This show opened on Wednesday 23rd June and pulls together seven artists with a variety of styles: Katie Ray, Susan Diamond, Ella Guru, Juliet Brando, Vince Ray, Sarah Ward and Helen Bryant. 

All the artists share a common thread: a more underground, left of field social history from clubs, music and art. Hastings features in some paintings, including Juliet Brando’s Boating Lake of Earthly Delights, while Sarah Ward explores the mythic landscape of the British Isles. Helen Bryant uses intricate line work in her bright figurative paintings.

There are also some weird and wonderful portraits, including the ‘punk vibe’ of Susan Diamond’s bright acrylics, ‘Stuckist’ Ella Guru’s models on the beach at Rock-a-Nore and Katie Ray’s haunting and theatrical oil paintings of local people. And if you like guitars and vamp-ish women, there’s also retro Rock and Roll art from lowbrow artist and musician Vince Ray.

• Catch the exhibition at The Stade Hall until Sunday 27th June 10.00am-5.00pm

Dirty Old Gallery

DOG looks for “work which offers new outlooks and unforeseen directions, not just by local artists but artists that see the ‘something’ in showcasing work in Hastings.” The gallery has currently been taken over by the students of UCH 2020 BA Fine Art. You can see their work until 27th June. Go along and show support for the exhibition that almost never was!

After that, DOG say, “We are really bloody excited to have Tom and Rincen for their first Hastings exhibition. The show will be a collection of Tom Williams’ intricate lino prints of profound narratives and Rincen Caravacci’s beautifully unique embroidery”. 

• The new show: Tom Williams & Rincen Caravacci runs from 1st July to 1st August. The gallery is open on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 11.00am-4.00pm; Saturday and Sunday 11.00am-5.00pm 

Suzanne Kelly at Zoom Gallery

Suzanne Kelly will show some new artwork exploring aspects of the Covid-19 pandemic and her experience with Long Covid. Among other symptoms, she briefly lost her sense of smell, which was a blow to her as an amateur ‘nose’ or perfumer. 

She says: “In defiance of my challenged sense of smell I finally pursued my long-held passion for scent and organic skincare and started a business after at-home learning. I made a number of paintings about past experiences such as the Violet Festival held in Provence, and looked at the overlap between colour, scent and memory.” The gallery will be scented with different oils and fragrances during the show. 

Suzanne was also asked to do a series of ceramics for a New York gallery while lockdown was on, and these will be included in the show. “During lockdown and my recovery from Covid, I relearned pottery as best as I could. Around those months people were talking about a ‘return to normal’ – something I don’t see happening for years. We’re all changed. As a response I made vases which were deliberately asymmetrical and off centre; at first, they may look fine, then you will discover movement and asymmetricality (sic). I called this my ‘return to normal’ series.”

• See Suzanne’s exhibition at Zoom Gallery from 28th June to 4th July 10.00am-5.00pm daily.