Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2017 i Artists & Illustrators

THE PERIOD DEFIES LINEAR NARRATIVE AND CAPTURES A FASCINATING EVOLUTION IN THE APPRECIATION OF WATERCOLOUR AS A MEDIUM Art critic John Ruskin accused American-born, British-based artist James Abbott McNeill Whistler, in 1877, of ‘flinging a pot of paint in the public’s face’. Published in his series of letters, Fors Clavigera, his words prompted a libel trial – resolved in Whistler’s favour – over the artist’s brooding oil painting Nocturne in Black and Gold: The Falling Rocket (1875). Exhibited at London’s Grosvenor Gallery, the painting would influence a host of atmospheric watercolour ‘Nocturnes’ when he took up the medium in 1879. Whistler’s loose washes were suggestions, rather than depictions, of the landscape in line with his ‘art for art’s sake’ doctrine that was firmly at odds with Ruskin’s school of thought,…

I ALWAYS GO BACK TO HOKUSAI’S WORK WHEN I AM DESIGNING MY PRINTS TO REMIND MYSELF TO STRIP AWAY ANYTHING SUPERFLUOUS Whenever I explain that I specialise in Japanese watercolour woodblock, I cite The Great Wave as an example of the method. Katsushika Hokusai’s glorious print is surely the best-known Japanese woodblock and appears as part of Beyond the Great Wave, a major exhibition of Hokusai’s later works to be shown at the British Museum in London this year. Japanese woodblock printing is quite different from the Western approach to woodblock, and is a beautifully subtle and painterly method. In Hokusai’s time – and throughout the Edo Period (1603-1868) – Japanese woodblocks were produced by artists working with workshops of highly skilled carvers and printers, all under the supervision of…

As I usually paint flowers and gardens, the beginning of spring is an exciting time, heralding possibilities and places to explore. During the winter, I’ve been working from photographs but, recently, gathering a jewel-like bunch of flowers from my garden prompted me to attempt a still life. The aim was to work quickly to keep a seasonal freshness. I wanted to make the drawing accurate enough to give a sense of the flowers’ structures, while keeping a looseness and rhythm in the brush marks. Anne-Marie is taking part in Crouch End Open Studios from 13 to 14 May. www.crouchendopenstudios.org.uk; www.anne-mariebutlin.com MATERIALS •COLOURS Winsor & Newton Artists’ Oil colours: Cadmium Yellow, Lemon Yellow Hue, Yellow Ochre, Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Red, Permanent Rose, Indigo, Ultramarine, Sap Green, Titanium White, Raw…

How do I go about selecting my subject matter? It’s an individual issue and the ability to see and select a subject develops with experience. In my own case, I have a special affinity with the northwest coast and islands of Scotland, and particularly the sea and the light. As well as large vistas, I am also interested in more detailed subjects, such as gates or groups of trees and even windows. Any two painters looking at the same subject might examine quite different aspects and will produce quite different paintings. A landscape that is beautiful in itself might not necessarily result in an interesting painting. What makes a good seascape? Subject is important but a good painting should be a thing in its own right. The application of paint…

Since writing a book on Degas’ techniques, I’ve become enthusiastic about chalk pastels. I find them useful for working out colour schemes for oil paintings and quick experiments. I like that, at a particular point in the history of art materials, someone decided on the 24 or 36 colours that make up pastel sets – a range of colours suitable for all sorts of subject matter, from landscapes to portraits. Degas’ method began with a tonal under-drawing in charcoal, which helped to darken some of the pastel colour where it showed through from beneath. In a way, Degas’ approach was a combination of three different media: charcoal, chalks and fixative. The fixative applied between layers seals in the pastel, preventing it from being smudged and giving the drawing’s surface a…

CHALLENGE ACCEPTED Re: 30 Autumn Project, Issue 370 Further to the invitation to readers to respond to the autumn project challenge, I have sent my response – a painting I have entitled Extravaganza (right). It is in acrylic and on a large scale – 80x80cm. I very much enjoyed the challenge. Richard Wheeler, via email What a pleasure to see the results of our challenge in such a vibrant painting. We’re so pleased you enjoyed it, Richard. A CLEAN BREAK As I sit reading your current issue on my iPad, Apple Pencil in my pocket, I have to wonder why you don’t feature more on the various iPad/Android painting apps? It is unlikely that digital creations will ever look as good on paper, but even those who love the smell…

LONDON Michelangelo & Sebastiano Until 25 June 2017 Watch the extraordinary artistic collaborations of two Renaissance masters unfold. The National Gallery.www.nationalgallery.org.uk David Hockney Until 29 May 2017 A comprehensive retrospective including the artist’s most famous works across six decades. Tate Britain.www.tate.org.uk From Selfie to Self-Expression 31 March to 30 May 2017 A close inspection of the selfie from Velázquez to the present day. Saatchi Gallery.www.saatchigallery.com Nicholas Turner: To and Fro 4 to 27 May 2017 The RWA artist’s solo show features 30 new landscapes and still lifes. Jonathan Cooper.www.jonathancooper.co.uk Sheer Pleasure – Frank Brangwyn and the Art of Japan Until 14 May 2017 Japanese paintings, prints, furniture and ceramics belonging to the gallery’s founder Frank Brangwyn RA are on show for the 150th anniversary of his birth. William Morris Gallery.www.wmgallery.org.uk…

Although watercolour has never been accorded the same degree of importance as oils, to my mind it’s the most beautiful and expressive of all painting media. It has its own inherent character, ranging from the small and lyrical, to the dramatic and powerful. The trend away from watercolour is already well established with acrylics proving to be more popular now. The reality is that painting in watercolour is difficult and can be immensely frustrating. RAY’S TOP TIPS •Keeping colour transparent with a freedom of handling is the key to success. Experiment, be bold and take risks. Mix generous quantities of paint and use plenty of clean water. •In my teaching experience, I have found students generally encounter two problems. The first is not mixing enough paint, resulting in an anaemic…

