A DALE artist, who has drawn inspiration from Swaledale tup shows, will be putting her work on view during Middleton-in-Teesdale’s annual Christmas fair.
Sarah Nelson, who operates out of a studio at the village’s auction mart, spent the summer visiting tup sales at Middleton, Kirby Stephen and Hawes where she practised “live mark making” .
The artform consists of making rapid marks on paper using charcoal, a useful medium for sketching the black and white sheep breed. The rapid style also captures the action and atmosphere of the event.
Ms Nelson also happened to be at the sale in Kirby Stephen to witness one of the two tups that sold for a record breaking £105,000.
She said: “It is very exciting being in the auction when it is going on. It starts going up in small increments and then it is in thousands of pounds. There was a huge applause at the end.
“I find Swaledale sheep fascinating – they are very beautiful sheep. The tups particularly are very impressive. What makes one worth £105,000 and another less than £100?”
She has also been using paint to capture the essence of the auction, and two of her paintings are currently on display at Hasting Arts Forum’s exhibition at St Leonard’s on Sea.
Ms Nelson said: “They have come from Hawes auction ring. It is very small and there is no elbow room to draw – that’s when I saw this monitoring point behind the auctioneer.
“From there it is a very abstract and distorted view, and I found it very inspiring.”
However, sheep are not the only reason the artist is drawn to the subject of auctions – it is also the people.
She said: “There is this sense of community, especially at Kirby Stephen. There are retired farmers who come to watch and they are joined by their grandchildren after school.
“It is such a great thing and I feel very privileged to be there.”
Ms Nelson will be holding a stall at Middleton-in-Teesdale Christmas Fair at the auction mart on Saturday, November 25, from 11am to 3pm.
