Viewing Room 12: Eileen Coxon and Danny Seeley

Paintings by Eileen Coxon and willow sculptures by Danny Seeley.

Eileen Coxon's subject matter is her "experience" of nature. Walking provides her with material in the form of photos, drawings, collected leaves and twigs, but most of all, memory. Back in the studio, source material is set aside and the process of painting takes over - very much a two-way "conversation" between the painting and herself. Suffolk resident Coxon was born and grew up in an area of rural Hampshire famed for its natural beauty, which instilled a life-long love of nature. She trained at Norwich School of Art and after graduation taught part-time in adult education for ten years. She is not seeking to romanticise the landscape: her subject matter encompasses both the beauty she finds in the trees, hedgerows, wild flowers and grasses of field margins and verges, and the intensively farmed landscape of huge monoculture fields and industrial-style farm buildings.

Danny Seeley is a willow grower, basket maker and teacher based in the small village of Tilney St Lawrence, just outside King's Lynn. He is passionate about local produce, provenance and the ancient craft of willow basketry. His work is focused on functionality and beauty, combining traditional and contemporary techniques to create eye-catching pieces that serve a purpose. "I strive for self-sufficiency in almost all aspects of my day-to-day life, and willow has become an invaluable ally on this journey."