Innholdsfortegnelse for April 2024 i The Artist

Email me at theartistletters@tapc.co.uk or visit our website at www.painters-online.co.uk/forum I’m delighted to welcome back Charles Williams to our pages this month. Charles, who was elected president of the Royal Watercolour Society last April, and is a member of the New English Art Club, has been a regular and popular contributor to The Artist over many years, but took a break from writing for us while he completed his PhD on drawing. Having finally handed it in, he’s back to what he loves most: painting. In his feature on pages 18 to 21, he offers a candid insight into the thoughts behind his unique, deceptively simple, meticulously painted compositions which are ‘compiled from a dialogue between him in his studio environment, and the stories and ideas that keep him company…

Now You See Us: Women Artists in Britain 1520-1920 at Tate Britain this spring explores the journey women artists have taken in Britain to be accepted as professional artists. The work of over 100 artists will be featured, from Artemisia Gentileschi and Gwen John (pictured here) to others who are only now being rediscovered. Some of them worked in genres deemed suitable for women, such as botanical and domestic scenes, while others explored worlds dominated by men, including battle scenes and nudes, but each of them demonstrates what it was like being a woman working as a professional artist in times when such a profession went against the social norm. The exhibition starts with Levina Teerlinc, working in miniatures for the Tudor court, and Esther Inglis, one of the earliest…

PRACTICAL The challenge of capturing the atmospheric quality of light in paintings has captivated and frustrated artists since the enlightened discovery of chiaroscuro, the way light and shadow behave. Artists such as da Vinci and Caravaggio explored this shadow-to-light quality in their work, successfully representing the threedimensional world on a two-dimensional canvas. Although working with a more saturated colour palette artists such as Monet, Pissarro and Degas would chase the atmospheric qualities of light in the fields and theatres of France trying to capture the different ways light would play on the landscape and the human form. Monet famously said ‘Light is my mistress’ and would time his whole working day according to what Mother Nature had in store for him. It’s always a sobering and surprising reminder we can…

If an artist moves into the commercial gallery world, they are met with new challenges and hardly any can match the costs that are incurred by a professional or semi-professional. The first thing we notice is the commission that is charged by the big galleries. These galleries are not run like a co-op gallery, in that they are more than anything else, a business. They have large overheads including building, insurance, staffpayments and more. Commissions can be 50-per-cent and if an artist’s prices are not reasonably high, their own business will fail. Make no mistake, a professional or semi-professional painter is in business. Your tax liability will make you realise that. Under-priced paintings that may sell well in low-cost galleries, are not likely to cover your costs if you are…

Arnold Art Society Exhibition at Pond Hills Community Centre, Pond Hills Lane, Arnold, Nottingham NG5 8DR on April 13 and 14, 10am to 4pm; www.art4arnold@outlook.com Cheltenham Art Club Spring exhibition at the Gardens Gallery, Montpellier Gardens, Cheltenham, from April 3 to 9, 10am to 5pm; www.cheltenhamartclub.co.uk Cookham Arts Club Spring exhibition at Pinder Hall, Cookham Rise SL6 9EH, on March 1, 2 to 6pm; March 2, 10am to to 6pm; and March 3, 10am to 4.45pm; www.cookhamartsclub.com Denbighshire Art Society Easter exhibition at The Studio, 10 Penrhos Road, Colwyn Bay LL28 4DB, from March 29 to April 5; 11am to 4pm daily; www.dasoc.info Epsom and Ewell Art Group Spring exhibition at the new Horton Arts Centre, Haven Way, Epsom, Surrey KT19 8NP, from March 19 to 30. Open Tuesday to…

PRACTICAL COLOURED PENCILS As an artist it’s important to have a working theme that enables you to grow your career. My art business started to come together following several years of experimentation. The end result was a long journey exploring the endless opportunities working with waterscapes. Finding a theme that met and exceeded my expectations was priceless for me. Meeting challenges head on is important to me because it allows for continued growth as an artist. When confronted with an unknown situation, I take time to study the issue and look for options to help me move forward. I always aim to keep an open mind to my art activities, marketing issues, equipment, my business model and creative plans. I recommend finding a comfortable niche for your artwork. This is…

YOUR VIEWS LETTERS, EMAILS AND COMMENTS 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 Line and watercolour Reading Alan Bickley's letter in The Artist February 2024 reminded me of when I attempted to follow John Hoar's line, wash and watercolour dvd with a 'sharpened matchstick shoved into a bamboo cane' in one hand, a bottle of Indian ink in the other and the sketchbook balanced on my knees! It was all rather precarious and I thought there must be an easier way. And, of course, there is once you find out that there are waterproof inks that can safely be used in fountain pens. My choice…

Liberal brushstrokes and sharp, controlled edges provide the contrasts that capture attention in Chien Chung-Wei’s classical and enchanting watercolours. His inimitable vision creates a desired beauty and intrigue. With a wealth of knowledge gained from the masters, his paintings are timeless, delicate, and romantic as well as filled with atmosphere and light. Chien says, ‘The key to creating a good painting lies not in the tools but artistic taste.’ After great success in North America and Europe, Chien’s popularity has soared with his all-engaging demonstrations. He often creates a sensation, through constant commentary and his joyful singing adding to the performance. ‘I haven’t always been fond of public demonstrations, however, in recent years I’ve had a different perspective. I try new approaches and never paint the same picture twice. Even…

