7   THE ART OBSERVER July 2006 www.exhibition-design.biz Knutsford Exhibitions Ltd MARK LEVY believes in getting personal.If it’s true that exhibi- tions are the only neutral space in which buyers and sellers can meet face to face, then likewise, Levy believes that the best way for an exhibitor to maximise the benefit of showing is by first meeting with him face to face. “Only then do you find out what makes the trader and his business tick” says Levy, “which then makes the task of translating the ideas behind a stand design into a 3D reality so much easier. It is the insistence on personal oversight of each stage in the exhibiting process that sets Mark Levy’s company, Knutsford Exhibitions Ltd, apart from the rest. Unusually for an exhibitions consultant, Levy did not start out with a contracting, design or joinery background. He began his career learning watchmaking in Switzerland going into the family watch importing business which he sold out thirty years later. “For thirty years I either exhibited our range of watches or went abroad to exhibitions to look for new watches to buy. Now I bring that dual experience to the third corner of the triangle in helping create new, cost effective exhibition stands. “Exhibitions have to be treated as seriously as any other aspect of ones business - it is not an extra to be picked up or dropped depending on the whims of budgeting. But they have to be planned and trained for carefully.” Finding out more from Mark Levy takes no more than a call to 01565 634218 or an email to marklevy@exhibition-design.biz CCA Stand, International Spring Fair 2006 By Sarah Crane WITHOUT NOTABLE exception, there have been few art publica- tions which focus solely on the aspirations of female artists in the North-west region. This fact seems surprising considering the wealth of talent that exists in this corner of the United Kingdom. Wendy J Levy Contemporary Art Ltd is in the process of publishing a book which will focus on a small number of women who share this artistic ability. The book named “A Colourful Canvas - Twelve Women artists in the Northwest” will be the second book published by this company. The first book, entitled “Liam Spencer – Painting from Life”, was written by Judy Rose and published in December 2004. The success of the Liam Spencer book encouraged the publication of “A Colourful Canvas”, written by Judy Rose and Wendy Levy. The book summarises the life story of these twelve talented women, examines their work and details how art came to be, for them, a way of life. The twelve artists featuring in the book are: Debbie Goldsmith, Julia Midgley, Michelle Leigh, Sheila Meeks, Cecile Elstein, Dawn Rowland, Frances Seba- Smith, Lisa De Prudhoe, Patricia Niemira, Gina Ward, Ghislaine Howard and Jennie Ryrie. “A Colourful Canvas”, will be in hardback format; half colour, half black and white, rich in illustrations to enhance the text throughout. The book will be released in December, with the launch accompanied by a special exhibition featuring some of the most prominent work by these twelve artists. ‘A COLOURFUL CANVAS - TWELVE WOMEN ARTISTS IN THE NORTHWEST’ Interest in the forthcoming book can be expressed by contacting Wendy Levy at her email address: wendy@wendyjlevy- art.com, or by calling the gallery on 0161 446 4880. Anyone ordering the book before publication will be included in the list of sponsors at the back of the book. The book price will be £35 per copy. By Wendy Levy Many will have heard about the sculpture entitled ‘One Day Closer to Paradise’ by David Hansel, who submitted the said sculpture for exhibition at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.The sculpture, of a laughing head, was dispatched to the Royal Academy with its simple square plinth on which was fixed a bone-shaped object, placed there to prevent the head rolling off the plinth. The sculpture and the plinth did, however, become separated and were mistakenly judged as two separate pieces.The sculpture was rejected but THE PLINTH WAS ACCEPTED! How mad is that? To  make matters worse, instead of simply admitting that a mistake had been made, which might have made the judges look a bit silly, they made themselves look twice as silly by trying to justify their decision. David Mach, one of the academicians responsible for choosing the piece, said that he thought it was a good example of mini- malist art, describing it as “…a quirky little piece” which puzzled him and his colleagues and that was why they chose it. Now what are we supposed to make of this? Is this really what art is all about? Thank goodness there are enough sensible people who think not. I have nothing against the little plinth … as a plinth. But as a work of art … do me a favour!! Who do these ‘judges’ think they are that they can render an artist redundant? They might just as well go into the street, pick up some discarded polystyrene chip container and exhibit that under the name of ‘art’. Selecting any random item that the judges find ‘challenging’ whether it has been submitted for exhibition or not, rather makes the artist’s intention irrelevant. To  further illustrate how ludicrous this affair is, I wonder what the reaction would be if, instead of selecting a painting from the many pieces of work offered for exhibition at my gallery, I actually chose to display THE BACK OF THE PAINTING, justifying the choice by describing how artistically the string hangs from one D ring to the other, creating two shapes in perfect harmony, totally uncluttered and spontaneous.You would be perfectly in order to say “Pull the other one - it’s got bells on!”. IT’S NO LAUGHING MATTER