Karen Stamper :: Salvage
&Gallery is delighted to welcome back Karen Stamper for her first solo exhibition, Salvage, showing for 5th to 30th July.
About Karen Stamper :: Salvage
| 5th Jul 2025 to 30th Jul 2025 | |
| Tue - Fri 10am - 5pm / Sat 10am - 4pm | |
|
&Gallery 3 Dundas Street, Edinburgh New Town EH3 6QG |
|
| This is a free event | |
| Visit the event website here | |
| Follow andgallery_ on Twitter | |
| Facebook information can be found here | |
| Follow andgallery_ on Instagram | |
After first introducing her work during our inaugural open call last year, Karen now returns with her latest body of work - a bold and playful series of collage paintings that move beyond their original inspiration. Rooted in the rugged aesthetics of urban boatyards, with their weather-worn detritus and towering structures, these works draw from the visual language of forgotten industrial spaces. On-site drawings and the collection of discarded materials - offcuts of wood, paint sticks, and garish plastics - serve as the foundation for small three-dimensional studies, which in turn inform the development of her collage paintings.
In her recent process of inquiry, it is the surface beneath that begins to tell its own story. What matters is not the application of paint in lush, expressive brushstrokes - too removed from the artist’s hand - but how it has been used functionally: to decorate, protect, conceal flaws, mend, revive, and patch, often over many years. The tactile evidence of human interaction and the accidental marks left by practical fixings are central to the work. Stamper turned to house paint as her medium when acrylics felt overly synthetic and lacking the depth she sought.
The process begins with the layering of paper, paint, and varnish, followed by cycles of sanding, washing, and further collage. Shapes are cut, torn, and reassembled, creating surfaces alive with unexpected textures and visual surprises. As edges and found marks emerge, they take on a life of their own, forming playful, unconventional compositions that defy traditional boundaries.
What captivates Stamper is the human touch - the accidental marks and practical fixings left behind over time. Materials once used to decorate, protect, repair, or conceal become part of a visual narrative. Imperfections - scratches, stains, remnants, drips, and patterns - are embraced and transformed into a rich painterly vocabulary, allowing each surface to tell its own evolving story.
In this series, marks and edges are no longer incidental; they become the subject themselves. Each kink, curve, and blemish is heightened and celebrated. Through this rich layering of surface and form, Stamper enters an exciting new phase of her collage practice - one that remains firmly rooted in the foundations of her earlier work.
Stamper now lives and works in Cambridge.
Where possible we will update our listings to notify of cancelled, postponed and rescheduled events, however we STRONGLY ADVISE that you check with the venue/organiser in the first instance for updates.
All information (whether in text or photographs) is supplied in good faith but should not be relied upon as being a statement of representation or fact.GOT AN EVENT TO SHARE? It's free to post your events on What's On Edinburgh, click here to find out more!
Want to be the first to hear about what's happening in Edinburgh? Just hit 'Like' on our Facebook page, join the What's On Scotland Facebook Group and 'Follow' on our Twitter account and you're all set!Sponsored Links
Other Events at &Gallery
Anna Somerville :: Resonance
Anna Somerville’s new series of abstract works explores memory, material process, and emotional landscape through layered abstraction. Catch her exhibition at &Gallery from 7th June!
READ MORE
Sponsored Links
Similar events you might like...
Snapshots: Gallery Short Talks
Join us on Thursdays at The Palace of Holyroodhouse for a short talk on one of the fascinating photographs in our exhibition Royal Portraits: A Century of Photography!
READ MORE
Mercedes Azpilicueta: Fire on the Mountain, Light on the Hill
Collective are delighted to presents the first solo exhibition in Scotland of visual and performance artist Mercedes Azpilicueta!
READ MORE
Resistance
Resistance explores how acts of resistance have shaped life in the UK, and the powerful role of photography in documenting and driving change.
READ MORE
You Mean the World: Exhibition Launch
Join us at the Royal College of Nursing on 25th June for the launch of our new exhibition about nursing in the climate crisis!
READ MORE
You Mean the World Exhibition
This exhibition explores the history of air pollution and of recycling and re-use in nursing and shows how talented nursing teams are taking climate action today.
READ MORE
Monkeys: Our Primate Family
See some of the rarest and most endangered primates on Earth in 'Monkeys: Our Primate Family' at the National Museum of Scotland.
READ MORE
The Scottish Colourists with The Fleming Collection
Meet Theo Albano, Director of the Fleming Collection, at Dovecot on Sunday 29th June, as we say farewell to the Scottish Colourists.
READ MORE
Visual Arts Scotland: Inches Carr Craft Development Award Showcase Exhibition
The Inches Carr Craft Development Award Showcase Exhibition, at Dundas Street Gallery from 2nd to 6th July, will highlight 16 shortlisted crafters and makers.
READ MORE
Alexander Goudie: La Belle Vie – Act II
The Scottish Gallery proudly presents the second chapter in our celebration of Alexander Goudie’s vivid worlds: the sunlit traditions of Brittany and the theatrical elegance of Glasgow.
READ MOREFind other events in Edinburgh
Sponsored Links