JO & HANNAH CHESTERMAN

JO & HANNAH CHESTERMAN

Artists’ Statement

Since their training at Leeds College of Art and Manchester Metropolitan University respectively Jo and Hannah Chesterman have individually pursued their painting and exhibiting practices covering a wide range of subject matter.

In this exhibition they have joined forces for the first time to explore a single theme.  They have both had a long held fascination with the North East coast of England and in engaging with images from this area, Jo looks seaward and Hannah landwards. Looking seawards the imagery is predominantly concerned with the natural environment and climatic conditions whereas looking landward man’s influence may be seen but not exclusively so.

What is of undoubted interest in this exhibition is the meeting of two artistic sensibilities exploring different aspects of a common theme. While Jo responds to cloud forms over a distant headland Hannah looks at markers past and present including two observational experiments on display at the Whitby Museum next door to the Pannett Art Gallery. One is an eighteenth century tempest prognosticator, the other a recent scientific project related to the search for Dark Matter sited in the deep underground laboratory at Boulby Mine near Staithes.

In both cases the choice of subject matter and the issues of colour, tone, mark and balance hold constant as with any painterly engagement.