The Biscuit Factory – Summer Launch

When I got an invitation for the Summer launch at The Biscuit Factory, I couldn’t wait to go. It’s been years since I last visited and this gave me the perfect opportunity to pop down.

When we arrived, it was already really busy with people of all ages milling about. The first thing I noticed was the gorgeous floral display at the foot of the staircase. This was displayed in celebration of British Flowers Week, all flowers were home grown in Durham by Caroline Beck of Verde Flowers.

Caroline Beck - Verde Flowers at The Biscuit Factory — Verde Flowers by Caroline Beck

We started in the gift shop (doesn’t everyone love art gallery gift shops?!) and there were lots of cute things to peruse, a little lace patterned ceramic dish caught my eye & I was in stationary heaven with all of the pretty notebooks.

Jessica Catherine - Lace Print Dish - The Biscuit Factory — Jessica Catherine – Lace Print Dish

The event gave us a chance to take a first look at this season’s new artwork which features work from over 200 artists. There’s so much to see, including paintings, prints, sculptures, glass and ceramics. We were there for 1.5 hours and I’m sure I didn’t see everything. The exhibition is headlined by contemporary landscape painter Chris Forsey.

Chris Forsey exhibition at The Biscuit Factory — Chris Forsey Landscapes

My favourite part of the exhibition was the portraits, I was so drawn in by a few of them and could have spent much longer in this area. Paul Brewster’s Self Portrait in Ill Fitting Bra and Stockings was the winner of the 2016 Open Contemporary Portrait Awards. Karen by Paul Mowat won the People’s Choice Award. My personal favourite was Ananias by Josh Bowe.

Flower Veil - Shirley Vauvelle - The Biscuit Factory — Flower Veil – Shirley Vauvelle

Karen - Paul Mowat - The Biscuit Factory — Karen – Paul Mowat

Ananias - Josh Bowe - The Biscuit Factory — Ananias – Josh Bowe

Hello, Hooray - Dan Cimmermann - The Biscuit Factory — Hello, Hooray – Dan Cimmermann

Self Portrait with Ill Fitting Bra and Stockings - Paul Brewster - The Biscuit Factory — Self Portrait with Ill Fitting Bra and Stockings – Paul Brewster

Perspective - Biserka Stringer Horne - The Biscuit Factory — Perspective – Biserka Stringer Horne

A few more of my favourite pieces from the exhibition are shown below. Of course I took loads more photos than necessary, I can’t help it!

Clay Masks - Jeni Davis - The Biscuit Factory — Clay Masks – Jeni Davis

Tilly Shaw - The Biscuit Factory — Tilly Shaw

Mist in Douthwaite Dale - Jim Wright - The Biscuit Factory — Mist in Douthwaite Dale – Jim Wright

Small White Lidded Jar - Alan Ball - The Biscuit Factory — Small White Lidded Jar – Alan Ball

Glasswork - The Biscuit Factory — This is GLASS

Jar - The Biscuit Factory — Love this moustache

Glass - The Biscuit Factory — So pretty!

Still Life on Red - Fletcher Prentice - The Biscuit Factory — Still Life on Red – Fletcher Prentice

Cow Parsley on Blue - Fletcher Prentice - The Biscuit Factory — Cow Parsley on Blue – Fletcher Prentice

Ivan Lindsay - The Biscuit Factory — Ivan Lindsay

The Spanish City - Jane Jackson - The Biscuit Factory — The Spanish City – Jane Jackson

There were a couple I would have snapped up on the spot if our walls (and wallets) were bigger. I think I’m going to go back to take another look at some of the ceramics and stoneware – there were some jelly moulds I loved (I don’t ever make jelly).

The Summer exhibition runs until 1st September, with lots of beautiful pieces for sale and so much for you to look at. If you’ve never visited The Biscuit Factory, I recommend making a trip down to Stoddart Street!

I’d love to hear what you think if you decide to visit, or if you’ve already been 🙂

2 Comments Add yours

julieandtheknits says:

June 8, 2016 at 08:55

Thanks for taking me along! Still lolling at the moustache man incident!

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1. Cloud in a Teacup says:
  
  June 8, 2016 at 18:50
  
  Thanks for coming, the moustache man incident was pretty terrifying 😂 Sad about the lack of tables at Ernest afterwards though!
  
  LikeLike