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Hello!
e are stepping out in style this month:

our cover feature, beginning on page 19,
looks at ways in which you can develop
a personal style. Finding a unique voice
is a hugely important step in our
development as artists and one that is often taken for granted.
Stop for a minute to consider the last time you made a painting
or drawing. I bet you spent a fair amount of time choosing what
you were going to depict, but probably didnt give much thought to
how you were going to tackle it. Loose brushwork? Bright colours?
Detailed drawings? All these elements dene your style so think
long and hard about exactly what you want from them.
On the subject of style, Ive been looking at the work of Piet
Mondrian this month. The Dutch artists famous graphic works are
instantly recognisable and worth millions at auction but, as I soon
discovered, he took more than 25 years to arrive at this trademark
style. Ahead of two new exhibitions of his work opening in the
UK, the Netherlands Board of Tourism invited me to explore his
early roots in Holland and it revealed a passion for plein air
landscape painting and muted earth colours. Who knew?
It just goes to show that even the worlds greatest painters took
years before their style came to fruition, so why not grab your
brush, enjoy the process and see where it takes you?
Steve Pill, Editor
COVER IMAGE
Nick Botting, Coffee at Bibendum,
oil on canvas board, 46x41cm.
Find out how Nick developed his
own painting style on page 19.
HOW DID YOU DEVELOP YOUR OWN PAINTING STYLE?

Wed love to hear your stories and see your work! Get in touch in one of these three ways:
EMAIL info@artistsandillustrators.co.uk
TWITTER @AandImagazine
FACEBOOK ArtistsAndIllustrators
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Artists & Illustrators (ISSN 0269-4697) is published every
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Colour origination: allpointsmedia
CRAIG PENNY
Born in Victoria, Australia in 1961, Craig studied art at Ballarat
University, before pursuing a successful career as an illustrator in
the advertising industry and becoming a member of the Illustrators
Association of Australia. Today he is recognised as one of Australias
leading art tutors, specialising in acrylics and watercolours.
On page 74, Craig travels to West MacDonnell National Park to
deliver a masterful demonstration of bright, colourful landscape
painting. See more of his work at www.craigpennyart.com.au
Artists & Illustrators 3
Swiss movement, English heart
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CONTENTS
7 YOUR LETTERS
Write to us and win a 50 art voucher
9 THE DIARY
Your guide to the best art events this month
17 COMPETITION
Win 1,000 of art materials and a painting course
29 ON THE JOB
Meet the founder of a unique art agency
32 TIMELESS VISIONS
The imaginative work of Sonia Lawson RA
42 PORTFOLIO
A selection of great paintings from Portfolio Plus
19
FIND YOUR STYLE

Top tips to develop a unique look
36
A NEW ANGLE?
Discover Mondrians early works
50 ANATOMY OF A PAINTING
Ian Rowlands explains how and when to varnish
54 FACE TO FACE
Part two of our portrait painting challenge
62 COLUMNIST
Laura Boswell reveals an extra source of income
63 HOW I MADE...
Find out how to blend charcoal and watercolour
68 FEARLESS DRAWING
Two great exercises to loosen up your practice
74 BRIGHTER LANDSCAPES
Craig Penny takes us painting in the outback
82 MY LIFE IN ART
With former Olympics artist Jeremy Houghton
40 IN THE STUDIO
46 TALKING TECHNIQUES
Printmaking in practice
Award-winning landscape advice
58 RIVER AND SEASCAPES 64 SUNSET MASTERCLASS 70 ALLA PRIMA STUDIES

Putting the water into watercolour
ISSUE 339
A step-by-step demonstration
WWW.ARTISTSANDILLUSTRATORS.CO.UK
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Q Colours from the past
As our interest in pigments grew, we looked back through history
resurrecting some of the classic pigments used by artists from antiq
through the Renaissance. Azurite, Lapis Lazuli and Bohemian Gre
Earth were among some of the early colours made using natural m
Next, we introduced the Hematite pigments and journeyed into th
Southwest for Sedona. In the last fteen years we have formulated
new pigments, all mined from unusual gemstones and minerals, so
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Q Watercolour Tubes to Sticks
Our next big jump came with Watercolour Sticks, putting the pow
of our colours into a convenient, take anywhere stick format. Toda
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Your Letters
SCRAPING BACK THE YEARS
RE: Your Letters, Issue 338
Jenny Dalleywaters letter about Ampersands

