Rebecca Newnham FRSS

Brook, Marsh, Moss, considers the places where land meets water, specific riparian areas like riverbanks and salt marshes, and the life that flourishes there. A characteristic feature of these areas is lichen. The presence of lichen signifies clean air, and a balanced local ecosystem and is found in profusion in the places that have inspired the work in this solo exhibition. The Riverscape series of wall panels explores the characteristics of the banks of Oddford Brook, and especially the clearing behind Rebecca's chapel studio in Tisbury. Rain and runoff water is filtered and purified by the roots of water-loving alder and willow before it joins the brook, and the roots help to stabilise the land. The nitrate-rich soil at this margin produces an abundance of wild plants like nettle, comfrey, dock and dandelion, a habitat for a host of insects and small creatures, and a wildlife corridor for birds and animals. Brook banks nurture the environment in many ways and are often overlooked. Riverscape Series Oddford Brook 5, glass, glass enamel, 920 x 920 x 100 mm, 2023 Crown Shyness are works that explore why tree canopies almost but don't quite touch. Along the banks, trees compete for sunlight and create cooling shade. A gap of sky separating each tree is distinct when viewed from below. Alder leaves were attacked by alder beetles in 2023, and one characteristic of the gap is that it prevents larvae from travelling from tree to tree. In other works in the Riverscape series, abundant wild plants impress themselves into the enamels, the structure of their veins clearly defined. The sound made by the flowing brook, stones being polished in the bed, and water which is stained orange from leaf tannin provide the focus for one series of works, and others focus on the types of lichen that grow on the trees that populate the banks of Oddford Brook. Cyanobionts are blueish algae, and a component of some lichens, and have inspired a blue wall panel that captures the traces of snails drawing with their almost iridescent trails on the surface. Dusting the almost invisible remnant trails with glass enamel and making them permanent by firing in a kiln creates an image like cyanotype captures shadow. The Saltmarsh Series addresses the unique environment that provides a safe harbour for migratory birds and waders and a habitat for salt-tolerant plants. The confluence of sea and river is managed, preserved and protected, and marine and aquatic life is supported. Stanpit Marsh, next to Hengistbury Head and Mudeford Sandspit on the Dorset coast, is the location that inspired this series. The tidal marsh inspired a series of works with a common palette of algae, reed, sky silt and all the life supported within. Reed beds, channels, and specific lichens representing categories of foliose, crustose and fruticose types, are noticed on stone and boardwalks. Soar sculptures were inspired by birds enjoying the nature reserve next to Stanpit Marsh at Hengistbury Head and relate to swimming birds and their symmetrical reflection in the water as they take off. They are cast in Jesmonite and have crushed recycled bottle glass, locally sourced, in place of aggregate. One cast is in bronze, with a recently reworked patina. Tremenheere Pond Series reflects aspects of a pond that hosts a pocket of life just off a stretch of the Camino de Santiago, the St Michael's Way pilgrimage path in Cornwall, which stretches from Lelant near St Ives to St Michael's Mount. This path, which passes through Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens, and sacred wells found along the route inspired a previous series of work. It is a lush haven and a place for fish, frogs, newts, dragonflies, water lilies, pondweed, gunnera, cordyline, rush and sedge. Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens has a sculpture by Rebecca, entitled Stachys, which was installed recently. It is next to established groves of Phyllostachys bamboo which inspired the work. Fallen branches encrusted in lichen collected in Tremenheere and Tisbury have been cast in bronze, iron and aluminium. This collection is called Hope and is subtitled The Branches are Hope, the Roots are Memory, a quote from Hope in the Dark by Rebecca Solnit. This has resonance with the ‘hope’ that lichen represents, a hope that we can live in harmony with our environment and thrive, respecting the natural balance, like the symbiotic relationship that exists between lichen, algae, fungi and other elements, all supporting each other to flourish. The Quilt series of cast bronze or iron globes has the subtitle An action in one place leads to a reaction elsewhere.