Sad times! After 12 years of trading, Lorna & Ruthie of Two Doors Studio have announced that, due to the landlord of the building wishing a change of purpose and direction, the gallery will close! It is particularly poignant that two people who couldn't be more in tune to the ethos of creativity and endeavor within the small town of Alsager have to end on such a low note.

As a result, it means the end of this exhibition too .. and I too have to depart .. I have also decided to depart from these works one way or another both physically and emotionally too - any that remain at the conclusion of this exhibition won't be coming home with me .. and so, I'll boldly say, upfront, that if you have ever thought of owning one of my works then I will be making serious one-of-a-kind offers at one of my Artist Days. I've had some great times at all my events here, and par for the course, hospitality will be included in the experience - I hope that you can make it, if only to chat and look around at the work of the other seventy or so artists represented here ..

There is car parking at the back of the gallery.

Trains run to Alsager from Crewe and Stoke and all stops to Derby and Nottingham.

Gallery Information/ directions - Handcrafted Gifts Cards & Artwork | Two Doors Studio | Stoke-on-Trent

I feel very strongly about this body of work because it was executed, for the most part, in a period of personal freedom - it is truthful - I wasn't represented by a gallery at the time and there were no expectations of it. I was working for the work's sake, exploring expression - I put the city into it freely and without any self-conciousness - a true representation of my sense of place. The shape of the City and the corners of it that I had found and enjoy the most - places I still enjoy and have meaning - places I return to time and again. They have become 'part of the walk' that is my journey to find my deep connection to it. The Industrial Revolution that shaped my family history feels a part of my DNA, if that is possible.

This body of work got lost in the evolution of my existence. Brexit lost me my studio in Longton and my move to the countryside by a quirk of fate left me awe struck by Nature - I was unable to translate my responses to the city whilst living in midst of nature - I was powerless but this body of work was already complete. The pandemic buried it in the depths of my new studio - a converted stables in the midst of a farm, itself in the expanse of agricultural land.

In a sense, this body of work has been rediscovered, and my enthusiasm for it hasn't diminished in any single way - I enjoy the enjoy the marks and observations like I executed it only recently - and there are additional works that are contemporary, like a re-analysis of the city I left behind, I say, but is really still on my doorstep in the geographical sense.

See you there ..

Ian ..