Floating, falling, or dancing? Spirit of Adventure, at West Horsley Place

Amy Beager, b.1988, BOBBIDI, 2021, Acrylic oil and pastel on linen, 140x80cm. Courtesy of the Ingram Collection

Is this muscular angel falling, floating, or dancing? Perhaps all three at once. The colourful pink-winged creature is the creation of Amy Beager, and is typical of her romantic, melodramatic, enchanting work, which transforms neo-classical figures into modern-day deities, in dayglo tones. It is titled Bobbidi, referencing The Magic Song from Cinderella, inferring a spell has been cast: rest assured we are not moving in the material world. Beager entered the piece for the Ingram Prize 2022 (for contemporary UK artists), and was chosen as one of the four winners. As a result Bobbidi has been acquired by the Ingram Collection, and is on show at their latest exhibition.

Entrepreneur Chris Ingram didn’t start collecting art until 2002, when he was approaching his sixtieth year. Now 80, he has amassed one of the country’s finest collections, of over 600 works. He wants these works to be enjoyed by as wide an audience as possible, and the Ingram Collection has embarked on a busy loans and exhibition programme. Visitors to British Art Fair 2022 enjoyed a fine display of works from the collection at the Saatchi Gallery.

The latest Ingram Collection exhibition – Spirit of Adventure – opened last weekend at West Horsley Place, near Guildford in Surrey. Most of the works in the show are by ModBrit artists, such as Elizabeth Frink, David Jones, David Remfry, Eric Ravilious, Feliks Topolski, Henry Moore, Lynn Chadwick, Reg Butler, Ruskin Speare, Augustus John, Terry Frost and Jacob Epstein. Beager is one of a handful of contemporary artists to be shown alongside these greats, a fine honour indeed, testament to her rising reputation.

The venue is worthy of note. In 2014 West Horsley Place, then on the ‘Heritage at Risk’ register, was unexpectedly inherited by the late Bamber Gascoigne, and he and his wife Christina resolved to rescue the manor house, which dates back to the 15th-century. They created a charitable trust, giving ownership of the estate to the charity, aiming to open it up to the public, as a venue for musical performances and art exhibitions. Bamber Gascoigne sadly passed in February 2022, but Christina is still very much involved in the charity. There remains a lot to be achieved before the site is fully restored, but the fact that this show is taking place ­– in a restored barn, converted into a gallery and performance space – shows that a good deal of progress has been made. Spirit of Adventure features 40 works and runs until September 24.