North-East fine art students exhibit work at Middlesbrough gallery

A series of contemporary artworks by fine art students at the Cleveland College of Art and Design  CCAD) are to take centre-stage as part of a new exhibition at the Python Gallery in Middlesbrough.
The event, which is the first of its kind to be held at the venue, follows on from a successful debut at House of Blah Blah in December.
The show, which has been put together by second-year students from the institution’s Huddersfield campus, combines a number of sculptures, paintings, video and photography.
Running until April 28th, the show will take place at a space that has been dubbed ‘Jamais Vu’, which literally translates as ‘never seen’.
The main theme is the reflection of the “phenomenon of experiencing a situation that one recognises in some fashion, but that nonetheless seems very unfamiliar”.
A wide range of styles and subjects are set to be covered by the show, reflecting the different interests of of the students responsible.
Student Sarah Burley, from Darlington, is set to showcase her abstract work of oil paintings, which she says is inspired by nature and the colours found in natural environments.
Ms Burley has managed the publicity for the event and told the Northern Echo: “The exhibition came about as part of our professional studies work.  We have organised the entire thing ourselves from finding the space to funding and marketing for it.
“It has been a challenge but it is very rewarding to see the work up and ready to be seen by the public. The group are excited to show their work and never shy away from an exhibition. Peter Hesleton and Python Gallery have been great to work with and have helped us with everything along the way.”
Mary Crick, a mature student from Linthorpe in Middlesbrough was a key player in helping to secure the venue of the Python Gallery, and is also taking part in the exhibition.
She also told the newspaper: “We have all enjoyed working towards the exhibition and it is exciting to create work for a specific space, as we visited the room before we started to produce the artwork that would fill the demands of the room.
“We want the viewer to think about the world in a different way, which is our job in my opinion.”