Scratchboard reminded me of my own
earliest forays into art. Scraperboard was
a much-used medium in the 1950s for
illustration and advertising (Radio Times had
many examples in the form of column
headings). I sold my rst picture at the age
of 14, a scraperboard drawing of Cologne
Cathedral, but sadly I have kept only one
example of this youthful period of my artistic
life (see below).
Over the years painting and drawing have
continued to be a source of both pleasure and
income. I look forward eagerly each month to
my Artists & Illustrators,
relishing its breadth of
content and inspiring
one to try new ideas and
mediums. Portfolio Plus
is brilliant, too. Within
the rst months of
subscribing (for a very
modest fee!) I have had
sales as a direct result of
this exposure. Best
wishes for the continued
success of your magazine!
David Jessup, via email
www.artistsandillustrators.co.uk/davidjessup
Were glad youre enjoying it! If you want to join
David (and more than 7,800 other artists) on our
online Portfolio scheme, simply head to
www.artistsandillustrators.co.uk/register
CAF SKETCHES
RE: Quick Draw, Issue 335
Ive been drawing wildlife since I was a child.

I love the natural lines and being able to hide
a multitude of sins with feathers and fur.
Last summer, I ventured in to a public
place to paint for the rst time hoping no one
would notice me on a busy beach. After a few
minutes I became totally absorbed, and
maybe half an hour later I sensed to my
horror that I was not alone and turned in my
chair to see half a dozen smiling faces!
Everyone was very nice about my efforts
(Turner I aint), but I hadnt drawn or painted
in a public place since.
A SHIFT IN DIRECTION
Re: New Year, New Project, Issue 334
I am always eager
to broaden my
ETTER OF
artistic horizons
HE MONTH
and, after
reading artist Frances Hatchs piece,
I immediately enrolled on her Exploring
Pastels course at the amazing West
Dean College in Chichester.
I was not disappointed. The threeday course with Frances and decorative
artist Judith Weatherall (above) was
informative, exciting, entertaining,
inspiring and uplifting. We made gesso,
learned about different papers, created
interesting textured surfaces and rolled
our very own pastels using earth
pigments. We also burned raw sienna
and raw umber to make burnt sienna
and burnt umber. The earth pigments
offered a new way of working for me
and have helped me make a shift in my
artistic journey, plus I met some
wonderful people on the course.
Thank you Artists & Illustrators for
featuring this artist.
Lesley Birch, York
www.lesleybirch.co.uk
At new year, I promised myself I would

branch out and attempt some urban
landscapes so I went out into my home city
of Nottingham with my camera with the
intention of recreating them in pencil in the
comfort and security of my own home.
Then I read your article on urban sketching
and, encouraged by the idea that if I sat in a
caf to draw everyone would ignore me,
I went into the central square with my

sketchbook, perched myself on a window
stool in a well-known coffee chain and
sketched my rst building. And you know
what? No one batted an eyelid! Best of all,
it was warmer and much more comfortable
than plein air drawing.
Thanks guys I am totally
converted to guerrilla urban
sketching and I might even be
competent by the end of the
summer. Attached is my
resultant sketch of
Nottingham Council
House (see right).
Lorraine Buckberry,
via email
THATS THE SPIRIT!
I use white spirit to clean oil

paint off my brushes and have
discovered a method of making it last.
When I have nished painting for
the day, I pour the fouled white spirit
into a spare jar and leave it to settle for
a day or two. Its surprising how clear
the liquid becomes once the pigment
settles to the bottom of the jar. Next time
I paint, I carefully pour the clear white spirit
back into my brush jar leaving the pigment
in the spare jar.
Joe Smart, via email
WRITE TO US
Send a letter or email to the addresses below
for the chance to win a 50 GreatArt voucher
SRVW
Your Letters
The Chelsea Magazine Company Ltd.
Jubilee House
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London SW3 3TQ
HPDLO
info@artistsandillustrators.co.uk
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and promotions.
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CONTACT US AT WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/ARTISTSANDILLUSTRATORS OR TWEET VIA @AANDIMAGAZINE

THE DIARY
An artists guide to the month ahead
KNOW YOUR PALETTE?
Here are ve surprising stories from the National Gallerys forthcoming Making Colour exhibition
s ",5% 7!3 ! ,58529
For centuries, the colour blue was considered to be
a luxury item. The purest, richest shade available to
painters was natural ultramarine made from the
semi-precious stone lapis lazuli and the cost of
mining and importing it from Badakhshan made it
more expensive than gold.
THE NATIONAL GALLERY, LONDON
s "54 '/,$ COULD "% "%!4%.

