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Press Release
| Lost Territories |
| EXHIBITION DATES: Friday 7 June - Friday 28 June 2024 |
| EXHIBITION HOURS: Monday – Friday 10am-5pm |
| ADDRESS: Gramercy Park Studios, 25 Great Pulteney Street, Soho, London W1F 9ND |
| CHARLIE SMITH LONDON is delighted to present Joanna Whittle’s solo exhibition ‘Lost Territories’ in Soho, London. Whittle is recognised for her intimate oil paintings that fuse the everyday and the arcane. Operating within the genre of landscape, Whittle depicts shelters, shrines, and gateways, which serve as focal points and suggest a human presence amid the landscape. These structures, often appearing as fragile, forlorn, and temporary, suggest themes of protection, ritual, and transition. The small scale of Whittle’s work invites close inspection, drawing viewers into a deep engagement with the delicate brushwork and poignant narratives embedded within the landscapes. Her reduced scale paradoxically amplifies their emotional intensity, inferring a gothic sense of the sublime, where liminal territories are both seductive and menacing. Whittle intelligently combines these elements, creating a dialogue between man and nature, absence and presence, the magical and the commonplace, the intimate and the isolated. Her unique approach to scale and landscape not only highlights the intricacy and eerie beauty of the natural world but also invites reflection on the human experience of seeking meaning and sanctuary within it. Joanna Whittle graduated from the Royal College of Art in 2000 after completing her BA (Hons) in Fine Art at Central St Martins. She was winner of the Contemporary British Painting Prize in 2019, and New Light Art Prize in 2020. Whittle has exhibited nationally and internationally throughout her career in solo presentations including Museum of London, Harley Gallery, and Whitaker Museum; and in group exhibitions including Saatchi Gallery, Sheffield Museums, Site Gallery, Freelands Foundation, Collyer Bristow, Huddersfield Museum, Attenborough Arts Centre, Jersey Arts Centre, ASC, APT, Newcastle Contemporary and John Moores at the Walker Art Gallery. Her work is held in numerous public and private collections, and this solo exhibition leads on from GHOSTED GROUND at the National Fairground and Circus Archive in 2023. The event will take place at CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, Gramercy Park Studios, 25 Great Pulteney Street, Soho, London W1F 9ND. Available to view Monday-Friday 10am-5pm. For further information please contact direct@charliesmithlondon.com. Follow us @CHARLIESMITHIdn Please email direct@charliesmithlondon.com for artwork list |
Biography
| EDUCATION | ||
| 1998-2000 | MA Fine Art (Painting) | Royal College of Art, London |
| 1994-1997 | BA (Hons) Fine Art (Painting) | Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design, London |
| ONE PERSON EXHIBITIONS | ||
| 2024 | Lost Territories | CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, London |
| 2024 | Ghosted Ground | University of Sheffield |
| 2024 | Heavy Water, PostNatures (curated by Victoria Lucas) | Graves Gallery, Sheffield |
| 2023 | On Shifting Ground | Whitaker Museum, Rossendale |
| 2021 | The Mitre Owl | Artcade, Sheffield |
| 2020 | Between Islands | Harley Gallery, Nottinghamshire |
| 2019 | Flat + Earth | Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield |
| 2018 | Deluges | Alma Street, Sheffield |
| 2003 | Clapton to Centre Point, 1183 Trees | Museum of London, London |
| 2002 | Badly Led Lives | Piccadilly Underground, London |
| 2001 | New Paintings | Agnews, London |
| SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS | ||
| 2026 | Impermanence | CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, London |
