The House of Smalls

Thank the Lordy for Dave’s dad’s garage…

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HIDDEN
Opening Night:
4pm - 7.30pm
Thursday 21 November 2024

The House of Smalls
103 Henderson Row
Edinburgh EH3 5BB

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No words today 🖤

**ktrump

Delighted to confirm the final line-up for HIDDEN - thank you so much as ever to all of the artists involved and to everyone who submitted work.

Timed to coincide with 25 November - White Ribbon Day, The International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, and the start of 16 days of activism against gender-based violence - this is an exhibition of artwork by 60 women who have been affected by domestic abuse in any of its many forms.

HIDDEN will open at 4pm-7.30pm on Thursday 21 November. As well as the physical works, there will be a looping video of all work submitted for this show.

There will also be information leaflets and cards from UK organisations working to tackle domestic abuse available in the gallery; and any donations received will be split between and .

21 Nov - 22 Dec 2024
The House of Smalls
103 Henderson Row
Stockbridge
Edinburgh EH3 5BB

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CONGRATULATIONS! ✨

JANE GRIFFITHS
Above the Quarry
Painting
74cm x 69cm (framed)
£350 🔴

In this mixed media painting combining acrylic, oil pastel, charcoal and acrylic ink, a group of small white houses rises above a dark, multi-layered landscape.

I’ve experienced menopause as a time of great energy and renewal, as well as a time of taking stock. During peri-menopause, I began painting seriously again for the first time in many years, and the vigour of this painting expresses something of the joy I’ve found in that. The white houses remember my childhood home (since demolished); they are a place of safety, but one that’s not been easy to achieve, and which is built on visible darkness.
and.cat
www.poetandcat.design

CONGRATULATIONS! ✨

This one was definitely meant to be - the buyer passes the gallery every Monday (closed as it’s my day off) and kept seeing ’s piece in the dollhouse through the window. She was unusually in the area for something else this eve and thought she’d chance her luck - I was working late - and Pat’s work was still there ready for collection on Sunday. Happy artist, happy buyer 🥰. It also turns out the buyer was part of the Women’s Aid team responsible for setting up one of Scotland’s r**e crisis centres years ago and she’ll come to the next exhibition!

PAT SWAN
Holding it Together
Textiles - the piece is stitched in an embroidery hoop.
13cm circle
£45 🔴

I’ve recycled a dress and stitched it back together to look like a mixed up broken willow patterned china plate. Frayed edges, lumps and bumps, knots, messy joins and wobbly lines reflect the anxiety, forgetfulness and irritability of menopause, and the need to just try and keep it together on a daily basis. Glimpses of hope are seen in the light of the gold - holding it together and repairing the damage, like Kintsugi.

Happy Halloween my loves 💛🎈(feat. Alan)

Each show just goes by more and more quickly! Thank you so so much to everyone involved with The Time of Her Life IV, it’s been a brilliant exhibition and the feedback has been fantastic with visitors returning time and time again. It’s been a month of laughter, tears and shared experiences.

Thank you Artists as always for your support of THOS and each other; thank you to the people who bought artwork, cards and prints, and to everyone who took the time to visit the show, like, comment on and share the posts.

Thank you to Dr Louise Newson for taking time out of your busy schedule to come into the gallery and see the show, and for your personal support.

And that’s it for now - back with HIDDEN soon - and in the meantime if anyone is interested in looking through the work from any of the 20 THOS shows they’re all on the website; and the gallery will be open with reduced hours - messy and in a state of take down! - but with a fabulous array of original prints, cards, badges and postcards etc for sale. All proceeds of sale of work under £150 go directly to the artists, with a 10% commission applied to sales of £150 and above.

Loves,
Amy # # #

FEATURED ARTIST ✨

PENELOPE O’GARA
In the Cavern She Spins
Textile Sculpture
55cm x 40cm x 20cm
£425

There is a Slavic legend of the grandmother who lives in a cave, gathering the threads which filter through the cracks in the rock; these threads are each a trace of an emotion, a thought, an event from the world above. The grandmother catches them , spins them, and then weaves a tapestry containing all the stories of her people.