While gold may be absent from the traditional colour
wheel, it played a fundamental role in many Old
Master paintings. But did you know that the gold you
see in many pictures was often beaten from coins?
s -/$%2. 0)'-%.43 7%2% !. !##)$%.4

The rst modern, totally synthetic pigment was
Prussian Blue and it was prepared by a Berlin
colourmaker between 1704 and 1710. It appears

to have been an accidental discovery though.
s 6!. '/'( "2/+% 4(% 25,%3
ABOVE Hilaire-Germain-Edgar
Degas, Combing the Hair,
about 1896
Van Goghs Sunowers is one of the worlds most

famous and admired paintings but the Dutch master
actually broke all the rules of colour theory by
painting yellow sunowers on a yellow background,
demonstrating that some rules are better broken.
s 425% /2!.'% 7!3 0/)3/./53

One of everyones rst discoveries in the art
classroom is that orange can be made by mixing red
and yellow but nding a pure orange pigment is not
as easy. In fact, one of the few sources of pure
orange is a mineral called realgar, which contains
a rather nasty and toxic substance: arsenic.
Making Colour runs from

18 June to 7 September
at the National Gallery,
London WC2.
www.nationalgallery.org.uk
FIND OUT MORE ABOUT COLOUR MIXING ONLINE AT WWW.ARTISTSANDILLUSTRATORS.CO.UK/HOW-TO

the diary
MODEL DISPLAY
Tate Britains new archive exhibition explores life drawing classes
through the ages and reveals much about the artists involved
What was the starting point for the show?

Adrian Glew: Reception, Rupture and
Return: The Model and the Life Room arose
from a realisation that the rst archival
display in the new suite of galleries should
highlight the sheer range and variety of items
that Tate Archive houses on a single subject.
What can we expect to see?
Hester R Westley: The display advances
chronologically from the 19th century to
today. Showing previously unseen letters,
drawings and documents, it examines how
each historical moment, movement or school
remade the life room in its own image. At the
centre of these movements remains the
model, whose voice we recover through
private correspondence.
CLOCKWISE FROM ABOVE

Dod Procter, The
Orchard, 1934; a life
drawing by Edna Clarke
Hall, undated; Brighton
Municipal School of
Art, c.1905
Life drawing provided a visual

grammar a way of observing
and seeing essential for an
artists practice
What can you tell about an artist from their

different approaches to the same model?
Glew: It is interesting that within Eileen
Mayos archives we have letters from some
of the artists, such as Dod Procter and Laura
Knight, that she modelled for. They reveal
how increasingly friendly they became. Eileen
almost becomes a member of their extended
family: they let her use their holiday homes,
give advice about becoming an artist and are
generally supportive. This is probably the
reason why their depictions of Eileen are so
intimate and genuine: there is a feeling in
The Orchard that the model has become part
of the landscape. It is unlike some other
paintings that incorporate life models where
they appear as cyphers with little personality.
When did life drawing become more than
just an art school discipline?
Westley: Before the mid-20th century, the
life room was central to an artists training,
and our display works to illustrate the
belief that life drawing provided a
visual grammar a way of observing
and seeing essential for an artists
practice. However, the practice of life
drawing became increasingly viewed
as an obstacle to innovation. Once
the heart of an art education, it was
usurped by the seminar room and the
experimental workshop. Life drawing
has continued to be important to
many artists, but guration is just
now one of many practices.
Reception, Rupture and Return: The
Model and the Life Room runs from
26 May to 12 October at Tate Britain,
London SW1. www.tate.org.uk
IN NEXT MONTHS ISSUE... KEN HOWARDS EXPERT ADVICE ON PAINTING LIGHT ON SALE 23 MAY 2014
10 Artists
& Illustrators
advertisement feature
CALL FOR ENTRIES

Mall Galleries presents three exciting opportunities for artists
Lisa Wright,
The Guiltys Gaze on the Innocent
Matt Underwood SWLA,

