Gina Parr

I am Artist Gina Parr, born in Exeter in 1957 and I now living and working in Devon and London’s East End. I work predominantly in the medium of painting, but I also photograph when traveling, my way of 'painting' whilst on the move.

Scape, memory, loss and identity are ever present in my work. My childhood, spent diversely in the wide-open spaces in Devon with my father fishing for mackerel and at home with my mother's hoarding and mental health issues, defined my relationship to the sea and land: The uncertainty of the deep, the spirit and memory of the open space, evoking freedom and connectedness. My work is an expression of the intermingling of both joy and pain: the human condition and tracks the line between abstraction and figuration and similarly to what Howard Hodgkin says of his acclaimed work: “it hovers on the edge of scenic recognition.”

When painting, I am completely immersed in the process, building a reverberating relationship with the canvas, a push and pull of spontaneity and controlled intention, whilst aiming to evoke an atmosphere drawn from the relationship with the canvas, the emotional trigger and the colour palette employed.

My Photography, often mistaken as reproductions of my paintings are photographed because of their inherent illusion of horizon and form, these chance marks, stains, colours and textures on walls and other surfaces, some of which have partly been laid down by others by accident or with previous intent, become chimerical worlds and fictional places.

There is a symbiotic feed between my painting and my photography.

Originally trained as a Fine Artist, graduating with a First Class BA Honours Degree, I went on to Chelsea College of Art to study Set Design for Television, leading to a 25 year career Production Designing a multitude of sets and stages for the likes of David Bowie, Kylie, Robbie Williams, “Shooting Stars” with Vic and Bob, the original Albert Square for “Eastenders” and Art Direction for Richard Eyre on "Insurance Man", Alan Bennett's Drama for BBC. Since returning to my Art practice in 2007, and moving back to Devon in 2010 bringing my creative experience as a designer with me, my work has also featured on set of David Hare’s “Worricker” for BBC, “Breeders” starring Martin Freeman and Alun Armstrong for Sky 1 “ This Way Up” for Channel 4, "Casualty" and "The One" for BBC.

I have also lectured in art and design in various colleges including Chelsea College of Art and Nottingham University, have exhibited in galleries and art fairs in the UK, Denmark, Italy and France, the Society of Women Artists, of which I am an Associate member, and have completed commissions for The Middle East, Belgium, London and Devon. My works are held in collections Worldwide including Keble College Oxford’s permanent collection, Director of Jestico + Whiles Architects London, President of the Boston's Children's Museum USA, Senior Economist Goldman Sachs, Argentex and Vedanta Headquarters in London, to name but a few.