Roy Appleton – Not a load of Pollocks: I Told You I Was Under The Weather
Oct 2017 – Nov 2017

A special exhibition at Outpost to celebrate the life and work of Islington-based artist Roy Appleton who sadly passed away in September 2017. Each action painting is unique, combining different techniques, layers and weathered effects to create explosive high impact pieces and more subtle works. Roy’s creative process made excellent use of the changeable British weather, and unlike many people he was happy when it rained. He tracked the weather forecast on TV and waited for the perfect conditions:  a dry morning, followed by rain. When the time was right he would take a canvas and coloured acrylic paints out to his backyard, and energetically set about it. He loved the physical act of throwing, pouring, squirting and splattering paint from a height. Then left the wet canvas outside, exposed to the elements to let nature take its course. Some days a painting dried quickly in the sun, on other days rainwater created new and unexpected visual effects, a great source of inspiration for Roy. These actions and his sense of humour are captured in each unique painting. He loved to “Go for it!” and enjoyed the positive impact of making art on his mood and well-being.

James Gray – I Dream in Colour
Aug 2017 – Oct 2017

A solo-exhibition showcasing fantastic art in vivid colour, influenced by the inner world of dreams. A mix of psychedelic abstract paintings and figurative sgraffito skylines of London, where he lives and works. His compact abstract paintings on canvas draw you into an intricate fantasy world of colour spectrums, twisting kaleidoscopes and glitter, where the physical fluid movement of thick acrylic paint is captured in glistening textured surfaces. The imagination wanders amongst swirling paint to find order in the chaos, with shapes morphing into surreal creatures and landscapes. Evocatively described as ”jewellery on canvas”, “ice cream” and “candy made in dreams”, the sensuous and soothing paintings are a sight to behold and treasure.

Kizitta Anning – Find Your Extraordinary
July 2017 – Sept 2017

A showcase of sensational garments, accessories and textile wall hangings by artist and designer Kizitta Anning hosted at Peter Bedford Housing Association’s Kingsland Hub. Visitors can expect to be enthralled by the artist’s incredibly bright personality and rich history as she talks about her work. “Inspired by nature, I use experimental yarns with my machine knitting to create unique garments to adorn the body, starting with my own individual expression. My work is tactile and can be worn in many different ways. I invite the wearer to design a finished product with me, by choosing how they style it.”

Face to Face
June – July 2017 

A group exhibition of textiles and mixed media portraits by adults taking part in creative courses with WEA and Peter Bedford Housing Association.
The array of exciting artwork on show is the outcome of 4 different weekly art and craft classes in PBHA: The Workshop on Geffrye Street in Hackney. Each course, in Textiles, Painting, Drawing and Print Making, seeks to educate and support students in gaining new experiences and developing their personal potential. Community engagement, health and wellbeing lie at the centre of all of our activities.

Textiles Taster Workshop
June 2017

A friendly drop-in workshop at Outpost, as a taster session for our courses at The Workshop. This was an opportunity to meet some of the students, and join in with textiles techniques they had learned in the courses. Guests had the chance to try out simple tapestry techniques and learn basic knitting stitches.

Kizitta Anning – Keep Smiling Keep Shining
April – May 2017

A sensational showcase of knitted sculptural garments, unique ready-to-wear pieces and textile wall hangings by Kizitta Anning. Kizitta says ‘Inspired by nature, I use experimental yarns with my machine knitting to create unique garments to adorn the body, starting with my own individual expression. My work is tactile and can be worn in many different ways. I invite the wearer to design a finished product with me, by choosing how they style it.