Heather Dawe Presents 'No Substance But Light'

In ‘No Substance But Light’ writer, artist and AI expert Heather Dawe brings together a selection of works which exemplify her long fascination with both the mountains and the creative process. Using oils, watercolours, pastels and a novel technique which synthesises art by combining her own sketches with AI art generation, Heather seeks to capture the lights, rich colours and physical feeling of the mountains.

^{'Tre Cime' © Heather Dawe}

While much of Heather’s inspiration comes from time spent in and around mountain landscapes, she is also fascinated by human creativity, which leads to her constant need to explore her own creative process. To a degree this is driven by her day-job as an AI thought leader in industry. As AI increasingly becomes a part of our lives, she believes we shouldn’t lose sight of the importance and value of our own intuitive and critical thinking, as they form the essence of what makes us human.

By displaying her personal, haptic works alongside those created with the aid of artificial intelligence, she hopes to encourage visitors to consider the increasingly blurred lines between human and AI art, reflecting on the impact that technology has on human nature.

^{Cìr Mhòr and Goatfell on Srran © Heather Dawe}

^{North Kintail Ridge © Heather Dawe}

Also featured in the exhibition are a series of oil paintings of Nanda Devi which Heather produced as part of her 2022 guest editorship of The Himalayan Journal. These will be displayed alongside oils and pastels of the Dolomites and Canadian Rockies, a series of watercolour and ink scenes of the Tour du Mont Blanc and some oils and pastels of places more close to home: the Scottish Highlands, Eryri, the Lake District and Yorkshire.

^{'Nanda Devi' © Heather Dawe}

‘No Substance But Light’ will run from 10 May 2023 until 31 July 2023 at the Alpine Club’s premises of 55 Charlotte Road, London, EC2A 3FQ and will be open from 12:00 – 17:00 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

Visitors are kindly asked to book in advance by contacting the Alpine Club Office on 02076130755 or by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Latest Exhibition from Mountain Artist John Colton Set to Open at the Alpine Club

For our first exhibition of 2023, John Colton brings a collection of alpine memories to Charlotte Road. In this new show, playfully titled ‘Over the Hill,’ he shares a series of scenes captured during his most active years in the Alps and revisited during 2022.

^{'Aiguilles' - John Colton}

Working from his old A5 sketchbooks, filled with scenes of mountain days from the latter half of the 20^th Century, John takes us back to the moments when alpine landscapes filled his vision, immersing us in the adventures of his youth.

Each of the chosen sketches has been lovingly recreated and is accompanied by a written piece that situates the work in John’s own remarkable life. Many of the scenes show the view of or from classic alpine routes, with John’s words helping to convey the history and mythos of these climbs.

“Drawing the hills has added another dimension to my mountaineering life, enriching it considerably by extending dialogue, contact and friendship with a diverse collection of people.” – John Colton

For this exhibition, John has worked in watercolour on grey paper, using white gouache rather than the paper itself to evoke the play of alpine light. Now, many years removed from the original sketches, he takes the opportunity for artistic license, focussing on the elements of greatest import in his renewed compositions.

^{'From the Walker Spur' - John Colton}

With an exhibition that reproduces earlier works, there is a clear sense of an artist looking back on their career. But there is more than simple nostalgia at play here. As a mountain artist who is keenly aware of the history of the form, John is also reappraising, renewing and looking at his own place in the mountain art firmament with fresh eyes.

When discussing his early artistic life, John gives the impression of a beatnik-adjacent milieu, his art adorning the walls of restaurant gardens and temporary street stalls in the French Alps that lasted as long as the gendarmerie allowed. Through the friends he made in this time, not least the Simonds of “The Nash”, his works found their way into the hands of Desmaisons and Herzogs. But when he showed his paintings to the proprietors of the upscale art galleries of Old Geneva they turned him down, reassuring him that he would be famous when he died. His reply? “I can’t wait.”

‘Over The Hill’ will run from 14 February 2023 to 30 April 2023 at the Alpine Club’s premises of 55 Charlotte Road, London, EC2A 3QF and will be open from 12:00 – 17:00 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Visitors are encouraged to book in advance by contacting the Alpine Club Office on 02076130755 or by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

'The British Alps' Exhibition Opens November 2022

Award-winning artist Helen G S Forde brings her latest exhibition ‘The British Alps’ to the Alpine Club. The show is an exploration of the Cuillin Ridge on the Isle of Skye, perhaps the most iconic mountain range in Britain and one with which Helen has a deep, personal connection.

‘The British Alps’ details this remarkable mountain landscape; from the rock architecture of the ridge itself to the deep cut valleys and green lochs that surround it. In oil and charcoal, ink, pen and watercolour, Helen’s work evokes a sense of place and offers an insight into the individuals who have made history amongst the gabbro and basalt.

Featured in the exhibition is Dr J. Norman Collie, President of the Alpine Club from 1920 to 1923, and a climber who had an abiding relationship with the Cuillin. Collie discovered climbing in the range when, aged 17, he came to Skye on a fishing trip and made an ascent of Am Basteir with local man John Mackenzie. He would return many times, pioneering new routes alongside Mackenzie with whom he became firm friends.

_{^{Dr J Norman Collie - Sligachan. Inks, Brush & Pen}}

 
^{_{The Inaccessible Pinnacle. Charcoal & Oil}}

Another figure who left his mark on “The British Alps” is Helen’s father Woodhurst Edward Forde who, with Ian Charleson, made the first ascent of The Greater Traverse of the Cuillin in 1939. Writing in the Scottish Mountaineering Club Journal, Charleson recalled:

“Beneath us the Island of Soay stood out like a map in bas-relief. We could dimly discern, too, many of the islands of the Inner Hebrides. At this point Forde burst into song, possibly in his enthusiasm for this unparalleled scene. I followed his example, and in very good spirits we proceeded along the ridge…We had our first meal at the foot of King's Chimney, after which pleasant interlude I had the pleasure of watching Forde leading this steep climb with the same effortless ease that I had admired on many previous occasions.”

^{_{Winter - Sgurr Mhic Choinnich. Oil on canvass}}

_{^{Am Basteir. Watercolours & Ink}}

“When I climb the King’s Chimney using the same hand and footholds as my Father, I experience a range of strong emotions. I have tried to engender these emotions and feelings into the heart of the works throughout this exhibition.”

Helen G S Forde

 

‘The British Alps’ will run from 15 November 2022 to 31 January 2023 at the Alpine Club’s premises of 55 Charlotte Road, London, EC2A 3QF and will be open from 12:00 – 17:00 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Visitors are encouraged to book in advance by contacting the Alpine Club Office on 02076130755 or by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Please Note: The Alpine Club will be closed from 19 December to 02 January inclusive and the exhibition will be closed to visitors during this period.

You can see a full collection of the works on display here.