Kingsher
SOCIETY OF
WILDLIFE ARTISTS
The Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA) seeks
submissions of work that depicts wildlife
subjects and evokes the spirit of the
natural world.
Through their exhibitions the SWLA aims
to further awareness of the importance of
conservation in order to maintain the variety
of the worlds ecosystems and its wildlife.
Acceptable media:
Painting, sculpture and original prints
Online submission opens:
Thursday 22 May 2014, midday
Submission fee: 12 per artwork,
6 per artwork for artists 35 or under
Find out more: www.mallgalleries.org.uk
David Curtis RSMA,

Digging for Bait at Low Tide Staithe
THE THREADNEEDLE
PRIZE: FIGURATIVE
ART TODAY
Artists are encouraged to submit fresh
and intriguing works that are strong
and topical observations or
interpretations on the world around us.
First prize is 20,000 plus a solo show
at Mall Galleries.
Figurative art is more than ever at
the forefront of contemporary art
practice and is always a subject of
debate. With many high -prole art
prizes tending towards conceptual and
abstract works, The Threadneedle Prize
deliberately sets out to examine
gurative art today, producing a
comprehensive current survey.
ROYAL SOCIETY OF
MARINE ARTISTS
The Royal Society of Marine Artists (RSMA)
seeks submissions of painting and sculpture
that involve the sea and the marine
environment, including harbours and
shorelines, traditional craft and contemporary
shipping, creeks, beaches, wildlife in short
anything that involves tidal water.
Acceptable media: Oil, acrylic, watercolour,
original prints of any media, drawings,
pastels or sculpture
Online submission closes:
Thursday 24 July 2014, midday
6 per artwork for artists 35 or under
Find out more: www.mallgalleries.org.uk
Acceptable media: Painting, drawing,

sculpture and original prints
Online submission closes:
Thursday 3 July 2014, midday
10 per artwork for students
Find out more:
www.threadneedleprize.com
11
the diary
WATCH
Pastel Alchemy
As a former Watercolour Challenge expert,
Jason Bowyer (left) is no stranger to painting
on screen. In his new DVD, he shows how to
mix pastel and ink to maximum effect.
www.paintworklms.com
READ
Edward Bawdens
Kew Gardens
VISIT
SWA Annual Exhibition

HRH Princess Michael of Kent will open the
Society of Women Artists 153rd show, which
runs from 26 June to 5 July at Londons Mall
Galleries. www.society-women-artists.org.uk
Published this month, this delightful

book (V&A, 20) collects together 60
years worth of oral illustrations and
prints made by the British artist.
www.vandashop.com
ART
AGENDA
Five things to see and do in June
ENTER
SWA PAINTING: SUE HOWELLS, PEAKY BLINDERS
Jules Destrooper Design Contest

Draw, paint or illustrate a new tin
for Belgium biscuiteers Jules
Destrooper for the chance to
win 2,000 cash and see your
design go on sale across
Europe. Entry details are at
designcontest.destrooper.com
PAINT
Horses and Bulls
Academy Studios Abroad hosts fabulous art holidays in the

south of France, from beginners courses to this two-week
equestrian art masterclass (23 June to 5 July). Book today at
www.academystudiosabroad.com
GET ALL THE LATEST NEWS ON ART SHOWS AND EVENTS AT WWW.ARTISTSANDILLUSTRATORS.CO.UK
COLOUR ON
THE WARD
A London hospital has been given a surprising
makeover by a reclusive British art legend
k, heres a quick quiz for you.

What do the National Gallery,
Tate and St Marys Hospital in
London all have in common?
The rather remarkable answer is
that the artist Bridget Riley has created
site-specic wall paintings for all three
venues. However, whereas the gallery
murals were all temporary, her latest
commission for the hospitals 10th
oor is a permanent xture.
The hospital corridors are different,
said Riley, who is famous for her
disorienting Op Art paintings. They
embrace the whole space: they aim to
lift the spirits and to remind one of life
outside the hospital, while in no way
interfering with its essential activities.
At 56 metres, the new mural is
the artists largest work for more than
25 years. It was commissioned by
Imperial College Healthcare Charity
Art Collection to accompany two
further works by the artist on separate
oors of the hospital. It has drawn
comparisons with Henri Matisses
work at Chapelle du Rosaire in Venice.
COMING UP
More dates for the diary
Froy
returns
The work of Martin Froy will be celebrated in Leeds 60 years after he

completed an art fellowship in the city. In 1954, the London-born
painter took part in the Gregory Fellowship, designed to encourage
artists to work in the North of England. His little-known abstract
paintings are colourful, lively and ripe for rediscovery.
Martin Froy and the Figurative Tradition runs from 7 May to 2 August
at The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, Leeds. www.leeds.ac.uk
TELL US ABOUT YOUR NEXT SHOW OR EVENT! EMAIL DETAILS TO INFO@ARTISTSANDILLUSTRATORS.CO.UK

