NEWS

Thursday 6th November 2008, Auctioneer Visits Conkers

Staff and visitors to Conkers Discovery Centre are looking under beds and inside wardrobes to find those 'hidden gems' that might just be of interest to local auctioneer Richard Winterton.

Mr Winterton, who has a long family lineage of auctioneering, and is the proprietor of 'School House Auctions' in Burton upon Trent,
will be visiting Conkers on Thursday 6th November 2008, when he will be giving a talk entitled 'The Life and Times of an Auctioneer'

Visitors are invited to ask questions, following the talk and also to bring along items that they may wish to be valued - as long as they can fit them inside the car!

Tickets are priced at £2.50 for the talk which includes tea or coffee upon arrival at 10.30 a.m. The talk will commence at 11.00 a.m. and last approximately 45 minutes.

Seats may be reserved (although numbers are limited) by phoning Conkers on 01283 216 633 ext 6. The ticket price includes admission to the 'Olive Tree' Restaurant and also the 'Trading Post' Gift Shop, where the latest lines of Christmas gifts and decorations can now be found.

For any further questions or photo opportunities, please contact Cordelia Mellor-Whiting, Retail Manager & National Forest Art Gallery Curator on 01283 216 633 ext 0.

National Forest Gallery at Conkers

Recently openned the National Forest Gallery, within the Trading Post, displays a collection of local and regional artwork, depicting a variety of subjects and styles.

There are two dimensional artwork exhibits in oil, pastel and watercolours, from traditional landscape to bold wildlife pieces. There are also three dimensional sculptured and handcrafted works in ceramics, wood and metal; and there is a selection of artistic photography. Find out more about the artists exhibiting at Conkers see below.

Profiles of the Artists exhibiting at the opening of The National Forest Gallery

Wallace Spence
'The Inland Waterways Scene'

Wallace Spence paints the Inland Waterways Scene because of a life long interest which began at his birthplace, close by the Stainforth & Keadby canal. The medium chosen is always watercolours and the limited edition prints are personally supervised.

His first solo exhibition was held at the Canal Museum Nottingham, in 1987. Subsequent one-man exhibitions include the National Waterways Museum at Gloucester, the Boat Museum at Ellesmere Port and has additionally displayed at many venues throughout the Midlands, including Conkers.

His work is in numerous private collections abroad and in the U.K. is in both Civic and private collections.

James Smyth

James Smyth was born in 1955 and has been a professional artist since 1991. Working in a variety of media, James now predominately paints in oils.
Using traditional methods of direct painting and glazing, the artist meticulously develops his paintings until they achieve an inner glow.

James derives much of his inspiration walking in his home county of Derbyshire and enjoys painting all subject matter, but wildlife painting is his greatest love.

James Smyth is an adult art tutor at Murray Park and Lees Brook Schools, in Derby.

Major Exhibitions include:
'The Silver Palette' - Derby
'The Pastel Society' - Mall Galleries, London
'The National Exhibition of Wildlife Art' - Hawarden, North Wales

Nigel Tissington
'Patterns in Woodlands'

Nigel Tissington is a professional photographer, who has worked in studios and for press in London, Birmingham and Derby. Nigel has also lectured in university and taught vocational photography in Adult Education.

Nigel currently has a thriving commercial photography studio called 'Middle Mill Studio' in Darley Abbey, Derby.

Apart from commercial work, Nigel also is dedicated to creative photography projects, and some recent work has been published as a calendar, featuring professional dancers, and has been used for greeting cards.

The pictures on show at 'Conkers' have been produced and designed specially to help celebrate the launch of the new National Forest Gallery.

The exhibition is called 'Patterns in Woodlands'. The work is contemporary photography with graphics, presented on panels. The images are influenced by abstract artists such as Jackson Pollock, and semi-abstract artists using photography such as David Hockney and Andy Warhol, as well as traditional classical photographers such as Edward Weston.

The work aims to explore the repeating pattern, colour and shapes of the forest and woodland environment.

Zoo Ceramics

Maggie Betley & Tracy Wright

Maggie Betley

A stunning collection of wildlife transformed into a decorative and functional vessel. Maggie's carved animal heads appear life like as well as being almost life size. Many have intricate patterns incised on the reverse of the piece, enabling them to be displayed in a versatile way. They can be used to hold flowers, plants, candles and adapted as lighting features. Positioned in an outdoor setting or incorporated into a water fountain, they add a dramatic aspect to a garden. Alternatively, arranged simply they are an exotic addition to any room.

Tracy Wright

Amusing penguins with entertaining feet are contrasted dramatically with the brooding, spiky necked vultures and the bemused dodo. Tracy coils and models a diverse range of birds and cats and often introduces a hidden element to a piece. The large owls have a secret mouse peeping out from the landscaped base and the cats have a little wren companion perched on their heads. Stately and unique these sculptures are a wonderful gift for any animal collector. Amusing penguins with entertaining feet are contrasted dramatically with the brooding, spiky necked vultures and the bemused dodo. Tracy coils and models a diverse range of birds and cats and often introduces a hidden element to a piece. The large owls have a secret mouse peeping out from the landscaped base and the cats have a little wren companion perched on their heads. Stately and unique these sculptures are a wonderful gift for any animal collector.

Over the years we have supplied many different outlets with our work from John Lewis, Zoo shops, Garden Centres and many Galleries including James Joyce's The Turn of the Tide in Devon and William Morris of William Morris Interiors in Staffordshire.

We get a lot of satisfaction from making our work and passing it on to people who appreciate the time and effort that has gone into each piece.

Conkers Heart of the Forest Savings Account

The Derbyshire Building Society, believe in the importance of preserving the environment. That's why they have launched the Heart of the Forest Account to support the creation of a 1000-acre woodland park, called Heart of the Forest, which will contribute in a major way to the National Forest which is being created around the award winning family attraction, Conkers.

Planning Solutions Limited

Planning Solutions is a specialist operational management and business development consultancy working in the fields of leisure, tourism, recreation and sports. Planning Solutions is the operating company of the CONKERS visitor attraction.

To learn more about Planning Solutions click here.

Want more information? Just click here to contact us

All effort has been made to ensure the information provided on this website is correct. However, Planning Solutions Limited cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracies or changes.
Copyright© 2001 Planning Solutions Limited. All rights reserved.
Site maintained by Planning Solutions Ltd. Contact Webmaster