Colour, Light, Sound, Silence

Marcus Vergette & Simon Marsh

4 October to 23 November 2025

Cross Lane Projects is pleased to present ‘Colour, Light, Sound, Silence’ a two person exhibition by artists Marcus Vergette and Simon Marsh, featuring painting, sculpture and bells.

Marcus Vergette and Simon Marsh met in 1980 on the Fine Art Painting course at Central School of Art & Design in London and have been friends ever since. In the intervening years both artists have continued their practice; Vergette’s focus developed to explore sculpture and sound, Marsh became a printmaker and has recently been exploring stained glass and experimental forms.

Texture and the trace of the hand(made) is important to them both. This exhibition in Kendal is their first show together and their work can be considered in the context of their long association. As artists they explore the elemental and emotional qualities of light and sound, forms of energy that move as waves of different speeds, through which we experience the world. Both light and sound can be reflected and refracted, observed and invented, as they are in the works on display.

Vergette creates unique and inventive bell forms, exploring the history and cultural associations of bells. Some of the bells in this show are tuned and their ringing is encouraged, others are mute suggestions. Bells are communication devices, and through time they have reflected changing perceptions and priorities within societies. Continuing in that tradition, Vergette is presenting his own stories relevant to these times. Ringing a bell is associated with authority, temporal and spiritual, and bells are often housed in hidden locations, known and heard but unseen. Here, the bell is evidently celebrated and made to be seen.

The sound of a bell is constant and un-shifting, it is the same as it was when it was first cast. But the meaning of a sounding bell depends on the motivation and character of the one who rings it, the same bell may strike for a wedding or a funeral. Hearing the sound is hearing messages about how and why and bell was made. Historically foundries cast bells in peacetime and cannons in wartime, the casting technique is the same for both. Vergette’s bells are calling for our attention on changing climate and precious environments.

Marsh paints and assembles work which is a response to the area in Cornwall where he lives.  A tightly focused reaction to the rural environment suffused with vivid light. This area of West Cornwall has a notable artistic heritage, which is playfully embraced and acknowledged in the work. The pictures and constructions are based on drawings made in situ, then worked on over time in the studio. The layering and accretion of the surface is important, intentionally suggesting weathering and crystallisation.

Glass and mirrors are used to reflect light and cast colour and shadows around their presence, the constructions are fragile and ephemeral. The stained glass here is concerned with the elemental rather than the spiritual, the use of mirrors open-up visual extensions of the existing space. The space in this work is a distillation of the landscape through observation and familiarity.

Both artists are based in rural locations in the South West.

Marcus Vergette
Marcus Vergette’s creative practice is rooted in the duality of being both a sculptor and musician. One of his core principles is democratising art, and he has worked extensively in creating public bell sculptures. Remodelling this ancient device of communication, the artist explores its history, meanings and physical properties, creating a process that embraces both art and engineering. Bells are historically associated with temporal and spiritual power and authority. In 2003 Marcus made his first bell for Highampton, Devon, the village at heart of the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease. “My Feet In Earth” is thought to be the first public access bell in the UK.

Since meeting Simon at the Central School of Art in 1980,Vergette has made sculpture and music in Armenia, Belgium, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, U.S.A, and around the UK. Including the Time and Tide Bells, twelve bells rung by the tide, marking the sea level around Britain: the Harmonic Canon, a pair of tuned bells which won a PRS New Music Award 2018: and The Robert Hooke Bell for Extinction at The David Attenborough Building, Cambridge.

Simon Marsh
Since leaving Central School of Art and Design in 1983, I established Hope (Sufferance) Press, a fine art printing studio in 1986. I took a sabbatical from 1991-1992 to make a continuous walk around the coast of England and Wales. It took 18 months and I made paintings each day, carrying everything I needed and camping at night. On my return I produced a book of etchings, Printed Steps, and had several exhibitions of etchings and paintings. In 2004, I started working at Paupers Press which has been an ongoing collaboration with its founder, Michael Taylor. I moved to Cornwall in 2013, and have set up my own publishing press, Jollytown Editions, in West Penwith where I live and work.

Photography by Rebecca Larkin and Mark Woods. All works copyright the artists.