14 Artists
& Illustrators
VIEW PICTURES; MARTIN FROY
The 10th instalment of Art on the

Street comes to Maidenhead on
14 June with artists selling work
commission free. Book a spot at
WWWARTONTHESTREETORGUK s
Pencil artists have until 9 June
to submit work for the second
Derwent Art Prize. Enter online at
www.derwent-artprize.com for
the chance to win over 12,000
IN PRIZES s 4HE $AVID 3HEPHERD
Wildlife Foundations Wildlife
Artist of the Year 2014 runs from
3-7 June at Londons Mall
'ALLERIES s )T WILL BE CLOSELY
followed on 10-21 June by the
Pastel Societys Annual Exhibition
AT THE SAME VENUE s !ND lNALLY
the Royal Birmingham Society of
Artists annual prize exhibition
takes place at the citys RBSA
Gallery from 12 June to 12 July.
The 1,000 rst prize winner will
be announced at the opening.
Serval2 by Atsushi Harada
David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation
WILDLIFE ARTISTof theYEAR

Mall Galleries - London SW1A 2BJ
June 2-7
Hundreds of original works of art for sale

supporting endangered wildlife
Wildlife Artist of the Year 2014
Lead sponsor Gc Timepieces
David Shepherd Archive Collection

Guest artists: Claire Harkess, Davina Bosanquet, Radka Kirby,
Stella Mays, Barry Sutton, Nichola Theakston,
Celebrity Tigers auctioned in aid of TigerTime

FREE Entry
Private Preview - Monday 2nd June
01483 272323 - www.davidshepherd.org
The David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation is a charity regsitered in the UK No: 1106893
16
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WIN 1,00
Ten lucky
supplies worth 100

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each courtesy of GreatA
ou can stock up your art cupboard

for summer with 1000 worth of art
materials to be won from GreatArt in
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Enter online today for the chance to share
this fantastic prize. Ten winners chosen at
random will each win 100 worth of quality
products. Not only that, but everyone who
enters will receive a 5 voucher to spend
at GreatArt, redeemable when you spend
40 or more.
GreatArt is the online home of more than
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prices. To browse the catalogue or place your
order, simply visit www.greatart.co.uk
HOW TO ENTER
To claim your 5 voucher and enter the
GreatArt prize draw, please head to
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Closing date for all entries is 30 June 2014.
ART COURSE PRIZE DRAW

Enter for the chance to win an arty weekend at Farncombe Estate
arncombe Estate is a place to excite the

senses. Its 400 acres range across a
beautiful Cotswold hillside with
breathtaking views over the Vale of Evesham
the perfect venue for learning a new skill or
improving an old one.
One lucky winner from this months prize
draw will win a place on a weekend course of
your choice at Farncombe Estate, including
DB&B for a friend or partner sharing a twin

or double room*. You can choose from
hundreds of inspiring weekends: painting
and drawing, crafts and textiles, art history
and photography are just a few.
To order a brochure or book a course
today, call 0333 456 8580 or visit
www.farncombecourses.co.uk
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Find your style
Developing a trademark subject or visual language is a key part of growing as an artist.

Over the next nine pages, we reveal how three leading painters developed their distinctive
styles and offer some inspiring ways to help you nd your own voice
WORDS: TERRI EATON
find your style
T
BELOW Bentleys I, oil on
canvas, 46x51cm
OPPOSITE PAGE Spring London, Covent Garden,
oil on canvas, 149x149cm
20 Artists
& Illustrators
heres something reassuring and

