Indholdsfortegnelse for February 2022 i The Artist

Want to comment on something you’ve read, or seen? Email me at theartistletters@tapc.co.uk or visit our website at www.painters-online.co.uk/forum If, like me, you’re a fan of impressionist and post-impressionist art, a visit to the newly opened, refurbished Courtauld Gallery* is a definite must on a ‘things to do and see in 2022’ list. Accumulated by the gallery founder, Samuel Courtauld, in just ten years between 1922 and 1932, this amazing Courtauld Institute of Art collection includes a preparatory sketch for Manet’s iconic Dejeuner sur I’herbe as well as his stunning A Bar at the Folies-Bergere, paintings by Degas, Monet, a wall full of incredible Cezannes, Gauguin’s Nevermore, some wonderful Seurats and vibrant Van Goghs, including his heart-breaking Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear. It must surely be Britain’s best collection of impressionist…

Email theartistletters@tapc.co.uk or write to The Editor, The Artist, Warners Group Publications, The Maltings, West Street, Bourne, Lincolnshire PE10 9PH Please note we may have to edit letters for reasons of space A timely change I have recently changed my monthly subscription to The Artist after subscribing to another specialist art magazine for many years. The switch was timely as I found certain of your January issue articles particularly interesting. I started painting with oils over 50 years ago but decided it is never too late to try something new. My favourite subject is landscape painting, which featured strongly in your January issue. Derek Stark, by email Inspired I was thrilled to see the January 2022 issue included a new article by Richard Suckling. He is one of my favourite artists…

Sending-in days DSWF’s Wildlife Artist of the Year 2022 Details: Founded by the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation in 2008, DSWF’s Wildlife Artist of the Year is an internationally renowned wildlife art competition open to amateur and professional artists. The competition uses the power of the arts to celebrate wildlife and raise vital funds for endangered species. The prize for the overall winner is £10,000. Other prizes offered include The Artist Award for the opportunity of an interview feature to be published in The Artist. Shortlisted works will be available to purchase on the DSWF website in September 2022, with 50-per-cent of the proceeds of artwork sales supporting DSWF and their ground-based conservation partners. When: Open for submissions from January 6 to March 31. Contact: Apply online at https://davidshepherd.org or email…

Ken Howard OBE, RA studied at Hornsey School of Art and the Royal College of Art. He is a member of the NEAC, ROI, RWS, RWA and RBA. He exhibits extensively and has won numerous awards. David Curtis ROI, VPRSMA has won many awards for his en plein air and figurative paintings in both oils and watercolours. He has had several books published on his work as well as DVD films, and exhibits his work extensively. Haidee-Jo Summers ROI, RSMA has won many awards for her plein-air and alla-prima oil paintings. She is an elected member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, the author of Vibrant Oils and also has a DVD with the same title.…

Black magic Whilst Mike Barr gently reminds us to play off lost-and-found edges (The Artist, December 2021 issue), I was more intrigued by the mass of black he’d dared to use in his painting Autumn Morning, Adelaide. My approach to replicating nature’s authenticity is to switch off any ideas of creating a conventional ‘successful’ painting. I’m essentially the sorcerer’s apprentice with the sole aim of developing the skill to get nature’s magic to flow through me and my brush as honestly as possible onto the paper. I paint what I see but after 40 years’ practice am now instinctively drawn to light and colour energy – and the lack of both. Glowing autumn’s fiery hues spring off the paper when contrasted with black – thanks for the tip, Mike. Looking…

The North Yorkshire coast, moors and woodlands are a constant inspiration to Janine Baldwin. She works from sketches made directly in the landscape using layers of charcoal, pastel and graphite in images that include wide expanses of the natural world and intricate details of the tiniest elements. With a loose, expressive and emotive approach, she seeks to capture the physical sensory experience of being in the landscape. Developing a style ‘After college I began a fashion degree at Liverpool John Moores University, but I enjoyed the life drawing classes more than the pattern cutting ones, so I switched to fine art. My dad was unfaltering in his belief in my ability and I’m certain I wouldn’t have succeeded without his support – to have someone in your life who believes…

