The first exhibition to showcase artists from the UK public relations (PR) industry, ‘The Art of PR’, will open to the public for a week in London this November at The Coningsby Gallery, London from 18th to 23rd November 2024. This diverse and vibrant exhibition, open to the public and free to view, will display a collection of original contemporary works in various media, including oils, watercolors, pencils, digital art, print design, and photography. The exhibition, supported by communications agency Boldspace, will also feature live portrait drawings by the artist and PR Joe Thomas in the gallery. In our series of special features, we’re delighted to shine the spotlight on Occhi Arts & Entertainment co-founder David Emmanuel Noel, who will be exhibiting some of his original oil and acrylic paintings.
As a painter and illustrator, David has taught art and worked with bodies such as New York’s Groundswell Community Mural Project, The Association of African American Museums, the UK Department of Health, the Royal Institute of British Architects, the National Network for Art in Health, and the NSPCC on projects promoting the social and therapeutic benefits of art, particularly in public spaces.
Exhibiting his work internationally, he is drawn to the impulsiveness and subjective aspects of painting and how this medium, along with other disciplines, stimulates and explores the boundaries of expression.
As a black artist and curator, he aims to use art, especially through collaborations, to engage the public in discussions about race, identity, and culture to create a more educated, understanding, inclusive, and fair society. His initiative, ‘Expressions of a Diaspora’, comprises interweaving projects he has explored over several years, working with others to exhibit and curate related material in visual art, music, and performance. This includes his collaboration with Darryl Yokley on the “Pictures At An African Exhibition” critically acclaimed album and series of accompanying artwork.
As an interdisciplinary artist, David has historically experimented with mediums establishing several distinctive styles of work, from portraiture to abstract. This exhibition showcases work from his Figurine Series – an ongoing exploration of colour, using the body as a focal point for exploring form, tone, and expression. This work is also an extension of recent paintings focusing on dance and movement. It is a shared display of the artist’s current exploration into the human body, focusing on its contortionism and what appears physically and visually conceivable. The series is a work in progress.
For further information on the artist, please visit the following links:
The free exhibition is open to the public between 18th and 23rd November 2024 at The Coningsby Gallery, 30 Tottenham Street, London. Artworks will be available for sale. The Private View event will take place Tuesday 19th November 5.30pm – 9pm.
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