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Green Pebble Magazine
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Beccles NR34 8HE
Articles> In The Frame: Malca Schotten
By Will Teather
For more information about The King of Hearts, visit The King of Hearts. Malca Schotten's work can be viewed on Malca Schotten
The area surrounding Norwich's Tombland is well known to locals as a creative hub, playing host to a plethora of exhibition spaces, artist's studios and the city's art college. For example, opposite the cathedral is Art 18/21, a leading commercial space for contemporary art by both international and local artists, and only a little further along is Norwich Outpost, an artist-led venue that provides staunch support for conceptual art and experimental new practices (see Nicolas Ruston’s article in this issue).
Within a short walk from Outpost, just over the Fye Bridge, we arrive at the fine Tudor building that is The King of Hearts.
The King of Hearts houses one of the most stunning exhibition spaces in Norwich. The hall, with its high beamed ceiling in a star formation lit by a long mullioned window, is worth the visit alone. You'd best be quick though - due to the impact of the recession, the venue is likely to close in the new year and will be sorely missed. Since its inception in 1990, it has made a unique contribution to the region's visual arts and crafts, fuelled by the distinctive vision of its founder and Artistic Director, Aude Gotto, and the Exhibitions Manager, Jay Tacon. The work exhibited often celebrates strong aesthetics combined with a sensitive handling and respect for materials. Much of the art seems to manifest an earthy tranquillity that manages to stay the right side of cliché without resorting to shock tactics.
Malca Schotten
During my visit the exhibition space was turned over to Abrasion, a collaborative exhibition between artists Malca Schotten and Liz McGowan. Schotten was invited to take part in the exhibition after her and McGowan's work were spotted in the annual open-exhibition at Salthouse Church. For the Salthouse exhibition Schotten had exhibited enormous life-studies of lifeboat men, which formed part of a series of drawings that included images of blacksmiths, reed cutters, flintkappers and lead-workers. In Schotten's own words, this body of work explored themes of ‘the earth, working, valued trades,’ the ‘things that really matter and reach Joe Public.’
The artist likes ‘finding a cause’ that she can highlight, and in the case of the King of Hearts show it was the erosion of the coastline along Happisburgh on the North Norfolk Coast. This was a theme also suited to McGowan, who is an environmental artist, often working directly with local muds, clays and pebbles. As Happisburgh's Coastal Concern Action Group states:
‘The wooden sea defences built in the late '50s at Happisburgh, North Norfolk, have been failing over the last few years and large chunks of the sandy cliffs are regularly falling into the sea. Changes in Government policy now limit funding for coastal protection, but there is no compensation for any losses suffered.’.....
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(Please note this article appears in the August/September 2010 issue)
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