Art

This solo exhibition in the Small Gallery features the work of Helena Safari, a multidisciplinary Czech artist now based in Folkestone, featuring vibrant works of art that combine embroidery and paint.

Helena developed a love of needlework as a child, whilst watching her mother create beautiful tapestries. In her artworks, Helena uses a variety of threads and fabrics to create intricate designs on canvas before adding layers of paint to bring her pieces to life. The result is a mesmerizing blend of texture and colour. Her works have been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world, captivating audiences with their intricate details and stunning beauty.

Canterbury Society of Art is staging this retrospective exhibition in our Large Gallery. A tribute to their former chairman, Gordon Lewns (deceased), it celebrates the work of this well-known local landscape artist who painted mainly in oils.

Gordon’s paintings were set mainly amongst the marshes, boats and big skies of north Kent – although he was born, raised and spent his working life in central London.

For many years, Gordon went armed with a camera; so on picking up paint brushes at retirement after a long career in the shipping world, his photographic eye showed in the composition of his pictures.

In 2002, Gordon joined the Canterbury Society of Art. He served as a committee member from 2014, as Chairman from 2015 to 2018 and as President from 2020 to 2023. An accomplished oil painter, his life-long love of sailing and the sea showed in his many marine pictures. He was a principal member of the exhibition picture-hanging team and deeply involved in the construction and warehousing of the Society’s first free-standing exhibition screens, which are still used every year to exhibit pictures at the Society's annual Summer Exhibition.

We are proud and grateful to have had Gordon as a member of the Society and in recognition of his long-standing contributions to the Society, he was presented with the Roger Jennison Award on 21 February 2023. This exhibition honours his incredible work and artistic talent.

Exhibiting in our Large Gallery, Sue Houghton an artist from Sevenoaks, paints mainly in oils and acrylics to create an eclectic mix of abstract and figurative works, using expressive colourful palettes.

Exhibiting in our Small Gallery, Khoa Mahon originates from the small rural town of Chau Doc, in South Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. She grew up immersed in nature and the traditional crafts which now inform her work as a professional artist and jewellery maker.

Exhibiting in our Large Gallery, Bryan Hawkins is a lecturer in Art and Media at Canterbury Christ Church University. He is both an artist and curator of Visual Culture with particular interest in Landscape, Film, Animation, Antiquarianism and Drawing. His work is widely recognised and has been exhibited at the Turner Contemporary in Margate and the Sidney Cooper Gallery in Canterbury.

Enjoy Christmas shopping made easy! Our annual fayre showcases a wide range of locally made artisan products, artistic gifts and seasonal treats.