These are charcoal paintings, not photographs - and they ask you to stop, look again, and stay a little longer.
At first glance, many people think Kevin Line's works are photographs. They are not. They are charcoal paintings - carefully made, patiently observed, and remarkable for their handling of light, texture and human presence.
That matters. These works are not about clever realism for its own sake. They are about looking properly. Kevin Line gives time and attention to people at work: their hands, clothes, tools, posture, concentration and fatigue. The drawings have an extraordinary stillness, but they are full of life.
True Grit looks beyond the familiar Cotswold image of beautiful villages, old stone and well-kept views. Kevin Line is interested in something less polished and more enduring: the people whose work, skill and resilience give the place its depth. These are portraits of effort, usefulness and quiet pride.
There is no sentimentality here. The subjects are not romanticised or dressed up for effect. They are shown with honesty and respect, and that is what gives the work its strength. A face, a hand, a coat sleeve, the weight of a tool - all are drawn with care, but never overplayed.
The Cotswolds is often admired as scenery. True Grit reminds us that it is also a working place, shaped by people as much as by landscape. Kevin Line's charcoal paintings bring those people into focus with rare dignity and restraint.
This is a serious, humane and quietly powerful exhibition.
