In a world gone mad with hatred and destruction, it is delightful to see an exhibition in which the work speaks of a peaceful, loving and joyful side of the human spirit. As Kate says in her artist’s statement, her paintings are about "spiritual freedom" and the "truth" of "humanness". This does not mean that they attempt to divert us from the harsh realities of life. It means that through an exploration of the human psyche, and a poetic sensibility, they remind us that realities can also be positive and life enhancing.
Kate Elsey uses different media, styles and subject genres to present her message. Through the tradition of the figure in the landscape she suggests loving but mysterious, and sometimes uncomfortable, relationships between human beings, and between humans and their natural environment. In Sacrifice, for example, a single female figure floats in an undifferentiated space - a landscape without physical features, and with only the suggestion of a horizon line. The figure faces into the landscape as if venturing into the unknown. She is both part of the landscape and separate from it. The title, Sacrifice, seems to indicate that this is a magical journey, but also lonely and not without cost.
In both Catherine and Jennifer and Faye and Natalie two figures face this strange, unknown world together. Catherine and Jennifer seem to form a 'bridge across two realities. Perhaps it is their friendship which is the real bridge. They stand in a field of white over dark underpainting, while their heads extend into a darkened sky. It could be expected that higher levels of reality would be represented by light colours, but these levels are unexplored and unknown. Faye and Natalie also occupy a transitional zone between realities. Again, there is dark underpainting with white over the top. This time, however, the figures are stenciled on so that they float in the white field, but actually consist of the dark. Such ambiguities are indeed the stuff of the human condition.
Birds have always been symbols of higher realities, or of transcendence. They have represented various deities, the human spirit, or the embodiment of the lyrical imagination as it takes flight. This exhibition includes several delightful images of birds. Particularly poetic is a mixed media work entitled Perfect Duet. In this work two birds seem to dance, so that they are totally absorbed in their own mysterious reality.
Other compositions are totally non-objective. Ancient Origins, The Barn and Steps to a New Land use soft, earth colours, and gentle, organic shapes to suggest other worlds, as usually only music or poetry can do. There is quite a lot of other-worldliness about this show and it is good to be reminded that better worlds exist, even if our experiences of them are uncertain, incomplete and even disturbing.