they took on leaving their homelands; Jenifer is a theatre maker, librettist and lyricist, director , facilitator, poet artist etc. the work was later turned into a short film and performance recited by Cate Blancett and other notable Artists.  I in turn have been moved by the words and sentences to start a series of paintings and sculptures.  The work is ever changing and I regularly post updates on instagram.  I think this work has wings unclipped…  

I have also received a double portrait commission which I will start in January. This came about after my recent exhibition in Arundel, West Sussex, where among my abstract work I had displayed a large double portrait of my grandsons who are in their late teens early twenties and on the strength of this I was approached by a mother of two to create a portrait of her sons of a comparable age.  As she said it would never have crossed her mind to commission a painting but owing to a small inheritance couldn’t think of a better way to use it.

So I have much to look forward to in the  New Year; in the meantime I am off to spend December with my stepson and family in America; first stop Dallas, then New Orleans for a couple of nights on route to Florida for Christmas, when the rest of the Wagstaff clan join us.

Seasons Greetings 

Carol  Wagstaff