About the event

Walthamstow Wetlands is pleased to present Landscapes Set Free, a joint exhibition by North London artists Didi Baldwin RCA and Will Handysides, responding to the unique setting of Walthamstow Wetlands which they have been studying through visits to the reserve this year. The exhibition will be Didi Baldwin’s first exhibition at Walthamstow Wetlands, while Will Handysides returns after his solo exhibition, WETLANDS, here in autumn 2024.

A note from the artists:

When responding to landscape, there is an opportunity to connect with the rhythms of the natural world, becoming more grounded, encouraging time to slow down.

As artists, our language is most sound when the intention falls away. Whatever our expectations, the need to do and to respond wins through.

Making this exhibition has offered the opportunity for us to discover how our works interact, finding the crossovers and individual languages.

The exhibition includes a range of works in mixed media on canvas, board and paper, and oil on board. All work is for sale and there will be a range of cards and prints available in the Walthamstow Wetlands shop. A portion of all sales goes towards the London Wildlife Trust.

Didi Baldwin RCA

Didi Baldwin is a visual artist who lives and works in East London. Her fascination is rooted in a deep and responsive engagement with landscape working with a nuanced language of abstraction through painting. Her practice explores both the beauty of the natural world and its fragility, evoking a quiet tension between presence and vulnerability.

She holds an MA in Fine Art Printmaking from the Royal College of Art. Her work has been profoundly shaped by her travels in Iceland and Spain, where encounters with dramatic terrains and shifting light continue to inform the atmospheric and material sensibilities of her practice.

She has extensive teaching experience and the importance of sharing creativity and ideas is vital to her creative practice. She has exhibited nationally, was on the longlist for the Jacksons Art Prize 2026 and has exhibited in the Royal Academy Summer show and Woolwich Print Fair.

Instagram: @didi.baldwin 

Website: didibaldwin.co.uk

Will Handysides

Will Handysides is a multidisciplinary artist based in Tottenham, north London. A lifelong painter, drawer and maker, he has focussed his artistic practice on the visual arts since 2021, taking inspiration from his love of the natural environment and dedication to protecting and celebrating the Earth.

His practice varies from visceral outdoor sessions to studio work, using a wide variety of techniques and media to express the complexity of our surroundings.

He trained as a composer at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance and his music has been broadcast on BBC Radio 3, and performed live in the UK and across Europe.

Instagram: @willhandysidesart 

Website: willhandysides.co.uk

NO BOOKING REQUIRED
 

Opening Private View: 1-3pm, Sunday 20 September

Exhibition Opening Times
9.30am to 4pm (September) and 9.30am to 3pm (October and November)

Closing Private View: 12-2pm, Sunday 15 November

Venue: Walthamstow Wetlands Engine House Mezzanine, 2 Forest Road, London N17 9NH.
Nearest tube/rail: Tottenham Hale or Blackhorse Road