Artist contrasts freedom of travel with restrictions of lockdown

Running at The Original Gallery in Hornsey Library, the 28 works - from paintings on canvas to architectural drafting and projection using ink and coloured pencil - feature landscapes from his travels to rural Japan in 2017 alongside exterior and interior spaces around his Haringey home and East Anglia.

Rape Seed Field (Image: William Jefferies)

The artist and architect wanted to highlight the liberty of travel and the subsequent focus on our immediate surroundings during lockdown. The works also reflect his interest in investigating the expansive spaces of urban and rural landscapes, and the restrictions of domestic architectural interiors.

“'Lockdowns & Landscapes' is the first showing of my work on returning from a travel sabbatical in 2017," says Jefferies, who works as an architect and design tutor in London, Norwich and Suffolk.

Artist, architect and design tutor William Jefferies stages his solo show at Hornsey Library's The Original Gallery (Image: Denisa ILIE)

"During my time away I found making art again a great way to look at and record my surroundings. A watercolour or drawing could capture more of the essence of a place than the simple reportage of photography. The exhibition explores the landscapes of interior and exterior spaces and the contrasts between the ‘natural' and the ‘made’. The work tries to reveal the essence and contradictions within these environments to show them in a new way to the viewer.”

Jeffries was one of several artists who took part in the Shutter Gallery Project to create work on the shutters of Haringey's closed shops during lockdown. His image inspired by the wildlife at Walthamstow Wetlands by be seen at night at Capital Tyres in Tottenham.

Lockdowns & Landscapes runs November 29 to December 11 at The Original Gallery in Hornsey Library, Haringey Park. On December 4 Jeffries will lead a talk and walk through of his work at 2pm. No booking required.