Belgravia gallery
The Belgravia
gallery is based on Maddox Street in the heart of the art district in Mayfair.
The gallery has an emphasis on art for charity particularly funds for The Sebastian
Hunter Memorial Trust. The gallery is run by mother and daughter team Anna
Hunter and Laura Walford.
The gallery
offers advisory advice to both individual and corporate clients. The gallery
works with clients to provide art which reflects personal style and taste and
also that which captures the gallery’s ethos.
The gallery
offers advice on market trends to the established and upcoming artists. The
gallery holds over 100 pieces of artwork including:
- · Works by Picasso
- · Andy Warhol
- · Lithograph prints from Nelson Mandela
- · HRH The Prince of wales
- · CHARIE Mackesy etc.
Through the
gallery’s state of the art ranking system, it enables works of art previously
unseen or not part of the current exhibition, to be viewed all year round.
The gallery
has a showroom just outside Guildford in the south east of England where works
can be viewed in a more homely environment.
Mandela art
Nelson
Mandela started drawing late in life. In his 80’s it was suggested to him that
it would be a good way of him leaving a legacy to his family. He had an art
teacher who helped advise him on colour and perspective and he returned to
Robben Island where he took much inspiration for his drawings.
The artworks
are limited edition lithographs which feature many iconic images relevant to
Nelson Mandela during his lifetime - the bars of his cell feature in one work
entitled ‘The Window’, a piece called Key and Bars has been painted with his fingers
and a replica of the key to his cell on Robben Island.
Other works
include the cell, the lighthouse, the church and the harbour. His artwork captures his years on Robben
Island with simple skill. Much has been said and written about these pieces -
they have been drawn with strong, bright colours, not the bleak greys you may
expect to find – a reflection of the positive light in which Mr Mandela was
able to see many negatives in his life and that of his beloved country.
The artwork
was drawn with a love which prevails over adversity and brutality that was
experienced there. It shows the grace with which he triumphed over his past
experiences and also offers viewers the opportunity to view the art and reflect
on the message relating it to their own lives.
Other works
were also launched after The My Robben Island series. These include The guard
tower, Mandela’s Walk, The Courtyard, The Tennis Court and The Ward – a series
known at the Reflections of Robben Island series. Other works by Nelson Mandela
include:
a)
Key and bars- it contains two strong
symbols of the 27 years of Nelson Mandela’s imprisonment. His fingers have
slowly and deliberately drawn down the page in a heavy black paint to recreate
the bars of his cell. The key to his cell has been replicated and cast into an
edition of 3000, each numbered, which accompany this powerful edition. The
edition has three thousand signed works worldwide each hand signed in pencil by
Nelson Mandela. The signatures are verified by Cecil Greenfield, an eminent
South African signature expert.
b)
Struggle series- the piece is hand
signed by Mandela underneath the artist’s motivation “these sketches are not so
much about my life as they are about my own country, I drew hands because they
are powerful instruments, hands can heal or hurt, punish or uplift. They can also
be bound, but a quest for righteousness can never be repressed. In time, we
broke lose the shackles of injustice, we joined hands across social divide and
national boundaries between continents and over oceans and now we look to the
future, knowing that even if age makes us wiser guides (it is) the youth that
reminds us of love, of trust and of the value of life.” 25.7.2001 N. Mandela.
c)
The Illustrated Long Walk to Freedom-
this beautiful volume has been bound using the highest standards in traditional
bookbinding methods. It is lavishly illustrated with 207 pages covering
Mandela’s childhood in rural Africa, his move to Alexandra, a poor township of
Johannesburg, where he learned about poverty and developed confidence and self
-reliance. This highly collectible best -selling book comes in a lovely
presentation box with a signed photograph of Nelson Mandela by Greg Bartley.
d)
Impressions of Africa: black and
white in this work, the imprints of the hands of children affected by HIV
surround that of Nelson Mandela’s left hand. This image has a haunting sadness
as it reflects Africa’s new and truly tragic dilemma. The numbers of those
already afflicted by this disease are truly appalling. This artwork is reaching
out to answer the new cry of those suffering in his country and Africa as a
whole. It is valued at £9000.
e)
Impressions of Africa: color – it is
a colored art of the hand imprints.
f)
Hand of Africa- the artwork shows the
imprint of Mandela’s right hand. Throughout history, few have left an imprint
on the international stage as Nelson Mandela. His courage, compassion, and
humanity are among the qualities that led to his recognition as world’s
greatest living statesman.
g)
The tennis court- this artwork shows
the transformation of the courtyard so the prisoners could exercise playing
tennis which led to Mandela meditating on the perversity of being able to play
such a civilized sport in a so brutal environment. It represents a two-year go
slow strike which ended in 1977 and so did the forced menial labor.
h)
Mandela’s walk- the colors Mandela
use in this artwork show he is able to look at the brutally confining stretches
of barbed wire in a positive light as he reflects on what the experience meant
to him.
i)
The courtyard in this piece he has
drawn the courtyard that his cell looked onto. In was a grim wasteland where he
eventually was able to cultivate vegetables. This piece comes in three parts;
the color lithograph, the motivation piece and the photograph.
j)
The ward- he drew the word on Robben
Island. He says in the artist’s motivation that it was the only place they
could talk and share information with other inmates and that it served as a
vital link between the political and general prisoners who were kept apart. It
comes in three parts; the color lithograph, the motivation and the photograph.
k)
The guard tower- it is a symbol of
the oppressive regime on Robben Island. Mandela’s vision of the tower conveys a
sense of menace accentuated by the coils of barbed wire around the base of the
guard tower. It comes in three parts; the color lithograph, the motivation and
the photograph.
l)
Artist’s motivation- it is a
handwritten motivation by Nelson Mandela.in this piece, he says that Robben
Island, as he sees it, is a celebration of the struggle and a symbol of the
finest qualities of the human spirit rather than a monument to the brutal
tyranny and oppression of apartheid.
m)
The light house- depicts the view of
the light house on Robben Island. To
nelson Mandela, the lighthouse, which was used to ward off ships from the treacherous
shores of the island, was both a beacon of hope and oppression.
n)
The harbor- depicts the view of
Robben Island where new prisoners would first set foot on the island. The
landing stage would be their first contact with the prison island and the sea
their last contact with freedom.
o)
The church- symbolized a place in
which they practiced and enjoyed religious and spiritual freedom. Although
prisoners could never enter the church, it remained a powerful spiritual
symbol. Color has been used throughout again indicating the powerful spiritual
meaning of the church to Mandela.
p)
The cell- depicts the view of his
cell through the open cell door. The few possessions that prisoners were
allowed are emphasized in color as they are symbolic of a link with the reality
out of the harsh prison regime.
q)
The window – depicts the view of
Table Mountain thorough the bars of the prison cell. Since the mountain isn’t
visible through the window, it idealizes the view by Mandela of freedom and
beauty. The window is one of the sketches where color is used throughout
depicting the deep emotional value and meaning attached by Mandela.
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