THE SWIMMERS EVOKE A FLOWING WHOLE THAT CELEBRATES THE BEAUTY OF THE MALE BODY GRANT EXHIBITED WORK THROUGHOUT HIS LONG LIFE QUIETLY BUT DELIBERATELY FOLLOWING A CREATIVE PATH OF HIS OWN MAKING The Bloomsbury Group is often thought of as a predominantly literary and elitist movement, centred around its renowned writers such as Virginia Woolf. And, for decades, interest in their unconventional lives and loves – both prurient and judgemental – overshadowed their creative achievements, with the Post Impressionist-inspired art produced by the group’s three main painters – Vanessa Bell, Duncan Grant and Roger Fry – also falling foul of fashion and politics after the Second World War when many people found the flamboyance, fluidity and joie de vivre of their paintings simply too hard to stomach. Yet, in…

Join Tate Liverpool this summer to experience more than 300 paintings, drawings, prints and photographs presenting the faces of Germany between the two world wars as seen through the eyes of painter Otto Dix and photographer August Sander. These works from a pivotal point in history reflect the glamour and misery of the Weimar Republic. www.tate.org.uk/liverpool THE PRIZE We’ve teamed up with Tate Liverpool and hope street hotel to offer one winner and their guest a VIP break to Liverpool with a night’s stay for two in a suite with bed and breakfast, tickets for a guided tour of the Portraying a Nation exhibition and the Magical Mystery Tour, two-hour tour of Beatles Liverpool which starts at the Albert Dock and finishes at the legendary Cavern Club. Privately owned and…

Sometime last year, seven British masterpieces were removed from galleries and museums around the country and switched for copies. But the motivation wasn’t criminal; it was, in fact, part of a Sky Arts’ TV show aiming to get people exploring art, which airs in March. Members of the public were invited to use their detective skills to spot the copies hiding in plain sight with the help of art historian Rose Balston, who says the appeal of the show was getting people into museums and galleries to look at art in detail. “So many people,” says Rose, “including myself, are drawn to the London galleries, but we are showcasing the art of regions. There is some seriously good art in these galleries.” And the competitive element, with teams of families…

INÊS-HERMIONE MULFORD Fascinated by the crossover between art and science, the recent Edinburgh College of Art graduate produced Surgical Still Life – part of a series on the subject – after a placement shadowing craniofacial surgeons in the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford. Inês’s precision and care in meticulously rendering the scene in oil was her way of paying homage to the surgeon’s skill, as well as drawing the two now disparate disciplines back together. “The two are historically intertwined and it is only in the last century that they have become separated into ‘the arts’ and ‘the sciences’,” she says. As she studied the surgeon’s dexterity, visualisation and learning methods, she found many similarities with her own skill set. Her dedication to her craft saw her voted by the public…

DON’T FORGET YOUR TOOTHBRUSH GOOD BRUSHES ARE AN ESSENTIAL TOOL FOR WATERCOLOUR ARTISTS BUT THEY’RE NOT THE BE ALL AND END ALL WHEN IT COMES TO PUTTING COLOUR ON PAPER, SAYS VERONICA BALLART LILJA Toothbrushes also work really well with liquid watercolours. Their bristles are stiffer than those of normal watercolour brushes and this creates a different kind of line. ROOSTER This is an example of a really dynamic effect created by a toothbrush as a finishing touch to an illustration. 1 Paint the rooster using watercolour as I have done here, leaving a space for the tail feathers. 2 Dip the toothbrush in the liquid watercolour and use it to paint a spiky tail. Use two or three colours so that they mix together slightly. 3 Add some rough…

I wanted a fun painting as a memory of a trip my wife I took to Paris last year, particularly our visit to the Sacré-Coeur. I looked at other artists’ versions of the church on the internet and, in the end, decided on an imaginary view of the church on the side facing away from Paris. Maurice Utrillo produced several works in Montmarte, including many of the Sacré-Coeur, but I was after something more lightweight and cheerful with an early 20th-century flavour. I borrowed the cafe on the left from an Utrillo work, but made up most of the rest as I went along – moving shapes around until it felt like things were in the right place. I worked with System 3 acrylics in tubs and tubes as well…

Have you ever wondered where your art materials come from and what effect your art has on the environment? Today, more people are interested in the ethics of their creative activities than ever before. When I run residential courses and write articles on my blog, I get questions about animal cruelty, environmental impact and ethics, which didn’t happen a few years ago. Whether you’d like your art to be cruelty-free or respectful of human rights, in line with your veganism, or care for the environment, here are a few tips that should help with ethical endeavours. BRUSHES When I first started to learn how to paint, I used sable brushes because that’s what my tutors told me to do. Synthetic brushes were for amateurs and real artists used animal bristles.…

1 HE TRAINED AS A STAGE DESIGNER Antonio Canal, known as Canaletto, was born in Venice in 1697. He was the son of a painter of stage sets and, initially, followed in his father’s footsteps, painting backdrops for Venice’s thriving theatres. But, in the 1720s, he abandoned this low-status work and began producing the paintings for which he is most famous. Canaletto’s view paintings of the city of Venice became hugely popular in his lifetime. He also made many hundreds of drawings, and experimented with etching. 2 HIS SUCCESS WAS DUE TO AN ENGLISH DEALER Canaletto had a long business partnership with Joseph Smith, British Consul in Venice. He was a banker and trader who spotted the artist’s potential and marketed his paintings to English patrons on the Grand Tour,…