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Opening at Watts Gallery in March 2023, Halima Cassell: From the Earth celebrates the career of one of Britain’s leading contemporary sculptors.
The exhibition brings together objects from the artist’s own collection – a number of which are rarely on public display - with new work inspired by Watts Gallery’s founding artists, George Frederic Watts (1817-1904) and Mary Watts (1849-1938), to explore Cassell’s evolving practice over the past 25 years.
Significantly, this will be the first solo exhibition by a contemporary artist at Watts Gallery.
Halima Cassell MBE (b.1975-) was born in Kashmir, Pakistan, grew up in Lancashire and now lives in Shropshire. A fusion of cultural environments has shaped her identity and underpins her practice. Called a “foreigner” as a child growing up in Manchester and introduced as a ‘foreigner from England’ when she returned to Pakistan in 2009, through her work Cassell explores what connects us rather than what divides us, finding expression for this in simple forms with complex surface patterns created through deep carving into unglazed ceramic, marble, wood and more.
Introduced recently to Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village, Cassell is drawn to the practice of the Museum’s founding artists, in particular to the life and career of Mary Watts. Cassell identifies much of her own practice with Mary’s: in her choice to work in clay, her choice to create intricate patterns inspired by nature, her shared interest in diverse cultural influences that characterise both their work and in an enduring fascination with architecture which, for Mary Watts, culminated in her creation of Watts Chapel (1895-1898) – the extraordinary Arts & Crafts mortuary chapel, now Grade I listed, conceived as a community arts project and built using Compton clay.
Over a century later and with echoes of Mary Watts, Cassell has created new work for this exhibition using local, Compton clay. The exhibition opens with this latest work, which includes a commission – the first acquisition by a living artist to join the Watts Gallery Trust collection. The commission will show the influence of both G F and Mary Watts: the piece’s spherical shape takes inspiration from G F Watts’s The All-Pervading (1887-90) - a version of which hangs above the altar in Watts Chapel – whilst Cassell’s choice of unglazed material, carved pattern, and sculptural form reflects the work of Mary Watts.
This section of the exhibition also looks at how Cassell is part of a lineage of earlier artists who were influenced by world religion and culture, and in particular architectural spaces of devotion. A maquette made for Reading Museum, inspired by the capitals found in the ruins of Reading Abbey and currently on display in the museum, demonstrates Cassell’s ongoing interest in the intersection of sculptural form, architecture and craft in monumental spaces.
Monographic in concept, highlights of work created throughout Cassell’s career and the influence of her time spent as Artist in Residence in Japan, Pakistan and Pietrasanta, Italy will be the focus of the main exhibition space. Featured will be Virtues of Unity, an evolving installation of exquisitely carved ceramic vessels each representing a country of the world and made using clay from that country. Each vessel is named after a virtue, those which connect all of humanity.
Laura MacCulloch, Head of Exhibitions and Collections at Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village, comments:
“It has been a delight to uncover the synergies between Halima Cassell and the artist Mary Watts. Despite being separated between time and background, both artists favour unglazed terracotta but have embraced other mediums, blurring the boundaries between, sculptor and potter, craft and fine art. Both women also explore ideas of humanity and the common ground that can be found by all in nature.”
“It is incredibly exciting to see the new work created by Halima in response to Mary's work at Watts Gallery - Artists' Village and also to show the latest iteration of Virtues of Unity - a work I believe Mary would have found inspirational.”
Halima Cassell MBE says:
“Like Mary Watts, throughout my career I have used spherical forms and vessels reflecting my connections to the earth and the spirituality of the universe. Seeing Mary’s work, I felt instantly connected to her multidisciplinary practice, which reflects my own way of working and her intense use of faceted forms, shapes and patterns drawn from nature and a variety of cultures. I have also found inspiration in our shared passion for clay, a material that allows us to explore the idea that we all come from the earth and we all return to the earth.”
Alistair Burtenshaw, Brice Director and Chief Executive, Watts Gallery Trust, comments:
“Halima Cassell and Mary Watts share a fascination with clay and with place. In Halima’s case, clay from different locations that speak to the similarities and nuance, rather than solely the differences, of the ground beneath our feet and notions of ‘where we are from’, and in Mary’s case clay from a seam in the grounds of her home here in Compton, that spoke very specifically to a sense of place and community that she found here in the Surrey Hills.”