| 2026 | Contemporary Academicians | CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, London |
| 2026 | Making Ground | Thames-side, London |
| 2025 | Don't Let's Ask for the Moon | Leeds Art Gallery, Leeds Museums, Leeds |
| 2025 | Miniature Worlds | Liang Art Gallery, Northeast Museums, Newcastle |
| 2025 | Properties of Darkness | Heavy Water Collective, Sovereign Design House, Huddersfield |
| 2025 | HOLLOWS | Heavy Water, Hanover Project, UCLAN, Preston |
| 2025 | Darkness Visible | APT Gallery, London |
| 2025 | HACK | Bow Arts, London |
| 2025 | Jammyboree | Bloc Projects, Sheffield |
| 2025 | A Bell is a Cup Until it is Struck | Bloc Projects, Sheffield |
| 2024 | The Pearls & the Oyster | Birley Studios, Preston |
| 2024 | Unnavigated | Whitstable Arts Festival, Whitstable |
| 2024 | Slow Painting | Plough Arts & Studio KIND, Devon |
| 2024 | Heavy Water | Groundworks Gallery, Kings Lynn |
| 2024 | Silent Disco | Greystone Industries, Suffolk |
| 2024 | Donuts | Fronteer Gallery, Sheffield |
| 2024 | Adrift | PrimeYarc, Great Yarmouth |
| 2024 | Assembly | Rye Creative Centre, Rye |
| 2024 | Adrift | PrimeYarc, Great Yarmouth |
| 2024 | PostNatures | Heavy Water Collective, Graves Art Gallery, Sheffield |
| 2023 | Bloc Projects Members Show | Bloc Projects, Sheffield |
| 2023 | John Moores Painting Prize Exhibition | Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool |
| 2023 | Arcadia for All? Rethinking Landscape Painting Now | Attenborough Arts Centre, Leicester |
| 2023 | No Place Like Home | ArtHouse, Jerse |
| 2023 | Beyond the Gaze – Reclaiming the Landscape (curated by Zavier Ellis) | Saatchi Gallery, London |
| 2023 | X, Contemporary British Painting | Newcastle Contemporary Art, Newcastle |
| 2023 | Arcadia for All? Rethinking Landscape Painting Now | Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery, University of Leeds |
| 2023 | PREVIEW | CHARLIE SMITH LONDON, London |
| 2023 | PostNatures | Heavy Water Collective, Graves Art Gallery, Sheffield |
| 2023 | Entwined, Plants in Contemporary Painting | Visual Arts Centre, Scunthorpe |
| 2022 | The Tyranny of Ambition | Highlanes Public Gallery, Drogheda |
| 2022 | Entwined, Plants in Contemporary Painting | Huddersfield Art Gallery, Huddersfield |
| 2022 | Paint Edgy | Contemporary British Painting, Barton upon Humber |
| 2022 | The Fool | Air Space Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent |
| 2022 | RASE | Royal Academy of Arts, London |
| 2022 | New Light Retrospective | Saul Hay Gallery, Manchester |
| 2022 | Paradoxes | Quay Arts Centre, Newport |
| 2022 | Aggregate | Freelands Foundation, London |
| 2021 | New Light Prize Exhibition | Tullie House Museum, Carlisle |
| 2021 | Silent Disco | Greystone Industries, Suffolk |
| 2021 | Heavy Water | Site Gallery, Sheffield |
| 2021 | Urban | Art Social project, Sheffield |
| 2021 | Emergence | Rise Art, Sheffield |
| 2021 | Human Nature | Linden Hall Studio, Deal |
| 2021 | New Light Prize Exhibition | The Biscuit Factory, Newcastle |
| 2021 | Darkness At Noon | Contemporary British Painting Society, London |
| 2021 | The Lockdown Interviews | The Cello Factory, London |
| 2020 | Thing Worlds | Spot Korin, Kyoto |
| 2020 | Vitalistic Fantasies | The Cello Factory, London |
| 2020 | New Light Prize Exhibition | Scarborough Art Gallery, Scarborough |
| 2020 | Prosaic Mosaic | Globe Arts, Slaithwaite |
| 2020 | Contemporary British Painting | ASC Gallery, London |
| 2019 | Contemporary British Painting | Huddersfield Art Gallery, Huddersfield |
| 2019 | Rogue Women | Rogue Galleries, Manchester |
| 2019 | Bethlehem Boys Club III | Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield |
