Fostering creativity, sparking meaningful dialogue, and celebrating the unifying power of art, the Norwich Art Fair at the Assembly House is an event not to be missed. Whether you’re a budding artist, a seasoned collector, or simply a lover of beautiful things, the art fair offers a chance to highlight the local talent on a national scale.  

This past weekend, the historic Assembly House in Norwich transformed into a vibrant hub of creativity and inspiration as it hosted the highly anticipated Norwich Art Fair. Drawing artists, collectors, students, and art lovers from across the region, this annual event offered a unique opportunity to explore and engage with a wide array of contemporary art. Boasting an impressive selection of works from both emerging and established artists, the fair showcased everything; from John Sparks’ cinematic fine art, to the modernistic trigonometry of Andy Walker’s digital art, all the way to the abstract washes of colour and composition from Jade KD’s inky pieces. Yet, what brought all these many creations to together was their foundational connection to beauty and love of Norwich and Norfolk. No matter how impressionistic, like Jane Wilson soft edged collages or direct pieces like Colin Revell’s Parisian landscapes of Norwich, the Art Fair’s collection highlights the multiple face identity of Norfolk.  

Upon entering the fair, you are met with an immense range of colour and contrast from the many pieces. Feeling secluded and secretive within the windowless rooms of the Assembly houses, the pieces themselves produce pockets of little worlds in each of their stalls as they wind a path of expressive life and culture as you venture through. The fair featured vibrant abstracts, tranquil landscapes, evocative portraiture, and daring experimental pieces that pushed the boundaries of traditional media. Artists explored themes of environmentalism, identity, and mental health, among others, encouraging audiences to reflect on contemporary issues through an artistic lens.  

And yet, what can’t go unsaid is the impact of the artists’ presence alongside their works. Causing the Art Fair to stand out among many other exhibitions and galleries is the voice that the artist can give to their art; transforming the work from an objective piece into a productive activity of discovery as the method of creating the work comes to focuses more acutely, individualizing the artwork as a character of its own. This focus on the process of art was starkly seen through Simon Bailey’s work, where the process of creation aided him in finding focus and relief from migraines. His pieces are interactive with the viewer, inviting you to cloud gaze and discover new shapes and colours that continue to emerge. However, neither can it be denied that while the artist spoke of their paintings, so did the painting speak of the artists. An interesting metaphysical relationship between artist and artwork came into view, as wondering around the fair it became apparent of how each artist looked like their own work. In the way in which they dressed, spoke and even moved there was an interesting kinship of the art works becoming an external extension of the artist, revealing the nature of the artist’s being. This became a unique and inspiring experience to the limitless nature of the medium of art, and an experience only found through the Art Fair.  

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Andy Walker – capturing a modernistic trigonometry through the mosaic building of his digital paintings, Walker’s love of the triangles comes from its ability to create “instant 3D”. 

Jade KD – founded on a love of water, KD’s pieces took up to three months to create due to the process of layering ink upon each other, using only her fingers to move the ink around. Inspired by a nightmare, her pieces create an abstract dreaminess though their arguably hidden subjects from dragons to reflections in water.   

Partick Wilkins – influenced by the films of Alfred Hitchcock and Film Noir, Wilkins is a self-proceed “drawing mole” offending creating an underline ominous nature to the focuses of this works. 

John Sparks – Sparks creates cinematic fine art, taking still life to a new level with his camera likeness, capturing not just reality but the flares of light and anomalies caught on a camera, bringing the chiaroscuro uses of light of old masters to a digital age.  

Simon Bailey – inviting the view to cloud glaze alongside the artist, Bailey’s uses of saturated colour create evocative pieces.  

Jane Wilson – through a “painting with paper” Wilson creates soft edged collages, using the recurring motif of a small rectangular structure, akin to a light house, to further the cyclical nature of her work as this focal point inspiring the viewer to view her work in a circular path.  

Julia Tooley –Bringing a boldness to her still life, Tooley’s works depict buildings and structures which creates an almost vintage appeal, capturing a compelling and warming essence of the towns.   

Katha wood – A work that can only truly be seen in the flesh, Wood’s aluminium prints command an evocative authority in the space they abide.  

Leuan Edwards – Edwards’ lino prints display a complex system of creating texture though the multiple layering of lino. Creating layers and cutting away bit by bit, his prints highlight a keen skill and patience that goes into his work. 

Susan Abbs –After battling illness, Abbs’ painting creates a poignant message of hope in dark times. emphasising how her work simply “needed to come out.”  

Colin Revell – Creating a compelling strength of mood through his work, Revell’s watercolours capture a loose contemporary style, creating a raw and impactful vison of reality.  

Wendy Kimberley – Along with the natural imagery of Kimberly’s pieces, the uses of recycled and reclaimed wood and furniture creates an evocative node to our ever-decreasing natural world. 

Will Teather – Teather’s magical realism brings together through a unique use of the chiaroscuro lighting of the old masters to the modernised fantasy of his compositions.  

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons