A GROUP exhibition of international importance by The Society of Wood Engravers fills Thirsk’s Zillah Bell Gallery.

Renowned for the quality of its exhibitions, the gallery was chosen as a venue for the society's 78th annual exhibition which showcases the shortlist of the best work submitted from around the globe.

More than 200 works made the journey from London's Bankside Gallery and cumulatively illustrate how modern materials and techniques have revolutionised a traditional medium popularised in the 18th Century by Thomas Bewick of Northumberland.

Hilary Paynter, exhibitions organiser for the society, said: "We are delighted to show this annual exhibition at Zillah Bell for the third year running. The North of England is the spiritual home of traditional wood engraving so we are bringing our exhibition back to the foundations of our heritage."

Some of the exhibiting artists still enjoy age-old wood engraving techniques, others clearly relish the freedom of size and expression afforded by today's polymers and laminates that enable printmakers to produce larger works and larger editions of their original prints.

John Bell, gallery director, remarked on the diversity of technique and subject matter. "Not only are the artists far-flung, but also their styles and influences, resulting in an exhibition of breathtaking breadth of styles, subject matter, humour and, indeed, materials.”

Works that caught my attention include Peter Lawrence’s striking geometric patterned compositions, incredible movement achieved by David Moyer, Miriam Macgregor’s moody, contemplative moonlit graveyard, Umberto Giovannini’s bold and imposing depiction of Fleet Street, Paul Kershaw’s juxtaposing techniques and intriguing compositions, Mei Chen Tseng’s intricate and fascinating Landscape of Words, and the arresting and powerful glare of Ben Goodman’s Maxwell 1.

Sarah Mayhew Craddock