“It is a huge honour and fitting that Halima Cassell will be the first contemporary artist to have a solo show here at Watts Gallery. We are very much looking forward to sharing Halima’s work, including new work inspired by Mary Watts, our co-founder who, with her husband the artist George Frederic Watts, established Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village to make art accessible for all.”
“This exhibition celebrates the enduring legacy of Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village and, through art, connects our past with our present, providing a source of inspiration for our future.”
A new book, Halima Cassell: 25 Years of Carving will be available in the Watts Gallery shop to accompany the exhibition.
And coinciding with Halima Cassell: From the Earth, Watts Contemporary Gallery will present its annual ceramics show. Watts Ceramics: Living Traditions (30 March – 18 June) celebrates some of the best-loved traditions of ceramics and explores how these are being re-invented today, featuring work by nine leading contemporary makers. Images available here.
A programme of events, including an open studio and ‘In Conversation’ with Halima Cassell, will run alongside the exhibitions.
Halima Cassell: From the Earthopens at Watts Gallery on 14 March (until 18 June). For further information: wattsgallery.org.ukTwitter @WattsGalleryInstagram @wattsgalleryFacebook /wattsgalleryartistsvillage
For further press information:Tamsin Williams – tamsin@wigwampr.com - +44 (0)1483 563562 +44 (0)7939 651252
Note to Editors:
Watts Gallery Trust is an independent charity established in 1904 to enable future generations to connect with the art and ideas of George Frederic Watts, one of the leading artists of the nineteenth century, and his artist-wife, Mary Seton Watts.
G F Watts OM RA (1817-1904) was widely considered to be the greatest painter of the Victorian age. He became the first living artist to have a solo exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and the artist’s ‘gift to the Nation’ made a significant contribution to the founding collections of Tate Britain and the National Portrait Gallery.
Mary Watts (1848-1939) was an artist, designer, writer, businesswoman and philanthropist. Her art supported and inspired the people around her, involving local communities in her projects. She was the creative powerhouse behind two significant enterprises: the Watts Chapel and the Compton Potters’ Arts Guild.
Today, Watts Gallery - Artist’s Village continues George and Mary Watts's legacy of Art for all by all. This vision to make art accessible to everyone is realised through a dynamic and multi-sensory programme of creativity, exhibitions, contemporary art projects and community engagement. Read more.
Halima Cassell MBE FRSS (b.1975) is a British sculptor working in many materials. Born in Pakistan, brought up in Lancashire and now living in Shropshire, Cassell’s broad, multi-cultural background is tangibly present in her work.
Cassell studied 3D Design at the University of Central Lancashire and has subsequently furthered her practice through residencies in, amongst others, Japan (2007), Pakistan (2009) and Pietrasanta, Italy having been awarded the Brian Mercer Stone Carving Scholarship. She won the Sovereign Asian Art Prize in 2018 and in 2021 Halima Cassell was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the Queen’s 2021 New Year Honours list, for her services to art.
Her work is in many major public collections, including the V&A, Manchester Art Gallery, Leeds Museum & Art Gallery, Hepworth Wakefield, Fitzwilliam Museum, and Walker Art Gallery and public commissions include Light Catcher for the Forest of Bowland AONB and The Flower Dome for Rampton Secure Hospital.
Exhibitions include The Discerning Eye (2008), Blackwell (2012), Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens (2016), Monumental at Yale Centre, New Haven, USA (2017), Manchester Art Gallery (2019), Glyndebourne (2021). Cassell’s work has been selected for several Summer Exhibitions at the Royal Academy and she is regularly included in Collect, the Crafts Council international fair.
For further information: halimacassell.com
Watts Contemporary Gallery provides visitors with an opportunity to see and buy contemporary art and craft that resonate with the history and heritage of Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village. Located in the old Compton Pottery, today Watts Contemporary Gallery presents six exhibitions each year. All profits raised through Watts Contemporary exhibitions support Art for All, Watts Gallery Trust’s learning and outreach programme inspired by GF and Mary Watts, founders of Watts Gallery – Artists’ Village.
Open Monday to Sunday, including Bank Holidays, 10am - 5pm, free entry. Located above the Shop. For further information: Watts Contemporary Gallery