Strata, a series of 100 paintings by landscape artist Jeremy Gardiner, celebrates the Jurassic Coast on the 25th anniversary of its designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Gardiner has studied the Dorset coast for decades. Between 2018 and 2022, he revisited twenty locations annually, painting in different seasons and weather conditions. Just as landfalls alter the coast, he cut, scraped and chiselled the surfaces of his paintings, marbling, pouring, sanding and repainting to reflect the passage of geological time. The resulting works break new ground by assimilating techniques informed by science, geomorphology and digital mapping.
Jeremy Gardiner, Old Harry Rocks, 2022, acrylic and mixed media on poplar panel © the artist
This exhibition features many of these paintings, together with a 3D relief map constructed from satellite data, enabling viewers to locate each place. At a time when Earth’s environment is increasingly threatened, Strata provides a unique record of this precious coastline.
Jeremy Gardiner, Tilly Whim Caves, 2022, acrylic and mixed media on poplar panel © the artist
Jeremy Gardiner, Mupe Rocks, 2022, acrylic and mixed media on poplar panel © the artist