The Batsford Gallery is pleased to present Sea-Scrape, a solo exhibition by artist Mike Hullis, bringing together a body of work inspired by erosion, decay and the continual transformation of the natural world.
Hullis’s practice is rooted in a fascination with the powerful forces that exist beyond human control—from the gravitational pull of the moon and the movement of the tides to the gradual erosion of land where sea meets shore. His work considers the passage of matter from order towards randomness, and ultimately towards nothingness, finding beauty and creative possibility within these processes of change.
Working intuitively with simple materials, Hullis responds to the physical and emotional experience of landscape. Clay, oil pastel and found fragments become vehicles for exploring movement, touch and transformation. His increasing use of gold oil pastel brings a distinctive luminosity to the work, while materials gathered from the coast subtly connect the studio practice to the environments that inspire it.
The Suffolk coastline has been particularly significant to Hullis. Places including Orford Ness, Covehithe and Benacre Broad, alongside Dungeness, have provided encounters with landscapes in which human presence feels diminished and the raw forces of nature become overwhelming. Rather than depicting these places literally, Hullis translates his responses to them through gesture, material and chance.
With more than 25 years of artistic practice, Hullis studied at Ipswich School of Art, Bristol Polytechnic School of Art and Design, and Goldsmiths College, where he completed an MA in Fine Art. His work has been exhibited at galleries and arts venues including the British Craft Centre, Woodlands Art Gallery, The Showroom London, Westminster Gallery in Boston, Bankside Gallery and San Mei Gallery London.
Sea-Scrape invites us to consider the landscape not as something fixed or permanent, but as a living environment in continual flux—where erosion, movement and decay are not simply destructive forces, but part of an ongoing process of creation.
Welcoming Reception: Thursday 15 October, 6:00–8:00 PM