altogether pleasing about pinpointing
places you recognise in a painting, like
spotting a familiar face in a crowd of
strangers. Whether its the cobbled high
street of your hometown or an exotic destination you
ventured on holiday, you naturally begin to reminisce
about your experiences and your time there; eager to
discover whats changed, whats stayed the same and
why an artist has chosen this place above all others to
preserve on canvas.
Its a very emotive approach to painting and one
that has proven advantageous for London-based artist
Nick Botting, whose sprightly plein air paintings of
street and caf scenes have proved a smash with the
buying public.
I try to reect on an aspect of life as precisely and
optimistically as possible so that the scene has a sense
of dj vu for the onlooker. I want people to feel like
theyve been there, even if they havent, says Nick,

who often cycles around the capital in search of a new
perspective on the city.
I dont create slavish representations of whats in
front of me. After all, I want to nd a way of painting
it as economically as possible.
Nick would rather produce a simple, fresh painting
than one that has been over-thought and overworked.
He doesnt concern himself too much with detail, but
instead uses punches of vibrant colour and a strong
composition to catch your eye before luring you in
with a narrative, offering a valuable communion of
both style and substance.
His lively, uid gures are balanced perfectly with
the stillness of everything around them, though he
admits it can be difcult to establish a harmony
between the many elements in his works.
There are instances when I have to remind myself
of the obvious unifying factors, such as the way light
find your style
I dont create slavish representations of whats in

front of me I want to find a way of painting it
as economically as possible
hits everything as an indistinguishable object,
whether thats a person or a plant pot, he admits, but
I like that I still feel challenged. Once youve reached a
certain level of competence, that pressure is gone. The
key to success is asking more of yourself every day.
Nick began painting more than 30 years ago and his
sole focus ever since has been to improve on his
technique to make him a better artist, rather than
making drastic changes to his Impressionist style.
However, his priorities have altered drastically from
when he rst began putting oil to canvas, which keeps
the 51-year-old on his toes. Two decades ago, I was
bothered about getting the light and gures right,
whereas nowadays Im more focused on the abstract

structure of painting manipulating the image to
promote that alternative alignment, explains Nick,
who looks to Richard Diebenkorn as a particular
stylistic inuence. I want my paintings to be minimal
but they should still have a painterly surface, as
I think that is what is most attractive about them.
Nick acknowledges that he has always been
self-motivated, driven and passionate about his art.
As an inquisitive young boy inspired by Rembrandts
beautiful use of pen and ink, he would quietly
observe from the middle of a busy street, caf, pub
or anywhere else where locals would congregate to >
ABOVE Regent Street,

Bright Morning, oil on
canvas, 71x81cm
find your style
N ick began painting 30 years ago and his sole focus ever
since has been to improve on his techniqu e: The key to
success is asking more of yourself everyday
22 Artists
& Illustrators
MAKING
YOUR MARK!
Nicks top tips
for developing a
personal style
Look at the work of
other artists
Its not a good idea to
copy people too much
because youll become a
puppet for someone elses
ideas but pay attention to
a diverse range of work
even art you dont
necessarily like because
you see other ways of
being rather than sitting
too comfortably.
Be disciplined with
your technique
share stories, endlessly drawing gures to feature

in his pictures.
As well as the world around him, Nick was inspired
by the attitude of his art teacher at Winchester
College, Graham Drew, where he studied from 1977
to 1981. Graham made learning about art and art
history a real pleasure. It wasnt just about sitting
down and painting the reections of broken bottles,
recalls Nick, who expressed the same enthusiasm
during his own teaching days at Croydon College.
He encouraged me to enjoy the world and take what
I needed from it.
Nick was inspirited by his tutors positive mindset
and headed to the University of Kent in 1983 to study
Visual and Performed Arts, during which time he
hosted his rst solo exhibition at Canterburys
Gulbenkian Theatre.
Since graduating in 1986, the artist has staged a
further 15 solo exhibitions and featured in the BP
Portrait Award, the Royal Institute of Oil Painters
annual exhibition, the New English Art Club annual
exhibition and the Discerning Eye Exhibition.
He also worked as the ofcial artist for the English
cricket team during their 2000 tour of Pakistan, and
then for the Football Association in 2007 while he
painted the rst FA Cup Final to be played at the
new Wembley Stadium in London.
I usually like to a capture a particular persons
qualities rather than including a generic gure but Ill
admit it was much harder to identify Didier Drogbas
unique mannerisms while he was running

