We are busy here at the gallery making way for an exciting exhibition this week. Midge is going to be here with her new solo exhibition, 'Out There Somewhere Still.' Fans of Midge's work can expect atmospheric displays of work from skateboards to luggage tags and wooden 3d pieces.
After a successful year of making and selling art, Midge has been very busy in any free time she has had to produce lots of cool art to buy.. The artist gained a lot of new interest after creating a wonderful mural for Hilsea Lido back in March. Everyone loved the piece called 'My Safe Place Is You' and a print was produced to celebrate the success of the spray paint jam that happened across a very cold wknd.
The print has become one of the biggest-selling prints in the Corner Collective gallery on Albert Road. This then led to a real enthusiasm and newfound energy for the artist.
Talking of how Midge got into art, she said, "I always used to draw as a little girl and that never went away. I went through college and university and art is something I have always done. I then met My Dog Sighs and Ooberla at a creative hang out and we all started painting and spending time together. These friends spurred me on to keep painting and being inspired as well as my husband who is a resident artist at the Corner Collective, 'Mook Loves You.'
Lou's last exhibition was in 2016 at Playdead on Highland Road and she said that this new show will be a mixture of all kinds of work, from skateboards to wooden pieces and new sticker packs, but no particular narrative. Speaking of the title of the exhibition 'Out There Somewhere Still', Lou said that it is inspired by a Jeff Buckley song that she loves and has been listening to. The words of the song remind her of her art. The fact that she still hasn't quite landed in the place where she wanted to but she is still trying to find it. A reflection of Lou being away from her art for a while but is still out there and still has dreams and wants to do so much with her art and her life.
Having just quit her job working at a doctor's surgery and stepping into a more creative role means Lou can have more of a creative plan of where she wants her art to go. For now, we are just appreciating the inspiration she has had to create such wow pieces for the exhibition.
Although Midge isn't a resident artist at The Corner Collective, she always supports the gallery and has had various work on display over the last 2 years. We find it exciting at the Corner Collective to see Midge progess in her art and expand her work which has included large murals recently. After the success of the mural Lou painted at Hilsea Lido, it was fun to see the piece she created for the recent Look Up Portsmouth spraypaint jam back in September.
Having had a sneak peek at the upcoming exhibition which starts this Friday the 3rd of November, all I can say is if you are a Midge fan at all, you are going to love this exhibition. There are some one off pieces and also a fun element with cats throughout Midge's work.
Come along and join Lou at the Corner Collective.
Opening times are
Friday 3rd November evening - 6pm until 9pm
Saturday 4th November 11am - 4pm
Sunday 5th November 12pm -4pm
Thursday 9th November 11am - 4pm
Friday 10th November 11am - 4pm
Saturday 11th November 11am - 4pm
Sunday 12th November 12pm - 4pm
Featured Image - This Is Midge
By Lou O'Brien