Artist:
Jill Bennet
Title: Dovehouse, Tinto
Medium: Stone Lithograph
Image size (cm) h x w: 30 x 47cm
Edition size: 20
Cycladic Pigeon
Houses
The Greek Island of Tinos is dotted with literally hundreds of ancient
and crumbling pigeon houses. Once highly cultivated in walled terraces
the red ochre soil of this Cycladic island forms a richly coloured backdrop
to these intricately decorated structures.
Following the same basic two storey rectangular shape each dove cot is unique in its decorative detail, reflecting the individuality and artistic sensibilities of the owner. Small triangular openings for the birds to enter and exit , lined with thin slabs of marble or stone, lend themselves to being arranged in groups to form popular traditional Greek motifs of sun wheels, cypress trees and lozenges. The finials on the roof may have been landmarks for the doves to recognise home.
Occasionally still dazzlingly white and sculptural in the strong sunlight the majority of the pigeon houses are unused and crumbling back into the earth.
The print and painting in this exhibition are part of a series of lithographs, silk screen prints and oil and gouache paintings I have been working on over the last two years, using the sculptural shapes and intricate decorative designs of these buildings in their landscape.
C.V.
Graduate of Edinburgh College of Art in Drawing and Painting. Graduate
of Moray House College of Education, qualifying as a Teacher of Art,
currently working part time.
Member of Edinburgh Printmakers for about eight years, working mainly
in Lithography.
Solo Exhibitions: The Shore Gallery, Leith
Group
Exhibitions:
Aberdeen Artists
The Pernod Prize Annual Exhibition, Edinburgh
Dalkeith Arts Centre
The Crowsteps Gallery, Blairlogie, Stirling
The Macrobert Centre, Stirling
The Shore Gallery, Leith
The Fair Maid’s House Gallery, Perth
The Torrance Gallery, Edinburgh,
The Hanover Gallery, Edinburgh, ,
Visual Arts Scotland and the former Scottish Society of Women Artists
Edinburgh Printmakers Workshop Gallery
Collections: work in private collections in Australia, U.S.A, France and U.K.