full-throttle around the pitch, jokes Nick.
At least with cricket, the players would essentially
reform for every ball so I could study someones stance
precisely but its good to put that demand on
yourself, as Ive said before.
Nick places tremendous demands on himself and
grabs any opportunity to test his creative process.
Though there are certain places, such as Chelsea,
Notting Hill and Covent Garden, which repeatedly
crop up in his portfolio, he insists he would never
produce paintings of afuent areas purely for nancial
benet. Its critical to not knock out paintings just for
the sake of it because people can sense when theres
no heart behind a picture. I still enjoy what I do
immensely and I think that shows, he explains.
Ive got a canvas on my easel right now that could be
considered to be nished. I could sell it, but I know
its not where I want it to be. Ill work diligently until
Im happy. I love that sense of satisfaction.
Its incredible to think that Nick can push himself
so hard and yet produces paintings that appear
effortless and relaxed. His work is clean and nished
but not in a manicured way, rather theres a sense
of wholeness and balance that is a reection of
experience. The scenes he captures are a hive of
positivity and its a delight to see the world
through his eyes.
Nick is represented by the Portland Gallery, London SW1.
www.portlandgallery.com
Life classes are

terrically valuable and
should be something you
continue to practise
throughout your career,
not just when youre
starting out in the
classroom. Anything that
renes the way you see is
an excellent discipline.
Find a gallery that

is sympathetic
If a gallery is selling
something similar to what
youre doing, its likely
their client list is going to
be one youll need.
However, a good gallery is
always going to be full so
its important to build
relationships with people.
If you show interest and
determination, youll head
in the right direction.
ABOVE LEFT Sloane Square,

Spring, oil on canvas,
61x76cm
OPPOSITE PAGE The Builders
Arms, Summer Evening,
oil on canvas, 91x76cm
Caroline Bailey
The Cheshire-based abstract artist reveals how
a background in textiles and a playful approach to
colour helped her develop this bright, punchy style
ABOVE Gladioli, Summer

Morning Sun, mixed media,
76x71cm
24 Artists
& Illustrators
here in the world can you nd

canary yellow skies hovering
above crimson cliff tops and
magenta elds? The answer lies
within Caroline Baileys
acclaimed semi-abstract pictures.
A member of the Royal Scottish Society of Painters
in Watercolour, Caroline takes the conventional tones
of coastal towns and turns them on their head,
replacing them with a punchy palette of psychedelic
proportions. Her attened images pave the way for
colour and texture to sing.
When I paint, I want to capture the atmosphere
of a place and how I felt while I was there. I dont in
anyway profess to paint accurately, says the Cheshirebased artist, who cites the Isle of Skye and Whitby
among her favourite places to paint. Whatever comes
out of my hand is always me. Everything I do has got
my ngerprints all over it, metaphorically speaking.
Carolines honest way of working has granted her
plenty of success throughout her career, including
numerous awards with the Royal Watercolour Society
and the Royal Scottish Academy.
However, Carolines style rst developed during
her time as a printed textile student at Manchester
Polytechnic in 1974. My degree course was heavily
orientated around colour and much of my textile work
involved painting and drawing as much as anything
else, she says. People would always gravitate towards
my paintings when I showed them my range of work
and its what they were most interested in so I made a
decision in the 1980s to do more of it.
Caroline sought inspiration in the style of certain
Scottish artists initially, such as Charles MacQueens
ability to evoke memories through his abstract
compositions and Sandy Murphys unique visual
reaction to his local Ayrshire landscape, but she soon
find your style
NATIONAL MUSEUMS LIVERPOOL
LEFT Houses on the East

