Finissage - Reverence: a debut solo exhibition by Sophie Macdonald

Reverence is now extended until Friday 20th October, open Monday to Friday with the Finissage event on Thursday 19th from 6-9pm.

The most striking works are large canvases in which Sophie has painted portraits of Muslim women in floor length hijab, skipping joyfully with skipping ropes. Skipping, she points out, is "an iconic childhood image of innocence and freedom" and the images challenge perceptions of the women as being inhibited or imprisoned by their traditional garments.

The subjects of these paintings are women from the local community.

"The show has opened a dialogue between women who wear the veil and women who don't, asking what effect the lack of clothing has on veiled women and vice versa."