The inaugural Aldeburgh Art Fair will celebrate the region’s traditional and contemporary artists
Calling all art fans – this summer, a brand-new fair will be taking the town of Aldeburgh by storm, celebrating the very best of modern British and contemporary art, showcasing East Anglian artists in particular.
The Aldeburgh Art Fair is a free entry event that will take place from Thursday, June 22 until Tuesday, June 27 at the new Ballroom Arts complex - a stunning converted building located on the town’s High Street.
Explaining the inspiration behind the fair is Emma Judd, one of the event’s founders who also runs Cobbold and Judd Fine Art in Stoke-by-Nayland. She has teamed up with Belinda Allen Agar of Middlemarch Fine Art, Amanda Wakerely of Oriel Fine Art, and Sally Patrick of Hayletts Gallery to make the fair happen.
“The four of us all have a long track record of working in the art world, dealing and running galleries. And we decided to come together to bring an art fair to East Anglia. Most of the art fairs take place in London and we thought there should be one in this part of the world – people shouldn’t have to go to London in order to get an excellent range of art.
“And of course, this region has an incredibly strong tradition of art and artists, stretching back 300 years, so we thought it would be fitting that Suffolk and East Anglia had its own dedicated art fair.”
The four art experts are keen to showcase the region’s strength and depth of painters, printmakers, and sculptors, and will cover a wide variety of works across various genres.
“There will be other artists there but it’s mainly post-war East Anglian artists right the way through to current-day, contemporary artists. It’s a very broad range and will cover about 100 years of artists – with a focus on the talented female artists who have been working in the area.”
Visitors can look forward to seeing names such as Margaret Thomas, Margaret Mellis, Mary Fedden, Prunella Clough and Wilhelmina Barns Graham alongside the likes of John Nash, Keith Vaughan, Edward Bawden and Terry Frost.
All artworks will be for sale, with prices ranging from about £250 to £7,000.
The event also coincides with Aldeburgh Festival, which takes place annually at Snape Maltings.
“The Ballroom Arts Complex felt like the perfect venue – Aldeburgh has a long association with painters and sculptors, and has been a very important place to showcase East Anglian artists, so placing a new art fair here felt right.”
Aldeburgh Art Fair will be open between 2pm and 7pm on Thursday, June 22. Thereafter, opening times will be 10.30am to 5pm between Friday, June 23 and Tuesday, June 27.
To find out more, contact Emma Judd on emma.judd1@btinternet.com
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