Grinkle Lodge

ABOUT THE ARTIST . . .

Although Grinkle Lodge is a guest house, it is also very much a gallery space for Janette's paintings. In June 2000, as a mature student, Janette completed a degree in Fine Art from the University of York. To study for this was a long-held ambition and now, in any spare moments, she can be found in her studio at the rear of the house. Apart from the murals she has painted in the guest rooms and other parts of the house and outside, the interior walls of Grinkle Lodge feature her easel paintings, most of which are available to purchase. She specialises in interesting and different still-life subjects, sometimes with a surreal twist, more recently combined with Yorkshire coastal landscape and has exhibited in York, Whitby, Scarborough and Newcastle. Her work is held in many private collections in the UK.

Priced from £90 . . . All paintings are Oil on Linen on deep sided (35mm) hand made stretchers. They all have clean white primed sides and look equally good framed or unframed depending on the style of the surrounding decor. If you are interested in any of the paintings that are already sold and would like to commission something broadly similar, Janette would welcome any inquiries. Please contact her to discuss your individual requirement.

COMMENTS FROM JANETTE . . .

I hope you find the work displayed here interesting. Most of the paintings are available for purchase and may be seen here at Grinkle Lodge along with the latest ‘work-in-progress’ in my studio.

I have always been drawn towards still life and the depiction of objects chosen for their striking shapes and textures. I love purpose-made containers like suitcases, hat boxes, camera and binocular cases, and unusual tools made for specific tasks more relevant to years gone by and all preferably showing the wear and tear of human usage. The Victorian era provides a fascinating range of subject matter so it is little surprise that we fell in love with Grinkle Lodge itself, a wonderful example of a Victorian Gothic house dating from the late 1870s!

I was born at Bridlington on the east coast of Yorkshire and moving here has been a return to this coastal region, although about fifty miles further north. The area has many connections and memories for me and I love the landscape of the moors and coast. Inevitably these influences are now creeping into my paintings.

"Timeworn" refers to the inevitable breakdown and change of all matter caused by time and wear and addresses the geology of Staithes where can be seen the oldest rocks on the Yorkshire coast, dating from the Lower Jurassic period.

"‘Willowherb" was inspired by a walk along part of the Cleveland way south of Kettleness and features an area known as Tellgreen Hill.

"‘Ebb Tide" is a salute to the faded Victorian resort of Saltburn, and is referenced again in "Candle in the Wind".

In my paintings I like to achieve a Magic Realist quality, characterised by convincing realism combined with paradoxical elements, to infuse the ordinary with a sense of mystery. I am, however, equally mindful of the need to consider colour, shape and line and hope to combine all these thoughts in the creation of satisfying compositions.

The magic of painting is that it affords the opportunity to create an alternative reality in which the artist rules and it allows transcendence beyond the everyday. I hope that you enjoy these windows into my world.