David Remfry’s In Residence is the latest artist collaboration to be on display at Dovecot Studio’s Tapestry Balcony. Remfry is a British artist perhaps best known for his large scale watercolours depicting the people and places of New York.
Chandelirium, the exhibition’s centrepiece, is a massive handwoven tapestry produced by the weavers at Dovecot Studio over the course of a few months, and is based off Remfry’s painting of the same name. Both the tapestry and the original painting depict the chandeliers of New York’s Soho House, where the artist and his wife resided for a few months.
Dovecot Studios has staged similar collaborations with other contemporary artists to translate significant pieces from their oeuvre into scaled-up tapestries. Chandelirium, the tapestry by Dovecot Studios and David Remfry depict the chandeliers in a shocking—almost bioluminescent—green. While the original painting was done in oil, it is a testament to Dovecot’s weavers that the tapestry maintains the original’s painting’s sense of movement and fluidity.
The rest of the exhibition is largely made up of paintings from Remfry’s contemporary career. While Remfry was historically a figurative artist, the exhibition’s works depict a range abstract pieces, including Another Sunrise (2024).
His contemporary career is also marked by a return to oil as a medium, rather than the watercolours he is more usually recognised by. Recurring motifs in the exhibition include intimate portraits, including one of the actor Alan Cumming and his dog Honey, abstracted shapes, and of course chandeliers.
The exhibition at Dovecot Studios presents a glimpse into almost five decades worth of Remfry’s paintings. While one is undeniably drawn to the tapestry, the rest of the exhibition is equally as stunning.
In Residence is open to the public between 12pm and 3pm on weekdays, and 10am to 5pm on Saturdays. The exhibition will be showing at Dovecot Studio’s Tapestry Balcony until 12 June 2026.
Photography provided by Dovecot Studios for The Student
