The Shape of Colour

We are delighted to invite you to The Shape of Colour, an exhibition of paintings by Rose Davey and ceramic works by Francesca Anfossi. Presented in collaboration with esteemed British shirtmaker Turnbull & Asser at their Mayfair gallery, The Room, this exhibition is inspired by a decade of conversation between the two artists and highlights the central elements that have defined their practices: a distinctive repertoire of shapes, combined with a persistent investigation of colour. 

In Davey’s work, the rectangle manifests as a reoccurring presence, which allows the artist to explore infinite yet highly elaborate combinations of colours. These are meticulously hand-mixed by the artist and used to either project or recede the rectangle from the surface; one colour covers the surface of the panel, while the second is painted on top, acting as a frame. The chosen hues are often close in tone and reverberate off one another, creating a visual illusion. Intangible by nature, the colours she uses do not portray a shade found within a physical object; instead they reference the transformation of light which occurs before the eye as the spectrum is shifted through the varied exposure of the landscape. This might be the result of the fading light of day, a break in the cloud as the wind pushes along shade, or the line of the horizon that softens, on the brink of disappearing.

Davey’s paintings on wooden board are informed by art history, specifically the works of Old Masters such as Paolo Uccello and Jan van Eyck. The artist also works with drawings and collages, employing a spontaneous energy that complements the more methodical approach she uses to realise her paintings. Her drawings are works in their own right and are never translated into paintings. They offer an alternative arena of aesthetic exercise and are direct expressions of space, scale and colour relationships.

Working predominantly with ceramics, Anfossi takes the tradition of craft as a starting point to create unique art objects. Her practice is inspired by the very nature of clay — a versatile, inclusive and non-hierarchal material — and blurs the boundaries between art and craft, creativity and functionality. Over the past ten years, Anfossi has developed a repertoire of shapes and colours that have become highly identifiable. Her ceramic stools, book holders, vases and pots are all unique, hand-made pieces celebrating domesticity as a place that is playful, eclectic and loaded with artistic potential. Her predilection for vivid hues is a reminder that as humans, from a very young age, we are naturally drawn towards colours. They shape our tactile experience of the world in a way that is visceral and instinctive, transcending words and historical references.

The Room by Turnbull & Asser is a new concept space that connects people to art, craft and design. The gallery-inspired space holds a rotating collection of artworks and furniture for sale. On the lower ground floor, parts of the brand's 135-year-old archive is now on display to the public for the first time.

The Shape of Colour will be open to the public throughout Frieze Week, from Tuesday 12 to Saturday 16 October, 11am—5pm. 

The Room by Turnbull & Asser
4 Davies Street, Mayfair
London W1K 3DL