Exhibition 26 is by Rose Croft with “Chromacells” – hand tufted pieces which begin by Rose painting fast and abstractly with coloured acrylic onto large panels. Her aim is not to make large finished paintings rather a surface that when cut up produces small pockets of pleasing areas. Each cell’s composition is therefore a product of chance. Rose often displays these cells individually or as an assemblage. But more recently they have become inspiration for the hand tufted woollen wall hangings.
Rose says: We are often consumed with the idea of “What Next?!” and that those feelings can suffocate our ability to enjoy the present moment. The wall hangings are about being awake and present to the beauty around us. They are an attempt to focus in on moments of joy, experienced as I make, but also then an invitation to join in on the radical act of being present for that beauty too.
The Notice Board asked Rose to show her work for two reasons. Firstly because she said: This work is about those small moments of awe we can see in the world and this determined attempt to pay attention to small, often fleeting, moments of beauty feels potent. Secondly The Notice Board selects artists based on a theme The Lands of the Free? In Rose’s case it thinks the freedom is about focus – a metaphorical “land” that is freeing. The world offers itself and we choose to attend to certain things, sometimes being guided to look or by letting our senses and mind wander. Both are in Rose’s work and process. When she paint she lets things come and then in the deliberate, strand by strand creation, the focus is concentrated and studied.
Rose will be show 3 wall hangings across the month. The flag is made specially for this show.
Rose Croft is a story teller, teacher and painter and colour rules her world.
www.rose-croft.co.uk Instagram: @rosecroftart