15th Nov - 9th Jan Artists: Andrew Millar, Gillian Garnica, Helen Jones, Jill Ricci, Rosie Emerson and Sarah Duncan Two established galleries, Smithson Gallery and HIX ART come together for the first time to celebrate their shared love for art and collecting. Smithson, a nomadic gallery specialising in temporary exhibitions in a myriad of spaces, will be welcomed by HIX ART as their host and collaborator. Presented in the subterranean levels of Mark Hix’s Tramshed in the heart of Shoreditch, Stars Over The Storm brings together six reputable and award-winning visual artists represented by Smithson who all explore the porosity of process, marrying traditional printmaking techniques with photography, drawing and collage. Each artist has their own unique process-based approach to their work, in which the layers of their immersive practice remain quietly visible. Both US based artist Jill Ricci and Bristol based artist Helen Jones employ techniques of adding and then taking away, slowly building their works over long periods of time in a ritual-like fashion. Smithson Gallery is Jill Ricci’s only UK representative and Helen Jones was selected for the Jerwood Drawing prize in 2016. Gillian Garnica revels in the alchemy of her medium, using a mix of traditional etching techniques to pair back photographs to their simplest forms allowing the slow-paced chemical process to distil her images, as if a Chinese whisper. Rosie Emerson and Andrew Millar engage photographic methods combined with printmaking to create figurative works with a surreal and ethereal aesthetic, capturing a haunting synthesis of reality and fantasy. Both artists use the female form to celebrate female strength and individuality, elevating women to a goddess-like status. Rosie holds the Guinness World Record for the World’s Largest Cyanotype Photograph and was shortlisted last year for the Rise Art Print Award. Sarah Duncan’s monochrome etchings and drawings all depict isolated environments and untouched natural landscapes both on earth and in space. Duncan meditates on the natural beauty often revealed through optical technology. Climate change subtly resonates within Sarah’s practice as she explore moments of transition and turbulence in the landscape, choosing to show the beauty rather than the devastation, a celebration of what we stand to lose. This year Sarah Duncan was shortlisted for The John Ruskin Prize 2019: Agent of Change. Collectively the works play on the boundaries between the physical and the spiritual, the natural and celestial realms, inviting viewers to observe their natural surroundings in a new light. Each work conjures a quiet sense of escapism, a meditation on natural beauty nestled in an urban metropolis. All of the works exhibited as part of Stars Over The Storm, including limited editions and originals, are highly collectable and will be available to purchase. Smithson Gallery Established in 2008 by Anna Smithson, Smithson Gallery represents a high-quality selection of contemporary artists from the UK, Europe and America. Anna is a curator and director with over 15 years of expertise. Her thoughtful curation underpins the success of her gallery. Nurturing a select and diverse group of artists working in a range of mediums, she supports and mentors with passion, professionalism and integrity. Embracing the online platform, the Smithson Gallery website acts as a far-reaching gallery window. The diverse calendar of temporary exhibitions and art fairs provides the opportunity to curate a myriad of carefully considered shows, specific to their environment and audience. HIX ART Established by the restaurateur and author Mark Hix in 2012. It is located in the basement of Tramshed on Rivington Street in Shoreditch, London, and is run by Director Sophie Harriott. Its stages up to eight exhibitions annually, and its curatorial programme embraces a wide range of artists, from the established to the undiscovered. Opening Times: For the duration of the exhibition, the gallery will be open Monday to Sunday, 11am – 6pm. info@hixart.co.uk 020 7033 0650 HIX ART, Tramshed 32 Rivington Street, London EC2A 3LX