ST IVES.- “Place a poem beside a painting and something almost mystical occurs. A space outside of space suddenly opens. In it, a new syntax and a new grammar – a language that is neither verbal nor visual, yet both – is formed: a conversation between strangers who share neither origin nor accent but a yearning for truth.” Kelly Grovier

This new book of paintings by Alice Mumford and poems by Sue Leigh, celebrates the intimacy and beauty that can be found in our everyday lives, bringing together exciting new work from the two makers in which art and language sit side by side, each illuminating the other. Painter and poet discuss their experience of working in their respective media. They talk about their sources of inspiration, how they might choose a subject, and the process that surrounds the making of their work. What do they share in their creative lives and how do they differ?

The exhibition will coincide with the beginning of the St Ives September Festival that takes place from 9 to 23 September 2023. A special event to accompany the exhibition will be held Saturday 9 September 5.00 - 6.30pm at Borlase Smart Room, Porthmeor Studios in St Ives. The artist will be in conversation with Sue Leigh, bringing the text and images further alive.

As Kelly Grovier writes in the insightful foreward, “Colour, it turns out, is the lucent lexicon in which the imaginations of these creators eloquently conspire.” For instance, a sunlit blue room with a spray of Jasmin is juxtaposed with the following poem:

summer jasmine is
so white and starry
it might be night, might be
moonlight

Mumford is a painter who is entirely focused on her craft. Following training at Dartington, Camberwell, Southwark and Falmouth Colleges of Art, she has become one of the most popular painters currently working in Cornwall. After early successes with Cobra & Bellamy, Julian Lax and Badcocks Gallery, Mumford has been represented by Belgrave St Ives since 2005, during which time she has established herself as a pre-eminent painter of still life interiors that draw heavily on her own domestic life. Sansom & Co published a first monograph of her work in 2015. (Copies are available at the gallery along with signed copies of the new book.)

Sue Leigh teaches at Oxford and runs her own poetry courses. Her first book,
Chosen Hill was described by the TLS as ‘an intelligent and considered collection that pays homage to the act of paying attention’. Her other published work includes Her Orchards (Two Rivers Press, 2021) and Chalk (Evergreen Press).

A Painter and a Poet: Conversations in Colour
Publishing September 2023 Sansom & Company | 9781915670069
Orders will be fulfilled upon publication in September. Available from: https://www.casematepublishing.co.uk.

Borlase Smart Room, Porthmeor Studios, St Ives TR26 1NG
September 9th, 2023 0 September 13th, 2023
Book Launch and Readings
September 9th, 2023 5 - 6:30 PM