AN EXHIBITION which celebrates the close connections between our seaside city and the capital launches this week.

Titled “London to Brighton”, it will compare parts of the south coast to the hustle and bustle of the capital.

The exhibition will take place at Kellie Miller Arts, in Market Street, Brighton, from Saturday and will run until Monday, July 22.

Kellie Miller said that she was inspired to run the exhibition because of the close connections that the two cities share.

She teamed up with painter Marc Gooderham and photographer Rik Ward to bring the works of art to life.

She said: “I met Marc and Rik at a similar time and was struck by how London and Brighton’s scenes inspired both artists.

“I encouraged them both to continue to develop their work for this exhibition with this theme in mind.

“Marc’s interests lay in derelict buildings or buildings in need of repair, with their peeling paint and numberless front doors, which evoke a loneliness inherent in any large city.

“But their stillness also invites contemplation – of the lives once lived here, and the lives that may do so again.

“In his paintings and drawings, he captures moments which can so easily be missed if you don’t look up or around your environment.

“Marc has journeyed around both cities, depicting the essence of each place with scenes of interest to him, be it graffiti, dereliction or just creative places.”

Marc considers this exhibition something of a homecoming.

He said: “Brighton was always a favourite getaway for our family and is still one of my favourite cities. Growing up in West London meant that only a short car journey away were Brighton’s winding lanes and historic quarters... the fallen grandeur of the city is what I fell in love with.

“Romantic street corners and crumbling Regency townhouses reminiscent of London’s urban landscape made it the perfect subject to paint.

“This exhibition illustrates the relationship between London and Brighton and what connects these two creative cities.”

Like Marc, photographer Rik Ward is fascinated with architecture and combining this with the unseen or overlooked nature of neglected buildings.

The several layers of photography are a montage of images resulting in what Kellie Miller likens to photographic painting.

For more information on the London to Brighton exhibition visit www.kelliemillerarts.com.