Sidmouth School of Art celebrates the changing of the season and local biodiversity with their latest billboard artwork created by local photographer, Bob Reynolds.
The new work for Sidmouth Wallspace is a magical, mysterious ethereal work, which highlights the beauty and diversity of locally found fungi. The series of fungi, all found in the Sidmouth area, taps into the magnetism of mycology – the biological study of mushrooms. The unveiling of the Wallspace coincides with the start of Sidmouth’s Science Festival, who are hosting a Fungi Hunt as part of this year’s programme.
The piece was created by photographer, Bob Reynolds, in a collaborative project with Sidmouth Photographic Club, mentored by Robert Darch.
Bob lives in Sidmouth and is an Associate of the Royal Photographic Society and a member of the Sidmouth Photographic Club. His interest in the subject was sparked years ago by attending a fungi foray and accelerated during the Covid-19 lockdown after many hours, walking the moors and woods. The artwork captures the diversity of form and colour and is carefully curated to create a magical and enchanting fungi tapestry.
Bob said: “With each trip, the challenge of locating, identifying and photographing them is exciting and rewarding, I hope that through sharing some images, that others can see and appreciate the positive qualities of the humble mushroom.”
As well as the Wallspace, Sidmouth School of Art have produced an A5 postcard of the piece, which names each species on the back and has gifted a number of these to anyone taking part in the Sidmouth Science Festival’s Fungi Hunt. Postcards are also available to buy from the Sidmouth Tourist Information Centre.
David Shrigly, Artist and Co-Founder of Sidmouth School of Art, said: “It’s really inspiring to see another project up on the billboard which resulted from our previous Sense of Place project with renowned Artist Photographer, Robert Darch. Robert mentored local photographers, all members of Sidmouth Photographic Club, sharing his skills and knowledge with them to realise their own photographic artworks that convey their connections with Sidmouth and what is special about it to them.”
Dave Bramley, Organiser of Sidmouth Science Festival, said: “It is great to be collaborating with Sidmouth School of Art, in this case, bringing science and art together, a powerful combination raising awareness, improving knowledge and learning about the properties and beauty of fungi through the photographer’s lens.”
Photo of Bob Reynolds with the Wallspace from Sarah Hall.