The Blind Leading the Seers, curated by Charlie Caldecott, is on at Stoneleigh Arms Arts Space until 8 November, with a closing night of music and poetry on Saturday 7 November.

Leamington is invited to step into a shifting, sensory landscape at Stoneleigh Arms Arts Space, where The Blind Leading the Seers, a group exhibition curated by poet Charlie Caldecott, runs until Sunday 8 November.

Visitors are also invited to the gallery on Saturday 7 November at 6.30pm for a free to attend, closing night of music and poetry, with special guest Fraser Logan – a poet known for “typing for strangers” in local parks and gardens.

The exhibition, which is also free to attend, features new work by eleven artists: Sarah Pager, Louisa Mahony, Jo Casling, Dougal Kirkland, Emma Coop, Helen Goodwin, Rachel Bird, Amy Rosenthal, Rose Arbuthnott, Michael Bury and Andrew Boyd.

Each artist responds to a poem written by Caldecott, which was inspired by the story of an abstract painter in Dorset who worked outdoors at night. Using black bitumen, straw and the surrounding landscape, the painter let touch, instinct and the physical act of making guide the work, rather than sight alone.

The poem imagines “the blind” leading “the seers” across a dark moor, where familiar ways of seeing and understanding begin to dissolve. Rather than illustrating it literally, the artists interpret its ideas through their own practice, exploring darkness, landscape, material, instinct and the limits of perception.

The exhibition asks whether we can encounter a landscape through memory, movement, texture or imagination, and whether losing sight of the familiar might help us see differently.

The closing night will be an evening of music and poetry readings connected to Caldecott’s poem, open to Leamington’s blind, partially sighted and sighted communities, in the spirit of the poem itself.

Charlie Caldecott said: “I wanted to ask what happens when we stop relying on what we think we know. The artists have taken the poem somewhere I could never have predicted.

“For the closing night, I hope to bring Leamington’s blind, partially sighted and sighted communities together through music and poetry, so that everyone has a chance to experience the work, and the poem, in their own way.

“I am also delighted to welcome Fraser Logan to what promises to be an inspiring and heart-warming evening.”

Maddie Webb, Founding Director of Stoneleigh Arms Arts Space, said: “We are thrilled to welcome this inspiring collaboration between Charlie and eleven remarkable artists.

“Creativity has the power to transform people, places and communities, and my hope is that everyone who walks through our doors feels inspired to make, connect and belong.

“This exhibition and Charlie’s closing night plans embody those ideas, so please pop in during the show, and join us on the closing night to experience it for yourself.”

Stoneleigh Arms Arts Space is a community-led arts space in Leamington Spa, offering exhibitions, workshops, artist memberships and events. It aims to make the arts welcoming to everyone, whatever their experience or background.

Maddie Webb is a practising painter with an MFA from Falmouth University and over twenty years’ experience in arts education, cultural programming and community engagement.

Visitor information

The Blind Leading the Seers is at Stoneleigh Arms Arts Space, 31 Clemens St, Leamington Spa CV31 2DP.

The space is open Tuesday to Saturday from 10am to 5pm and Sunday from 11am to 4pm, and is closed on Mondays.

The closing night begins at 6.30pm on Saturday 7 November. Free entry. To plan for your arrival, please RSVP for closing night at charliecaldecott@gmail.com.

Follow Stoneleigh Arms on Instagram and Facebook, and Charlie Caldecott on Instagram, for updates. Also fine Fraser Logan on Instagram. More information: stoneleigharms.com