Film & Arts Features

Artwork by 10 members of a Northamptonshire family has been brought together for an exhibition.

The O'Keefe family grew up in Northamptonshire surrounded by books and fine art. "There was a common thread of creativity running through all three generations," says Gerry O'Keefe.

Now that creativity is on view at Northampton's Museum and Art Gallery on Guildhall Road.

The exhibition runs from 21st January to 26th February 2006. Opening times are 10am to 5pm Monday to Saturday and 2pm to 5pm on Sundays.

Below, Gerry O'Keefe explains why Long Buckby was an inspiration for the family.

Free thinking

The Northamptonshire village of Long Buckby has been an inspiration and family base for the O'Keeffe family for nearly 50 years, after Patrick Vincent O'Keeffe and his wife Maureen arrived there from Ireland with their young family after the Second World War.

The people of Long Buckby have a fiercely independent and free thinking way of life. In fact, many local families were very early settlers in America and several non conformist chapels sprang up later in the village to offer locals something different in their religion as well. This climate of iconoclasm and an interest in the new suited the incoming O'Keeffe clan as well.

Thus, we grew up surrounded by books and brooks, fields and fine art. It was all jumbled together in our large rambling house at the bottom of Church Street - with friends and artists dropping in at all times and the original seven children busy at their own art or writing projects from an early age.

This generation grew up and moved on - having 12 children of their own. However, there was a common thread of creativity running through all three generations: the majority undertake creative projects as naturally as they prepare meals or engage in conversation - it has always been part of the shared family vocabulary.

Dazzling

Though there are numerous local artists whose work they admire greatly, inspiration comes from all over. The dazzling poetry of Northamptonshire poet John Clare has been a direct inspiration - as has the feminist work of Paula Rego and Frida Kahlo. Added to this we have the ideas and symbolism of Jack Yeats and Anslem Kiefer.

In addition, they may well be distantly related to the foremost female artist of the twentieth century - Georgia O'Keeffe, thorough a common ancestor from the South of Ireland in the Nineteeth Century.

The exhibition shows work of at least 10 family artists - from draughtsman Patrick Vincent to his three grandaughters. As such, we hope the exhibition is as enjoyable to see as it has been to create.