Beneath the Surface: Beth Munro’s Ocean-Inspired Prints in Torquay

Guest Blog Post - Artizan Gallery

A new solo exhibition at Artizan’s Printmaking & Sculpture Gallery

This August and into September, Artizan welcomes Cornwall-based artist Beth Munro for a quietly compelling exhibition that looks, quite literally, beneath the surface. Working across Hybrid Monotype, etching and drypoint, Beth builds images layer by layer - found materials pressed into inked plates, colour revealed through the pull of the press - until marine forms, textures and currents begin to emerge. What starts as process becomes conversation: between shoreline and studio, human hand and tidal motion, beauty and responsibility.

Living on the coast and walking the beach daily with her dog, Beth has developed a practice rooted in close observation. Seaweeds, ray egg cases, cuttlefish bones and kelp holdfasts sit alongside plastic fragments and fishing detritus, collected, labelled by date and place, and folded into the work as both mark and message. The result is a body of prints that celebrate the biodiversity of rockpools and kelp forests while gently asking what our presence leaves behind. “Rummaging through my beach detritus I always find something I can add,” she notes, “a talking point, a gentle message, or just a beautiful juxtaposition.”

For Torquay - set within the English Riviera UNESCO Global Geopark - this exhibition lands in exactly the right place. Beth’s recent research into UK kelp ecosystems resonates with our own marine setting, making this a thoughtful counterpart to a coastal day out: swim, wander, then slow down with prints that reward close looking. Expect richly textured plates, layered colour, and images that feel as if they’ve been lifted straight from a tidepool’s shifting skin.

“Beneath the Surface” occupies our main gallery on Lucius Street, while the Courtyard Gallery hosts a retrospective of Brenda Hartill. Across both spaces you’ll also find specially selected 3D works from our Summer Sculpture Season, making this a substantial visit for anyone drawn to material-led practice.

Visit

· Dates: 23 August – 27 September 2025

· Hours: Thursday–Saturday, 10:00–17:00 (or by appointment)

· Venue: Artizan Printmaking & Sculpture Gallery, Lucius Street, Torquay

· Admission: Free | Works available to purchase

Join the Launch

· Private View: Friday 22 August 2025, 18:00–20:00

· RSVP / details: art-hub.co.uk/aug25pv

· Exhibition page: art-hub.co.uk/ex/aug25

Make a day of it: explore the seafront, then drop in for an exhibition that connects our coast’s living systems to the language of print - layered, precise, and quietly stirring.