A city in colour: ‘I love Norwich’ exhibition comes to the Assembly House

The architecture and history of our fine city is being showcased in a new exhibition - titled 'I Love Norwich'.

The show, at The Assembly House on Theatre Street showcases a trio of local artists whose work captures the character of the city.

It runs from Friday January 20 to Saturday April 8, and features more than 30 original prints and collages.

The three artists on display are Leanda Jaine Hughes, David Jones and Caitlin Law, who runs the brand Soodle Street.

The artists: David Jones is a Norwich-based painter and printmaker who studied at Camberwell School of Art in London and then worked as a museum curator in social history in Salford, Kidderminster and Norwich. His interest in history heavily influences his work and helps him capture the beauty of Norwich's heritage.

Some of his prints are already on sale in the Forum shop and in the Jarrold's Café Metro.

He said: 'Evidence of the past is all around us if we look closely enough. Modern streets follow old tracks and many of today's buildings stand on lines fixed hundreds if not thousands of years ago.'

Caitlin Law, who started the brand Soodle Street in 2016, aims to reinvent the everyday by using recycled paper to create illustrations inspired by architecture. She creates collages of buildings from around the world to explore design, history and diversity.

Ms Law, originally from Hertfordshire, did her Masters in History of Art at UEA, after gaining a first class degree in Fine Art and Art History from the University of Plymouth, and has now made the city her home.

She said: 'I am really pleased to be part of the exhibition and show work alongside Leanda and David, as a member of Norwich wonderful and growing creative scene. Each illustration is made completely from found and unwanted paper, creating eco-friendly and unique designs. Norwich is overflowing with architectural inspiration and I am showing its buildings amongst my collection of houses from around the world.'

Leanda Jaine Hughes recently graduated from the Norwich University of the Arts with a first class degree in illustration and takes inspiration from Norfolk for her work.

She uses etching, embossing, screen printing and linocuts to create her distinctive artwork.

Her work can also be purchased in the Forum shop and her new Suffolk collection at Craftco in Southwold.

Leanda said: I have my own studio in Norwich city centre called Leanda Jaine Illustrations which I've been in for the last year and a half and I will be running open studios in June.

'My work has been wonderfully received in Norwich and Suffolk and I'm excited about starting to work on publishing a book about Norwich using my drawings of landmarks, buildings and familiar sights of the city which includes the Assembly House.'

All the prints are for sale.

The Georgian Grade I listed building is owned by a registered arts charity.

Sam Leonard, Arts Coordinator at the Assembly House said: 'We're really excited to be hosting this exhibition, Norwich has some fantastic architecture and a range of interesting buildings.

'The images on display really capture the character of the city.'

The exhibition is open every day from 10am-6pm.

Have you got an arts project coming to Norwich? Email newsdesk@archant.co.uk