Congratulations Gill on such a big achievement - beautiful concept and images, a book and exhibition, and wrangling 7 other photographers. Certainly no mean feat. Best wishes for the New Year.
I really enjoyed visiting the gallery and seeing the project displayed in the way you chose. Being able to speak to Jamie, Spike and yourself made it even better. I came away with both ideas and insight into the different experiences displayed.
The heading "What didn't work," doesn't seem appropriate. I am sure it worked on many levels and of course, there are things to learn from it. Like making a picture, how often do we get it absolutely perfect first time?
Thank you so much for your comments Dennis and I am really glad you enjoyed the exhibition - it was certainly good to see you there. It is also good to hear that it gave you some ideas. From my point of view it was an interesting learning experience and there is definitely a lot to take away from it.
I hope you and Anne have a lovely Christmas and I hope to see you both in 2026.
It was so lovely to see you, Jamie, and Spike in Woodbridge.
A really well thought out idea, and a beautifully presented exhibition. You really did each artist proud in how their work was shown to the public.
I don't think you did anything wrong at all with the statements. They were in such an obvious position for each artist, however, many want to often come and look rather than read. I found this recently, as you know - and often directed many to read the statement around the work.
I think this is why the text in exhibition rooms at the Tate is so big haha, and even then, I'm not convinced many take time to read it.
Thank you so much Dan for your comments. It was lovely to see you at the exhibition and was really good to chat. I agree with your comments and whilst it was a shame more people didn't read the statements I think that is just how people are. I will have to ponder bigger writing next time! 😆
Have a wonderful Christmas and I hope to catch up next year.
Congratulations, what an ambitious and meaningful project! From the photo, it looks like a lovely venue for the exhibition. If it’s still up for a while, could you have gallery talks with the artists? Even if people didn’t read the statements, the accessible location may have meant that more folks were moved by the images themselves — especially those who wouldn’t normally go into a gallery. There’s always the book for those who want to go deeper.
Thank you so much for your comments Julie. I have learned a lot from running the exhibition which is always good and the space was beautiful. I have also had some really positive feedback about the book so maybe I am being too hard on myself, but I did think it was interesting to see how people engaged with the works. Thank you for the idea of artist talks - that would have been a great idea and one I will explore going forward. 🙂
Found the book really inspiring makes you realise how fortunate we are to live in the area ,this is something I am thankful for whenever out walking good for anyones wellbeing .Nature has always been my passion landscape and habitats all part of it. Take time out to sit in a special place close your eyes listen to the birds, feel the sun on your back,the wind in your face it’s free! But so valued if you embrace it all 💕🤷♂️🎅
Thank you so much Laurence, I am glad you enjoyed the book.
I can completely relate to your words - there is nothing like being out in nature and feeling part of it all. Have a great Christmas and I hope to catch up in 2026. 🙂
I'm sorry you felt there were some downsides to the exhibition, because I think it was a tremendous achievement. I suppose my experience was coloured by knowing what it was all about in advance, and I sought out the artist statements. But looking back I can perhaps see what you mean.
There will always be some folk who aren't interested in, or don't appreciate the story, so you can't cater for everyone.
But thinking back to when I used to do lots of presentations, I wonder if you need to spell it out more? A presentation technique was "tell them what you're going to say, then say it, then say it again". And having signposts along the way was important if your presentation was of any complexity.
So - in the exhibition: make the story behind it more obvious as you come in (can't remember whether you had a prominent panel about that?). Make the artist statements more prominent (bigger font, bold print etc!), and if they were not numbered, then number them. Even though the sequence might not be that important it links them altogether. And maybe at the 'end' have a final panel which summarises the exhibition.
Forgive me if you did all those things and I didn't remember them...
Thank you so much for your comments Mark, they are really helpful and worth remembering if I do something similar again. I didn't do all the things you suggested - at least not as clearly as you have laid out - and maybe being clearer would have helped. Anyway thank you very much for coming to the exhibition and I am really glad you enjoyed it.
Have a very happy Christmas and I hope to see you again in 2026. 🙂
Congratulations Gill on such a big achievement - beautiful concept and images, a book and exhibition, and wrangling 7 other photographers. Certainly no mean feat. Best wishes for the New Year.
