A WOMAN has set up an exhibition for local artists to exhibit their work after she was shortlisted to showcase her sculpture at Royal Academy London.
Charmaine Maw, 59, originally from Zimbabwe, moved to Ellesmere Port in 2014.
In 2014, Charmaine decided to quit her job in finance to go to university and study art, as it had always been an interest of hers.
Charmaine became very interested in glasswork, describing working with glass as "absolutely magical".
This year, she submitted a piece of artwork into the Royal Academy London and from 15,000 applicants, Charmaine's sculpture 'Cloud Burst' was shortlisted into the final 1,000.
As well as this, Charmaine appeared on the BBC show Joe Lycett: Summer Exhibitionist in July showcasing 'Cloud Burst'.
Her sculpture represents global warming, and the metal represents the Earth twisting and contorting.
Speaking to the Globe, she said: “After the show aired, I was inundated with people asking if they could come and see cloud burst in person."
From this, Charmaine decided to organise an exhibition at the St Thomas & All Saints Church in Ellesmere Port, where she works.
She said: “I decided to set the exhibition up so that people could come and see Cloud Burst, but also to allow other artists to exhibit at the same time.”
There are 11 high-standard local artists exhibiting their work, alongside Charmaine.
She added: “When I finished university, my passion was to open and make a space where all the tools and equipment were there for artists, but then Covid hit so we ended up not doing that.
“I feel like it’s a shame that there are so many talented people out there, that nobody ever sees, so it’ll be really good to showcase our local art.”
The exhibition is free entry and will run from September, 26 - October, 1 from 10am-3pm daily.
The list of artists exbiting are below:
- Ceramics: Tara Squibb, Lesa Grimes-Thomas, Jane Samuels, Elzbieta Jasionowska
- Glass: Charmaine Maw and Nicola Chamberlain
- Painting: Lucy Heyes and Josh Griffiths
- Textile: Brenda and Laura Sharp
- Photography: Sebastian Gabrysiak, Cyd Hindl, Lyndsay Roberts
- Illustration Glass and Ceramic: Helen Robinson
To watch Charmine on the BBC, click here.
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