BATHTOWN DARKTOWN

Jonny Hannah

29th August 2026 – 31st October 2026

At the end of August, two towns will collide.

One is famed for its spa baths & excellent architecture that John Betjeman loved. The other is well known for its tattooed sailors, mermaids & Lost Highway. Ferlinghetti is a fan. Jonny Hannah will be bringing his collection of flotsam & jetsam from the latter, to the wonderful walls of Palette, in the former.

Painted objets d’art. Records to die for. A library of the best volumes. And… the one & only famous Darktown Bottle Pantry. All this alongside the odd screenprints in frames. He’s been busy painting this, that & the other, raiding the charity shops for suitable junk to vandalise. The squeegee has been red hot in recent months, pullingnew prints aplenty.

Even his limited woodwork skills have been tested to the max, making boxes & ensembles for your enjoyment. Expect to see records from his bespoke collection. Where else will you be able to see a brand new cover for a Zounds tune, next to an EP by The Postmen? Brel, Dutronc, Monk & The Fall. Knock your lobes, good people.

He pays homage to the likes of Tati, Godard & Varda. Wise words from Rimbaud & others in great, big, letters. Cheap as chips posters for events that many say they attended, but few can prove it. Lovehearts for all your romantic needs. All in all, a Sombre Ville miscellany that is guaranteed to have something for everybody, including the kitchen sink.. or maybe even a… bath.

Jonny Hannah is a multi-award winning illustrator and BAFTA winning animator. He's worked with a huge array of clients including Royal Mail and Penguin books, as well as for institutions including The British Library, ENO and Royal Shakespeare Company. Jonny will be taking over the whole of the Palette building and installing a collection of ephemera and original works, all for sale. Over the course of the exhibition, he will be returning to perform with his band The Postmen, host a Darktown quiz, and give a special tour of the show.