brian sinfield gallery

Exhibition 'A Rhapsody of Spring' opens 21 June

We can hardly put into words the excitement and joy of visiting Silvi in her studio to select works for her upcoming exhibition, A Rhapsody of Spring. It’s always a deeply inspiring experience, one that we’re proud and thrilled to share with you.

This marks Silvi’s third solo exhibition with the gallery, and we can’t wait for you to experience the beauty and vitality of her new work.

The artist explains:

“This series, A Rhapsody of Spring, grew out of a long, wet autumn and winter. The days were short, the natural world quiet and bare. In response, I turned to my canvases and painted what I longed for – sunlight, renewal, the wild emergence of life and colour. A rhapsody is an enthusiastic expression of feeling, and these works are just that: my joyful wish for spring’s return, captured in paint.

My studio is always filled with the rich, earthy scent of oil paint. Canvases lean quietly against the walls – each one thick with texture, layered with marks and alive, carrying moments of hesitation and bursts of certainty. I find deep joy in the slow unfolding of a painting, letting the feeling of the day shape my brushstrokes, following where the paint wants to go.

I know when a work is complete. There’s a quiet satisfaction in those last, carefully placed strokes and dabs of colour – an unspoken harmony that tells me the conversation is over, and the painting can rest.”

Silvi is an expressive contemporary oil painter living and working in Oxfordshire. Her work is rooted in a desire to share a personal experience of place, inviting viewers to visually explore and engage in the same adventure. Silvi’s paintings radiate energy and playfulness, Her creative process is an evolving journey, shaped by a series of painterly decisions, all contributing to the visible traces that become an essential part of the finished work.

At the core of Silvi’s practice is a desire to express something deeply personal, subjective, and emotive through a lyrically abstracted form. Her passion for lush, rich oil paint is reflected in both its application and the dynamic surfaces of her paintings.

To view available work by Silvi please click here

'A Breath of Fresh Air'

Frances is a visual artist working in either oil and pastel and her aim is to create a narrative in which the viewer may place themselves.

Inspiration comes from dreams, experiences and relationships with both people and places. Everyday places become extraordinary in moments of awareness, feeling and mood. Her work is often described as magical or spellbinding and there is a feeling of vulnerability in the paintings, some of which contain figures, whereas with the place-based paintings there is a stillness. It’s the drama of the moment which she aims to convey.

Frances explains: “I use a combination of oil paint, oil bars, cold wax and oil pastel, usually over a period of weeks so that each layer can dry. With the soft pastels I use a fixative and a liquifying medium which increases flexibility, allowing a build-up of texture and accidental pattern.

Having studied art history, I am influenced by a wide range of art.  However, my style is most strongly influenced by impressionism, post impressionism and fauvism, as well as some illustrative artists working today.”

This will be Frances’ first solo exhibition with the gallery.

To view the full exhibition please click here

Em Isaacson

Graduating with an honours degree from Loughborough College of Art, Em’s career began with teaching and lecturing in art and design involving both the British Craft Council and The Royal Society of Arts. Leaving the academic world in 1983, she soon became head of one of the country’s largest woven textile studios.

In 1998 she left the UK for South Africa establishing her first studio where she became noted for her pastel paintings of African women and her work was hung at The Everard Reed Gallery in Cape Town as well as the Residence of the British High Commission.

In 2013 Em returned to the UK and now lives and works in the Cotswolds where the study of colour, line and texture continues to be central to all her work, whether through the medium of either pastel or oil.

Her paintings express her love of colour, her fascination with texture and exploration of line. A unique style of painting influenced by her heritage of weaving and her greatest influence. It is her tapestry on paper or on canvas.

In London, her work has been exhibited at the Boundary, Thompson and Catto galleries, the Affordable Art Fair as well as being held in both private and worldwide corporate collections.

Articles about Em and her work have been published in The Independent magazine, Cotswold Life and Cotswolds Home magazines.

To view available work by Em please click here