WATERCOLOUR It would be easy to imagine that we are fairly limited as to how we can simplify buildings. After all they are very strong geometric structures and we must retain much of that strong geometry if we are to avoid losing the structure. A single building is likely to have quite a few repeating shapes, particularly windows and in order to simplify we must look at one of the important tenets of composition -repetition with variation. There could well be dozens of windows, possibly all exactly the same but if we paint them that way, they will attract the eye far too much. Geometric shapes such as squares or oblongs are very insistent and our eyes will constantly drift towards them, so if the windows are not an important…

Falling water is always a very emotive subject and a great one to paint. However, it can come with a variety of obstacles when it comes to capturing that force and vitality that gives the waterfall its grandeur. As I have mentioned in previous articles, I am an advocate for Schmincke Horadam gouache and just love the bright, pure pigments. The Horadam series is an Artists’ quality gouache providing a classic range of highly concentrated artist pigments which provide maximum opacity without the addition of white. This means you can dilute the paint down to a ‘watercolour ‘wash that is almost transparent and by building up colour intensity with these washes you can produce passages of strength and vitality without them becoming boring. Gouache is especially useful when painting water…

THE BUSINESS OF ART: 4TH OF 12 This month we talk to multidisciplinary artist Maggie Smith – an acrylic, watercolour, mixedmedia painter and printmaker, specialising in drypoints, collographs and monoprints. Without setting herself limits, she is free to explore her creativity in a wide variety of media with complete creative freedom. This has also enabled her to explore avenues for commercialising her business, transferring her paintings and illustrations to crockery, tea towels, calendars and books. Like many artists her creativity has allowed her to diversify, commercialise her practice and keep working life fresh and meaningful. Far from becoming jaded and her work becoming stale, Maggie continually reframes and redirects her energy. She began her creative journey studying ceramics at college, thanks to an inspira tional teacher, but quickly moved towards…

Sending-in days The Almenara Art Prize Details: The Almenara Art Prize is an international representational painting competition with more than €27,000 in cash awards and other prizes. Entries of figurative paintings – from hyperrealism to impressionism – are invited in oil, pastel, acrylic, watercolour, graphite, charcoal, pencil, ink, coloured pencils, gouache, tempera and all traditional media. The competition is open to artists in the UK and internationally. Exhibition: There will be an online exhibition and also a physical exhibition in Cordoba, Spain, from November 1 to 31. When: Open for entries now; closing on June 30. Contact: Apply online at www.thealmenaracollection.com Anthology Art Competition Details: Anthology magazine’s annual award to foster and support both established and emerging artists and provide a platform for publication, is open to multiple disciplines, including…

EXPRESSIONISTS Kandinsky, Münter and the Blue Rider Tate Modern Bankside London SE1 9TG 020 7887 8888 www.tate.org.uk The Blue Rider (Der Blaue Reiter) was a diverse group of artists founded in Munich in 1911 connected by their desire to express personal experiences and spiritual ideas. Their Almanac, edited by Wassily Kandinsky and Franz Marc, was published in 1912 and claimed that ‘the whole work, called art, knows no borders or nations, only humanity.’ With two public exhibitions in 1911 and 1912, the collective brought together artists and creatives from across western and eastern Europe and the USA. Tracing their history from these early beginnings, Tate Modern’s new exhibition, Expressionists: Kandinsky, Münter and the Blue Rider celebrates their work, drawing on the world’s richest collection of Expressionist masterpieces at the Lenbachhaus…

THE BUSINESS OF ART Q: Tell us about your creative journey from amateur to working as a professional. How did you make the leap? A: Art and being creative have always played a big part in my life and at school I did well in A-level art, so pursued the subject at teacher training college, but an inspirational ceramics tutor changed my desire to do painting and I had three happy years immersed in clay. Over many years I did ceramics whenever I could. When I had my three children my creativity was satisfied by bringing them up, so once they had all left home I went back to painting and enrolled in a City & Guilds watercolour course which explored all sorts of media. When we moved to south…

LONDON Bankside Gallery 48 Hopton Street SE1. 020 7928 7521 banksidegallery.com The Society of Wood Engravers; until February 25. New Light Prize; celebrating and promoting Northern art, February 27 to March 3. RWS Open; annual opensubmission watercolour exhibition, March 8 to 24. Barbican Art Gallery Silk Street EC2. 020 7870 2500. barbican.org.uk Unravel: The Power and Politics of Textiles in Art; until May 26. Dulwich Picture Gallery Gallery Road SE21. 020 8693 5254 dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk Soulscapes; exploring new interpretations of landscape art, until June 2. Mall Galleries The Mall, SW1. 020 7930 6844 mallgalleries.org.uk Royal Society of British Artists; annual exhibition, February 29 to March 9. Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours; 112th exhibition, March 28 to April 13. National Gallery Trafalgar Square WC2. 020 7747 2885 nationalgallery.org.uk Discover Liotard…

Venice: City of Pictures Martin Gayford Venice. The city that launched a thousand trips. The city of Titian, Turner, Monet, Sargent, Hodgkin and so many more. And not just artists, but architects, writers and musicians as well. La Serenissima inspires everyone. This is a substantial volume, both in extent and ambition. Martin Gayford sets out to provide a biography in words and images that brings the city to life. It is not, though, a picture book. In fact, at first glance, you might think that the illustrations are a bit thin on the ground, because they are integrated with the text rather than predominating. Here, words act as more than mere captions. As you’d perhaps expect with a writer of Martin Gayford’s calibre, the words are as visual as the…