Last month I discussed how flowers, instead of solely land and seascapes, became a welcome addition to my repertoire. In this month’s article I would like to share my experiences and discuss the materials and methods I use to make my paintings, and to pass on a few of the things I have learned on my floral journey of discovery. During the lockdown of 2020–2021, when I started producing flower paintings, I initially made very quick pen or pencil notes in a pocket sketchbook in the field and took photos for use later in the studio. Now that we can move freely and painting time en plein air is unlimited, I look forward to being able to compare my new paintings to the lockdown versions that were created in the…

I have always loved being outside sketching and find that there is a wealth of opportunities to capture, simply by just looking around you. Whether it is our wonderful wildlife, coast, countryside or the many character buildings, there is always something to sketch. Sketch a day Throughout lockdown I challenged myself to doing a sketch a day and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The inspiration for this article came after wandering through a local allotment. What is it about allotments that artists find so fascinating? For me it is the mix of colour and fresh growth, the shambolic buildings and the many different ways that the owners work their plots. Allotments are a thing of beauty and charm, and my aim is to capture in my artwork how I see these…

LONDON Bankside Gallery 48 Hopton Street SE1. ☎ 020 7928 7521 www.banksidegallery.com Mini Picture Show 2021; affordable works on a small scale by members of the Royal Watercolour Society and the Royal Society of Painter Printmakers, until January 30. Society of Wood Engravers; January 31 to February 20. Dulwich Picture Gallery Gallery Road SE21. ☎ 020 8693 5254; www.dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk Helen Frankenthaler; woodcuts, until April 17. Mall Galleries The Mall, SW1. ☎ 020 7930 6844; www.mallgalleries.org.uk The Pastel Society; annual exhibition of work by members, February 17 to 26. National Gallery Trafalgar Square WC2. ☎ 020 7747 2885 www.nationalgallery.org.uk Poussin and the Dance; until January 2. The Credit Suisse Exhibition Dürer’s Journeys: Travels of a Renaissance Artist; until February 27. Kehinde Wiley; American artist known for his portraits that render people…

Contemporary Flowers in Mixed Media Soraya French There is so much to like about this impressive volume that it is hard to know where to start. Soraya has a great deal of considerable value to say about colour, pigments and palettes. You might find the book worth buying for that alone, even if you’re not a fan of Soraya’s painting style or of working with mixed media. Colour is at the heart of this and everything else follows, even perhaps composition, because format, shapes and layout serve mainly to underpin the bright, but intricately controlled hues that Soraya uses. What appears to be a wealth of colour is in fact a careful balance of pigments that show each other off magnificently. As well as demonstrations and examples, there is a…

FEATURES IN CONVERSATION Be inspired by president and winner of The Artist Award in the Royal Institute of Oil Painters annual exhibition, Tim Benson, as he discusses his approach to his expressive oil portraits PRACTICALS Haidee-Jo Summers shares her top tips on how to develop an exciting abstract composition from a still-life set-up Develop your watercolour portrait painting skills with advice and a demonstration from David Thomas PLUS • NEW SERIES In the first of three new demonstration features Graham Webber introduces his recommended three-primary palette for successful landscapes in oils • Enjoy the thrill of capturing the lights and colours of a nighttime scene in acrylics with Jenny Aitken • NEW SERIES Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year finalist Clare Lord shows how to keep the plein-air life…

Many artists can’t remember a time when they weren’t drawing or creating, while others develop their passion later in life. Some study art at college and continue with it as a profession, some have other careers while continuing to create great art in their spare time. Over the past five years or so I have been establishing myself as an artist whilst also working as a civil servant. This unusual combination works well for me at the moment. Having an existing career in a different field can feel like a huge barrier to fulfilling an artistic passion, but I have found that while challenging, it is not impossible. There can also be many benefits of combining two careers. In this series I will describe how I made the transition from…

There is something about Impressionist paintings that can touch us like nothing else can – and it all comes down to the way we remember things. Our memories are rarely photographic images of events, but they are more than just a picture, too, and involve emotion. This emotional attachment to memory can also colour the picture and change it quite dramatically. Can you remember having a memory of a place, then seeing the reality and it being quite different? This is why impressionism comes closer to unlocking the emotional part of our memories. Impressionism is like a dream – we recognise the place even though it is not quite the same place visually, because we can feel it emotionally as well as there being at least one visual thing that…