NB Hekla Pop-Up Art Gallery

Lesley Pearson, artist is launching a new series of works illuminating the Lockmaster series of maps with scenes encountered in their travels cruising the canals and rivers on NB Hekla.

Working with the agreement and licence from Lockmaster, the series will be developed over the coming months, with the Cheshire Ring as the first, and working on the Black Country map as they travel North through Birmingham, the Four Counties Ring, then on to Liverpool for the Biennale Arts Festival there and then the length of the Leeds & Liverpool to join in with the Bi-Centenary celebrations.

NB Hekla is a Pop-Up Art Gallery touring the rivers and canal networks of the UK… they contribute to Art Galleries and art networks along with doing ad-hock pop-ups.  : Lesley Pearson is a Fine Art graduate from Sheffield Hallam University in 2007, a member of the Animal Artist Association and a member of the Guild of Waterway Artists.  She is an artist, who draws, paints, writes prose and makes videos, which are mostly canal and waterway related.  Lesley has worked on and off land, which ever presents its self.
This year has started with a bang… it began in January by taking part in the International Postcard Show at the Surface Gallery in Nottingham.  Lesley’s contribution; 3 drawings I made from a place called Kirton Woods in Nottinghamshire from a bird hide.  The drawings and poetry were created and inspired by the surroundings in a woodland area with use of feathers and inks.  The show ultimately ended with the postcards participating in an international exchange of artworks.  Heading into February she was delighted that a piece of artwork had been selected to be part of the Leeds Book Fair run through the Tetley Gallery, Hexopolis, an artist led exhibition by Katia Robins, the piece Lesley submitted was called Blue Coot, it was one piece of work which had to fit into a hexagon.  She chose a watercolour drawing of a coot which had a spiral poem written about the quirky way coots are when they are out of water.  A spiral poem is a poem which can be read in any order or direction.

Joining the Guild of Waterway Artists in 2012, has led to many opportunities, alongside having 2 exhibitions a year.  The first one is at Audlem in March April which lasts a whole month.  With over 20 artists alongside the Guild, it is usually a good exhibition hosted by Audlem Mill.  The next Guild of Waterways exhibition will be in June at the Historic Boat Rally, we have our own marquee which is provided by Braunston Marina.  This year there are going to be 10 of the Guild members exhibiting and hosting all 10 will be present and available to chat to and to see first-hand some varying styles and mediums.