Art - Four Square Fine Arts

Four Square Fine Arts opened on Tuesday, which gave me a chance to browse around Lewes’ latest gallery, on Mount Place, just down from the Lewes Arms. It’s a great little place, with that smell of newness that suits a gallery. Sonia, who runs the space, was sitting at her desk, and she took me though the work of the three artists on display. First up, we checked out the work of Greek ceramicist Sotis Filippides, which is in the window. “Sotis uses a rough clay which he sources in Stoke,” she says. “It’s so rough he can only make six to eight pots a day, then his hands go all red and raw.” They are slightly misshapen, and myriad particles glint in the light. “That’s the silica, and sand particles,” says Sonia. I ask if I can pick one up. I can. It’s surprisingly light.

The walls are covered with prints by Maja Scott and paintings by Sally McGill. Both were originally textile designers, and you can see it in their work. They complement one another well. Sally flies a lot and much of her work is landscapes taken from a bird’s eye view, which she stylises. They look like abstract works, until you see their titles: Seed Path; Patterned Land; Field Geometry. Maja’s work looks primitivist, reflecting the many years she lived in Africa. There are birds, and trees. Black figures prominently in every print, holding the works together. The pots are great; the art’s not right up my street. I love the gallery, though, and I’m already looking forward to the next two events, a Christmas show and, excitingly, an exhibition of Sandra Blow prints. AG