The Gold Standard

Thompsons Gallery is soon to hold the highly anticipated solo exhibition of Scottish artist Stephanie Rew, held in our London Gallery from 5th-22nd December and featuring over twenty of Stephanie's most recent works of art. On the 5th of December we will also hold a private viewing in the evening where the artist will be at our London gallery to chat with our guests. Please contact us if you would like to attend.

 

Stephanie Rew studied at Duncan Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee and has held exhibitions around the world since 1998, primarily in the UK, USA, and Spain. Her work is inspired by art from across both time and space, taking influence from the Early Renaissance (Giotto and Crivelli), Ukiyo-e Japanese woodcut prints, and the Scottish Arts and Crafts movement (Margaret MacDonald and Phoebe Anna Traquair). In this way, Rew takes classical form and techniques, and combines it with modern desgin elements to create something completely unique. 

 

The artist's signature method of gilding her panels before painting is a slow and methodical process. Many of the works for this exhibition have taken up to a year to finish due to the long gilding process the panels undergo before the paintings are composed. The panels are created with rabbit skin glue gesso. The entire process requires 12-15 layers of gesso which, when dried, is sanded down until the surface has a marble-like finish. The designs and patterns are then engraved into the gesso with a dry point tool. After this, the surface is water gilded, a technique perfected by the ancient Egyptians and unchanged since those days. Impressivley, two of the works featured in this exhibition are the largest gold-leaf panels that the artist has made so far in her career.

 

You can see all of Stephanie Rew's works here.

 

 

 

 

Stephanie Rew: A Heart of Gold

Thompsons Gallery London

3 Seymour Place, London, W1H 5AZ

5th-22nd December 2023