While still suffering from the shock of seeing my age in print, I do appreciate the writing skills of all these writers who have crafted their pieces for the local paper readership over the last few years!
Joe Morgan for the Newsquest Group
"Inking Outside The Block" 2011 (Surrey Comet and Local Guardian)
"Household chores can feel like a full-time job, but Jenny Meehan can make the dinner, wash the dishes, and make abstract art on the kitchen table.Meehan, 45, experiments with different types of media, from lino-printing to ceramics, explaining why she called her exhibition Inking Outside The Block.
A full time mother to a 13-year-old girl and a nine-year-old boy, Meehan has lived in Chessington for 12 years. She says: “If you have children you can lose sense of yourself, as it is a big life change. All of your energy and your focus is, when they’re very young, put into bringing these young children up. “Art is a particularly good way of finding yourself again.”
Meehan began to develop her artistic side when she photographed her little girl when she was two, and found inspiration in her children discovering the world and expressing themselves. She said: “My studio space is my kitchen, so I have to get that ready and get working straight away. I have to ignore the domestic chaos around me, and just cut it off.”
Her husband, Neil Meehan, is the headteacher of Trafalgar Junior School in Twickenham. She recently helped the pupils to create a mural in the playground outside inspired by the Dutch artist Piet Mondrian.The work, using ecologically friendly paint, also incorporated characters children created in a cartooning workshop. Meehan said that as an ex-teacher it was fantastic to work with the children, especially as they were so enthusiastic.
While her art may not be conventional, she says it is always important to keep experimenting. She said: “Art is so autonomous and self directed. If you have confidence to do what you do, it’s incredibly valuable.” The exhibition will consist primarily of experimental linoprints, and there will be prints and cards available for sale on the opening night. Inking Outside The Block, Visual Art Exhibition will be at the CornerHOUSE Community Arts Centre, Douglas Road, Surbiton December 6 – 30.
"Colour-Full-House" Solo Exhibition 2010 (Local Guardian)
"If you are experiencing a touch of the January blues, then head to CornerHOUSE arts centre where artist Jenny Meehan is brightening up the new year with her latest exhibition, Colour-Full-House. The exhibition, which opened at the Tolworth venue this week, features work in a range of mediums, including paintings in oils and acrylic, digitally manipulated photographs, prints on fabric, and even a tablecloth, with a number of the pieces up for sale.
“January can be a rather drab month and lacking in colour and vibrancy,” explains Meehan. “I have chosen a selection of paintings which demonstrates my love of colour and expressive gestural brushwork. “The forest and garden form the main subject matter of the paintings on show. Things may look dormant and quiet outside the cornerHOUSE but, this January, there will be a lot of life inside! “My photographic work involves a greater degree of abstraction than the paintings but, again, an awful lot of colour! “Recently, I have produced some exciting work on a larger scale and the exhibition includes an extremely bright, surreal wall hanging entitled Totem, which is more than 2m high. As a mother and homemaker, I could not resist creating a tablecloth too!”
The name and artistic endeavours undertaken at CornerHOUSE provided inspiration for Meehan in putting Colour-Full-House together and she is hopeful her art will, in turn, enthuse those who view it. “The venue is lovely and it has good lighting and a rather cosy feel which I like,” she adds. “The existence of the CornerHOUSE, and the valuable work of the volunteers who work so hard to run the place, is a great inspiration. “There are very few places in the borough where artists can exhibit their work for free but the visual arts are a vital part of any community and I hope my work inspires the people who see it.”
Chessington-based Meehan graduated from Kingston University in 1994 and worked as a primary school teacher for three years before starting a family. She began creating artwork in 2005 and has had pieces included in the Kingston Contemporary Open exhibition in 2006 and 2007 and last August presented a solo show at Leatherhead Theatre. “I see my work as an articulation of fragmentary experience and it is how I make sense of the world,” she says. “I think visual art has a voice which can express things inexpressible by any other means. There is a lot in life which is hard to articulate with words, yet an image or sculpture can speak volumes.”
On Friday, from 7pm, Meehan will be at a opening evening at cornerHOUSE to celebrate the opening of Colour-Full-House. Colour-Full-House, CornerHOUSE, Surbiton, until January 30, visit cornerhouse.org/ jennymeehan.co.uk
Simon Fitzjohn for the Newsquest Group (Local Guardian)
"Articulation " Solo Exhibition 2009
"The phrase multi-talented may be overused in modern society, but one would be hard pushed to think of a more apt description for Chessington artist Jenny Meehan. About to unleash her Articulation 2009 exhibition at the Leatherhead Theatre, the display will see Meehan showing off her skills in painting, fabric design, sculpture and poetry. But for the former schoolteacher it is no big deal. She explains: “I am a "think big" person, so I like to display a large body of work. “I have a very creative personality and I am always looking to challenge myself. My work does have a lot of different strands, but there is a common theme to it all. “The main aim with the exhibition is to get my art into the community and the theatre is a great place for that to happen.” But it has not always been like this, with Meehan’s art skills lying dormant while she enjoyed a brief stint as a teacher. And the Teddington-born artist, who also holds a degree in literature from Kingston University, admits she took a while to find her chosen path. She adds: “When I was younger I had a passion for the arts but I just did not have the confidence to pursue it. “I really had no belief". “So I decided to get on with life and that is when I went into teaching. “I always wanted to work in this field, but you need a certain amount of time and money to do so.” Having thrown herself headlong into the arts world Meehan has very quickly established a fine reputation, garnering a ‘highly commended’ recommendation for her work at Needham’s Open. A mix of vibrant action and quiet contemplation and motivated by the power of colour and the beauty of the natural form, Articulation promises to be an immensely varied and interesting exhibit. And the Surrey talent has very definite aims from the project. Meehan reveals: “I have spent a long time mulling over what to include, as I want the exhibition to appeal to both adults and children. I want my work to engage people, and I think Articulation will do just that.”
Articulation 2009, Leatherhead Theatre, Church Street, August 4-27, 10am-10pm, free, 01372 365141
