A FRENCH artist who moved to England in the 70s is looking forward to presenting her home town of Paris ‘in a way that has never been seen before’ at her first solo exhibition.
Claudine Turner will showcase her fusion of painting styles at her exhibition Au Revoir Paris at Rugby Art Gallery and Museum later this month.
Born in the French capital in 1949, Claudine aims to tell the story of her childhood and teenage years growing up in Paris through the 22 paintings in the exhibition.
She says she has adopted an illustrative approach in her work, combining painting with geometric style illustration and a graphic artist’s eye for pictorial detail.
But, although she enjoyed painting and drawing as a child, she never had any ambition to be an artist until she moved to Kettering in 1975 where she was elected a member of a local art society.
After taking a Foundation Course in Art and studying her degree at Leicester Polytechnic, she worked in commercial art for 20 years.
She said: “My style of work has evolved over the years. The influence of commercial art has stayed with me. I have also been inspired by the lesser-known French cubist painters Fernand Léger, and Juan Gris, the poster artist AM Cassandre, and the Clyde shipbuilding pictures by Stanley Spencer.
“Although I have exhibited in galleries in the East Midlands since 1973 and won several prizes for my work, this will be my very first solo show and my first show in Rugby.
“I am looking forward to art lovers having this opportunity to see this fusion of styles that presents my home town of Paris in a way that has never been seen before.”
She says the exhibition will be of interest to all who love Paris and those who love learning the language.
“Paintings of Paris are always popular with lovers of the city and the French way of life, so they have a relevance that extends beyond the local,” she said.
“Visitors will be able to add to their own knowledge through the detailed depictions of the famous and less well-known points of interest in the city and its development.
“Students of French will be able to broaden their knowledge of Parisian culture in particular through the narrative approach adopted.”
Au Revoir Paris takes place at Rugby Art Gallery and Museum’s Floor One Gallery from Saturday August 26 to Saturday September 9.
