Peter Stanaway & Kevin Haynes
The Mosaic and Upstairs Galleries
19th April – 25th May 2025
Peter Stanaway and Kevin Haynes are northern artists whose subject matter is primarily concerned with the industrial landscapes and people of the textile mill towns in Lancashire. Both members of MAFA (Manchester Academy of Fine Art), they have exhibited widely both locally and internationally.
While having in common a graphic quality of painted depiction through delineated sections of colour, Peter’s work is reminiscent of the modified cubism of Fernand Léger. He uses the texture of the surfaces he works on to add depth and variation, sometimes exposing the process of building up the image. Kevin simplifies complex images into very carefully mixed sections that create a sense of depth. His faceless workers express their individuality through clothing much like one of his influences, L. S. Lowry.
George Hainsworth
A Retrospective
The Crossley Gallery
Saturday 22nd February – 25th May 2025
“Much of my work has links with that exemplified by Chardin, work that requires to be valued, understood and appreciated by an intimate and domestic audience. The paintings aspire to being ‘used by the eye’ as part of domestic life, and therefore make possible the enrichment that is implied by this experience.”
George Hainsworth describes his work as figurative in the most expansive sense. He can go from large paintings of vases of flowers composed of confident gestural impasto marks, to simple geometric assemblage. Born just before World War II, George was strongly affected by war-time events, particularly Hiroshima, which led to the production of many anti-war works throughout his career.
A student at Leeds College of Art 1955-60 and the Slade School of Art 1960-62, he went on to work in Higher Education for many years alongside his own practice, which also drew from his experiences in teaching.
“The influences upon my work are too numerous to mention. They derive from other painters and sculptors, but also from films and dance, archaeology, science, politics and philosophy. I feel that as an artist one is and should be embedded in the wider culture, interacting with it and hopefully enriching it.”
George draws on a wealth of sources, but what he produces is distinct stylistically, full of physicality and always completely sincere.
Read a review by Art Critic Nigel Ip here.
The Woven Warriors
The Focus Wall
Tuesday 8th April – Monday 28th April 2025
This show highlights the rich and diverse untold stories of the women driving the cultural life of Calderdale.
The Woven Warriors project was set up by local artist Lucy Arden and writer Miranda Roszkowski to shed light on the often overlooked stories of women dedicating their working lives to the people of the area and to inspire future female leaders.
It was inspired by Bradford born Doreen Pickles who worked for Crossley Carpets. She was a trade union leader, lecturer and champion of women’s causes throughout her life.
Doreen was born on the 30th August 1924 and died on the 8th December 2020.
She championed the rights of others throughout her life, and left a legacy of “advancing women’s involvement in progressive politics and campaigns” when she died in 2020.
Skye Shadowlight
80S/HD
The Mosaic and Upstairs Galleries
Saturday 11th January – 15th April 2025
Skye Shadowlight (b.1974) is a neurodivergent Texan-born artist who has lived and worked in Calderdale for over twenty years. As a modern-day storyteller with plenty of thought-provoking tales to tell, she creates large scale installations often featuring live performance.
Previous exhibitions include Liverpool Independents Biennial (2018) and SHAPE OPEN (London)(2017). Skye was the winner of Edna Lumb Travel Award at Leeds Beckett University and the Square Peg Bursary (2018).
In 80S/HD, Skye takes a vibrant trip back in time to the 1980s. She explores the challenges of being an undiagnosed girl with ADHD and all of the feelings and emotions surrounding her situation. The work is comprised of different toys, games and objects of the time, which have been subverted and reimagined to bring stories to life. There will be a live performance at the opening.
ACDC AGE UK ARTS GROUP
Group Exhibition
The Focus Wall
Thursday 13th March – 30th March 2025
Developed over a series of sessions held at ACDC’s Community Art School in Fletcher’s Mill, these works were produced by enthusiastic first-time artists under the supervision of Fiona Edmonson, an established arts practitioner.
The project was supported by the Sir George Martin Trust.
The Halifax Grid Project
In Search of Urban Happiness
The Crossley Gallery
Saturday 26th October – 9th February 2025
This ‘portrait’ of the Halifax area in 2023 was carried out by 63 contributors from the local community. They produced 2471 photographs and 41 pieces of writing.
Their work forms the most recent Grid Project, a project which uses systematic approaches to documentary photography and seeks to avoid cherry-picking solely picturesque outcomes.
What makes us happy in our environment?
This project uses photography and writing to look at the question from a less-than-conventional point of view. Typically, we might be happy if we inhabit a place with, say, low crime, good schools, friendly neighbourhoods, low-volume traffic, attractive views with lots of trees, clean and tidy streets and so on.
We looked at a different dimension of happiness, based on The Image of the City (1960) by Kevin Lynch. It’s concerned with the sense of wellbeing we get when we possess a strong image of our town or city.
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