The crone may no longer be the heroine of the tales, but she is the custodian, the recorder of memories. Without her, all would be lost and therein lies her power.


www.itinerantbizarrium.com

[Curator’s note: this beauty went for a little adventure in Edinburgh, no one knows to where…and she arrived three weeks into the show. X (previous post) was her replacement, which is why ’s feature posts are together]

FEATURED ARTIST ✨

PENELOPE O’GARA
X
Textile Sculpture
53cm x 15cm x 15cm
£425

At a certain age, women in our image-obsessed society effectively disappear: their identity, their voice no longer noticed as they develop wrinkles & grey hairs. It is as if a mask conceals them, any interest they may once have had now rendered invisible.

Yet this is a point at which we can change everything, and although it is human nature always to seek recognition we can choose to redefine ourselves now, to move from object to subject. Instead of seeking to be the object of attention & desire, we can become the subject of our own narrative, revel in our own agency, define our own identity and recognise how we can and do impact the lives of others.

We can step into a whole new world of power.

X embodies this power, and acknowledges the elements of both the witch and the bone hag which
can make us threatening to some. But in the end she stands strong, proud and confident in her own
new beauty.


www.itinerantbizarrium.com

FEATURED ARTIST ✨

MARIA WALKER
Blood Moon: Wounding
Textile
10cm diameter
£95

A circle of hand stitched French knots representing the physical and mental anguish experienced by women during and after the menopause.

Maria Walker is a contemporary artist exploring human life and societal concerns through her textile and mixed media artwork.


www.mariawalker.co.uk

Just a (very rare) photo of Little A sans wine glass/doing something constructive 🖤🖤

FEATURED ARTIST ✨

JULIEANNE LONG
Free as a bird
Mark making on a variety papers and collage
12cm x 12cm
£25

Children have now finally flown the nest. Hopefully you still have the energy to now do the things you want to do. Dye your hair, get a tattoo, take up a new hobby.

To hell with the menopause.
Now is the time of your life.


www.textileartist.co.uk

FEATURED ARTIST ✨

ERICA DANIEL-LOWE
Failed Eternal Youth Spell
Wire, resin covered feather, roses and paper
7cm x 3cm x 13cm
£50

Failed Eternal Youth Spell is made of natural objects, roses and a feather, which were dipped in resin in an attempt to preserve them. They have been preserved in a way, but the process has altered them and caused the objects to lose the qualities that gave them their natural beauty.

There is a parallel here between the spoilt beauty of the roses, and the beauty industry and society’s general obsession with pressuring women to do all they can to remain looking as young as they possibly can. Society also makes a strong link between youthfulness, beauty, and how lovable a woman is. This can often be the cause of a great deal of unhappiness to the women who succumb to this losing game. It is against nature not to age, and with age can come a different kind of beauty and confidence.

This piece was inspired by the 2018 exhibition, Spellbound: Magic, Ritual & Witchcraft, at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. I was intrigued by how everyday objects can be viewed by some as holding magical powers.

Received a lovely email from someone who came into the gallery today. Thank you…and here’s to you Artists 🖤🥂🖤

CONGRATULATIONS! ✨

JILL JOHNSON
Take Care of All Those Charms
Watercolour on canvas appliqué, sequins and handstitch on vintage fabric
39cm x 70cm
£185

The work explores the cultural dismissal of older women, particularly in Western patriarchal societies where value is often tied to youth. Through the lens of menopause, a profound yet often overlooked transformation, this piece examines the invisibility thrust upon women as they age.

The title, taken from the 1933 song ‘Keep Young and Beautiful’ speaks to the enduring pressures on women to conform to beauty ideals.

This is a challenge to that narrative and aims to recognise the richness, power and wisdom that remain after the prescribed ‘purpose’ is served.
art
www.jilljohnson.bigcartel.com