Artist Navigates a River Of Words

30 October 2007: Undercurrents, a new exhibition at the River & Rowing Museum, Henley-on-Thames (www.rrm.co.uk) takes the viewer under the surface of an imaginary river of words. Drawing a connection between the flow of a river and the narrative flow of stories, artist Cynthia Barlow Marrs creates vibrant canvasses with layers of cut paper and transparent glazes to suggest cross sections through a river.

Undercurrents, The River & Rowing Museum, Henley on Thames:
" Exhibition dates: 10 November 2007 - 3 February 2008. Ticket details below.

As an environmental planner, American-born Windsor resident Cynthia Barlow Marrs worked on the master plan for the Maidenhead, Windsor and Eton Flood Alleviation Scheme (now called the Jubilee River) along the Thames. As a developing writer, she participated in the "River of Words" creative writing course at the River & Rowing Museum. The two experiences come together in this unusual interpretation.

Ten panels 1.2 metres high are arranged in a row over a span of 12 metres on The Wall in the museum's Thames Gallery. Visitors approach Undercurrents from the upstream end and follow the river downstream, with the river's surface at adult's eye level and the riverbed at child's eye level. Colour flows from one panel to the next, together with shapes cut from hand-coloured collage papers and handwritten fragments of text about rivers and writing.

Cynthia describes Undercurrents as "an attempt to express what it felt like when I first began trying to write fiction. In both rivers and stories, we're not always aware just how much turbulence there might be under what looks like a calm surface."

Netty Rawlings, River & Rowing Museum Curator, said: "These lively artworks lyrically suggest the grace and movement of river currents beneath the surface, and subtly incorporate a stream of quotes that illustrate the enduring power of the Thames to inspire both art and literature."

Cynthia Barlow Marrs
Now a full time artist based in Windsor, artist Cynthia Barlow Marrs returned to her art and design roots after living and working in six countries as a landscape architect and environmental planner. In the 1980s her land planning projects included the Development Guide Plan for Kirstenbosch Botanic Garden in Cape Town, and the 60,000-hectare Songimvelo Natural Resource Area near Swaziland. In the early 1990s Cynthia worked on the master plan for the Maidenhead, Windsor and Eton Flood Alleviation Scheme along the Thames. Cynthia uses colour and line to evoke impressions of some of the extraordinary landscapes she has encountered in her land planning work.

END

Exhibition Dates and Touring information
Undercurrents will open at the River & Rowing Museum (Thames Gallery), Henley on Thames, on 10 November 2007 to 3 February 2008. The artist will be collecting comments during the exhibition and plans to incorporate them into another large-scale work of art that develops the Undercurrents theme.


Further information:

Kallaway Limited
(www.kallaway.co.uk)

Will Kallaway
T: +44 (0)20 7221 7883,
E: will.kallaway@kallaway.co.uk

Jo Williamson
T: +44 (0)20 7221 7883,
E: jo.williamson@kallaway.co.uk


Pictures
The River & Rowing Museum media centre, with all press release and a wide selection of images for download can be found at: http://www.kallaway.co.uk/rrm.htm

Notes to Editors and Public Information
The River & Rowing Museum attracts over 90,000 visitors a year and celebrates three themes:

 The past, present and future of the River Thames;
 The historic riverside community of Henley on Thames;
 The international sport of rowing.

These themes are explored through a wide variety of exhibitions and events across four galleries and special exhibitions. One the Museum's major success has been The Wind in the Willows exhibition which recreates the timeless E H Shepard illustrations from Kenneth Grahame's famous novel.

Since opening in August 1998 the Museum has received numerous awards for its design and architecture, including the National Heritage/NPI Museum of the Year award. The River & Rowing Museum is part of the Thames Valley Museums Group (TVMG) Family Friendly initiative - a scheme which brings together 29 museums across Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire, to promote their popular appeal to the whole family

	Address The River & Rowing Museum, Mills Meadows, Henley on Thames, Oxfordshire, RG9 1BF. Tel. 01491 415600. Web: www.rrm.co.uk
	The museum, terrace café and shop is open every day from 10am - 5.30pm in summer and 10am - 5pm in the winter
	Paid for tickets are valid for re-entry to the museum for 12 months
	Admission for The Wind in the Willows including the Galleries: £7 for adults, £5 for children and £6 for senior citizens and concessions
	Admission for the Museum Galleries: £3.50 for adults, £2.50 for children and £3 for senior citizens and concessions
	Free parking for visitors

END TO ALL