| 2019 | Prosaic / Mosaic | Bloc Projects, Sheffield |
| 2019 | Second Nature | Portico Gallery, Manchester |
| 2019 | Just One More Thing | Asylum, Rendlesham |
| 2019 | Two Fold | OA Studios, Salford |
| 2019 | This Is Not An Oak Tree | Jugg Art Foundation, Suffolk |
| 2019 | The Immaculate Dream | Collyer Bristow Gallery, London |
| 2019 | Royal Academy Summer Exhibition | Royal Academy, London |
| 2019 | Place | Boston Castle, Rotherham |
| 2019 | Eight Paint | Gage Gallery, Sheffield |
| 2019 | Harley Open | Harley Gallery, Worksop |
| 2019 | Flat + Earth | Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield |
| 2018 | Bethlehem Boys Club II | Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield |
| 2018 | Confluence at Bloc | Bloc Projects, Sheffield |
| 2018 | Confluence | Herrick Gallery, London |
| 2018 | Uncommon or Garden | Jugg Art Foundation, Ipswich |
| 2018 | John Moores Painting Prize | Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool |
| 2018 | Brownfield Research Centre | AirSpace Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent |
| 2018 | Public Commission | Kelham Island, Sheffield |
| 2017 | Strangelands | Collyer Bristow Gallery, London |
| 2016 | End of Beginnings | Mandell’s Gallery, Norwich |
| 2016 | Various Species | Greystones Industries, Wickham Market |
| 2016 | Sad But True | Jerwood Dance House, Ipswich |
| 2015 | Atrium Summer Exhibition | University of Suffolk, Ipswich |
| 2014 | Atrium Winter Show | University of Suffolk, Ipswich |
| 2014 | Winter Show | Subterranean Boulevard Gallery, Ipswich |
| 2006 | Deck of Cards | 39 Gallery, London |
| 2005 | Group Show | Keith Talent Gallery, London |
| 2005 | Hand In Hand We Walk Alone | Clapham Art Gallery, London |
| 2005 | Pocketscopic | Sartorial Contemporary Art, London |
| 2004 | Christmas Tree | 39 Gallery, London |
| 2004 | Aftershock | Oneaspace, Hong Kong |
| 2004 | Pub Crawl | 39 Gallery, London |
| 2003 | Francis Bacon as an Exquisite Corpse | 39 Gallery, London |
| 2003 | Drawing Show | Keith Talent Gallery, London |
| 2002 | Four Colleges Show | AT Kearney, London |
| 2001 | New Painters | Agnews, London |
| 2000 | Collector’s Choice | Exit Art, New York |
| 2000 | Assembly | Stepney City, London |
| 2000 | Summer Show | Beaux Arts, London |
| AWARDS | ||
| 2022 | Four Nations Funding | |
| 2020 | New Light Prize | |
| 2020 | Arts Council England | |
| 2019 | Contemporary British Painting Prize | |
| 2019-2022 | Freelands Artist Programme | |
| 2019 | Harley Open Prize | |
| 2004 | LAC Residencies in the City | |
| 2000 | Jardine Lloyd Thompson Painting Prize | |
| 2000 | TI Group Painting Prize | |
| 1999 | NADFAS Greater London Art Bursary | |
| 1999 | John Crane Summer Travel Award | |
| 1999 | Bundy, New York Travel Award | |
| 1998 | Amy Sadur Freidlander Memorial Art Fund | |
| BIBLIOGRAPHY | ||
| 2022 | Aggregate | Freelands Foundation |
| 2022 | Artist Interview | Why Now |
| 2021 | Darkness at Noon Catalogue | APT Gallery |
| 2021 | Smaller is Beautiful, the tiny but triumphant comeback of the art miniature | Financial Times |
| 2020 | Vitalistic Fantasies | Contemporary British Painting |
| 2020 | Plausible Objects, Difficult Things | Contemporary British Painting |
| 2020 | Fresh Paint | Artist & Illustrators Magazine |
| 2020 | A Celebration of Painting, Griselda Pollock | Contemporary British Painting |
| 2019 | Contemporary British Painting Prize Catalogue | Contemporary British Painting |
| 2018 | John Moores Painting Prize Exhibition Catalogue | National Museums Liverpool |
| 2006 | Celeste Art Prize Catalogue | Celeste Art Prize |
| 2004 | Art & Cities | London Arts Café |
| 2001 | Joanna Whittle: New Paintings | Agnews |
| 2000 | The TI Art Group Collection Catalogue | TI Group |