Thank you very much for your comments James - it was a good experience.
Wishing you all the best for 2026 and I look forward to seeing where your photography takes you.
I really enjoyed visiting the gallery and seeing the project displayed in the way you chose. Being able to speak to Jamie, Spike and yourself made it even better. I came away with both ideas and insight into the different experiences displayed.
The heading "What didn't work," doesn't seem appropriate. I am sure it worked on many levels and of course, there are things to learn from it. Like making a picture, how often do we get it absolutely perfect first time?
Have a great Christmas and New Year.
Best wishes,
Dennis
Thank you so much for your comments Dennis and I am really glad you enjoyed the exhibition - it was certainly good to see you there. It is also good to hear that it gave you some ideas. From my point of view it was an interesting learning experience and there is definitely a lot to take away from it.
I hope you and Anne have a lovely Christmas and I hope to see you both in 2026.
It was so lovely to see you, Jamie, and Spike in Woodbridge.
A really well thought out idea, and a beautifully presented exhibition. You really did each artist proud in how their work was shown to the public.
I don't think you did anything wrong at all with the statements. They were in such an obvious position for each artist, however, many want to often come and look rather than read. I found this recently, as you know - and often directed many to read the statement around the work.
I think this is why the text in exhibition rooms at the Tate is so big haha, and even then, I'm not convinced many take time to read it.
Wishing you a wonderful Christmas and New Year.
Thank you so much Dan for your comments. It was lovely to see you at the exhibition and was really good to chat. I agree with your comments and whilst it was a shame more people didn't read the statements I think that is just how people are. I will have to ponder bigger writing next time! 😆
Have a wonderful Christmas and I hope to catch up next year.
Congratulations, what an ambitious and meaningful project! From the photo, it looks like a lovely venue for the exhibition. If it’s still up for a while, could you have gallery talks with the artists? Even if people didn’t read the statements, the accessible location may have meant that more folks were moved by the images themselves — especially those who wouldn’t normally go into a gallery. There’s always the book for those who want to go deeper.
Thank you so much for your comments Julie. I have learned a lot from running the exhibition which is always good and the space was beautiful. I have also had some really positive feedback about the book so maybe I am being too hard on myself, but I did think it was interesting to see how people engaged with the works. Thank you for the idea of artist talks - that would have been a great idea and one I will explore going forward. 🙂
I’m endlessly fascinated by the creative process and love the chance to hear about it from working artists. As well as maybe ask a question or two.
Found the book really inspiring makes you realise how fortunate we are to live in the area ,this is something I am thankful for whenever out walking good for anyones wellbeing .Nature has always been my passion landscape and habitats all part of it. Take time out to sit in a special place close your eyes listen to the birds, feel the sun on your back,the wind in your face it’s free! But so valued if you embrace it all 💕🤷♂️🎅
Thank you so much Laurence, I am glad you enjoyed the book.
I can completely relate to your words - there is nothing like being out in nature and feeling part of it all. Have a great Christmas and I hope to catch up in 2026. 🙂
Hi Gill
I'm sorry you felt there were some downsides to the exhibition, because I think it was a tremendous achievement. I suppose my experience was coloured by knowing what it was all about in advance, and I sought out the artist statements. But looking back I can perhaps see what you mean.
There will always be some folk who aren't interested in, or don't appreciate the story, so you can't cater for everyone.
But thinking back to when I used to do lots of presentations, I wonder if you need to spell it out more? A presentation technique was "tell them what you're going to say, then say it, then say it again". And having signposts along the way was important if your presentation was of any complexity.
So - in the exhibition: make the story behind it more obvious as you come in (can't remember whether you had a prominent panel about that?). Make the artist statements more prominent (bigger font, bold print etc!), and if they were not numbered, then number them. Even though the sequence might not be that important it links them altogether. And maybe at the 'end' have a final panel which summarises the exhibition.
Forgive me if you did all those things and I didn't remember them...
Mark
Thank you so much for your comments Mark, they are really helpful and worth remembering if I do something similar again. I didn't do all the things you suggested - at least not as clearly as you have laid out - and maybe being clearer would have helped. Anyway thank you very much for coming to the exhibition and I am really glad you enjoyed it.
Have a very happy Christmas and I hope to see you again in 2026. 🙂