Cliff, mixed media, 75x71cm
established the condence to convey her love of land

and sea in a unique way. Ive always been enchanted
by colour but I wasnt as brave 25 years ago as I am
now. I can see that by simply looking through old
catalogues, she explains. The biggest difference is
the way I use texture and how I underpaint. I like to
add strong, light colours on top of dark ones and work
back to whats underneath.
Caroline also relishes dabbling in the quietude of
still life because she can play devils advocate with
colour and gain the sense of control over her subject
that she sacrices when painting a wild, untamed
landscape. Its where she can make her practice
perfect or perhaps not.
Im never 100% happy with my style, she says.
Whatever I do, its never exactly what I want it to be,
but whats the alternative to have a xed style and
thats how its always going to be? Thats the most
depressing thing I can think of. It does get harder to
reinvent yourself as you get older but the biggest piece
of advice I can give to others is to be patient because it
will come around in time.
A CLOSER LOOK
Three exhibitions of stylistically diverse
paintings to inspire you this summer
International
Exchanges: Modern
Art & St Ives 1915-65
The many artists based in
the Cornish town of St Ives
were responsible for some
of the most unique and
stylised British abstract
paintings of the 20th
century. Tate St Ives
re-opens this month with a
look at the wider contexts
involved in these works.
17 May to 28 September,
Tate St Ives, Cornwall.
www.tate.org.uk
British Folk Art
Rossettis Obsession
Celebrating a particular
strain of homegrown
paintings, sculptures and
textiles, this charming
exhibition will focus on nave
art through the ages, from
Alfred Walliss Cornish
landscape paintings to
George Smarts tailored
portraits of Kent townsfolk.
10 June to 31 August,
Tate Britain, London.
www.tate.org.uk
Striking muses inspired the

Pre-Raphaelite
Brotherhoods nest works
and none more so than Jane
Burden Morris. The wife of
designer William Morris
modelled for a string of
Dante Gabriel Rossettis late
character portraits
(including Pandora, above),
collected here a century
after her death.
20 June to 21 September,
Lady Lever Art Gallery,
Liverpool. www.liverpool
museums.org.uk
www.carolinebailey.co.uk
find your style
Dan Parry
Jones
Combining elements of graphic design, illustration,

printmaking and painting helped this Bristol artist nd
a successful style and one that he is keen to change
26 Artists
Dan studied illustration and graphic design, but

it was his love of screenprinting that ushered
him toward a more painterly style
& Illustrators
rom Bristols iconic Jamaica Street Studios,

Dan Parry-Jones fashions his offbeat mixed
media landscapes by combining a medley
of typography, screenprint and collage with
lashings of bright impasto acrylic.
The lone gures in the foreground of many of his
pictures are intriguing: are they independent and free
or isolated and vulnerable? This conundrum in the
narrative is what draws the viewer in over and over
again, and is why Dan has successfully exhibited in
galleries across Europe, Asia and the US.
However, a style like this doesnt appear out of thin
air. Dans creative journey has many layers, much like
his pictures. He studied illustration and graphic
design at Winchester and Derby schools of art before
graduating in 1994 to pursue a career as an illustrator.
However, it was his love of screenprinting that
inadvertently ushered him toward a more painterly
style in 2008. I was printing on different surfaces I
did a few on copper and wood but then I had an
idea of printing over an old existing painting, he
reveals. I enjoyed how the atness of the print
juxtaposed the roughness of the background and I
developed it from there.
Dan prefers the unpredictability and spontaneity of
a palette knife when applying paint, occasionally
sanding down the surface or scraping back to allow
the print to sit properly. As with his mark making,
Dan doesnt like to plan the message behind a piece
too much, but rather focuses on the composition.
He nds the inventiveness of American artist Robert
Rauschenberg a constant source of inspiration,
particularly his favourable representations of everyday
circumstances and his clever use of collage. You can
see the effect this has had on Dans portfolio,
especially his early works, where the gure, the coast
and patchwork blocks of paint prevail. I owe a lot to
my beachscapes because they are what earned me my
reputation as a painter, but Rauschenberg was also
very experimental and for that reason among others,
Im keen to push myself away from the safety of a
horizon line, says the Bristol-based artist. Im
becoming more interested in breaking up the picture
plane in terms of composition and achieving more
abstract and architectural themes.
As such, Dan has recently abandoned the Cornish
villages to which his admirers are accustomed and
replaced them with structural scenes of Italy following
a trip to Siena last summer. The paintings Im
currently developing have no screenprinting element,
as I pursue an abstract style, he says. Texture has
always been what drives me. Im expecting to be
doing lots of layering: destroying surfaces and
building them up again. Theres always the temptation
to put a print on top but Im trying to restrain myself.
Its a dicey move to change a commercially
successful formula, but Dan possesses a keen artistic
intuition that will undoubtedly reward his decision.
He would much rather evolve than paint within his
comfort zone. Thats just his style.
www.danpj.co.uk
ABOVE Sandcastle,
mixed media on board
OPPOSITE PAGE Girl in the
Street, Siena, mixed media
on board
BELOW Flatford Winter II by
OCA student Averil Wootton
ON COURSE
Five inspiring art courses to help you nd your style
Porthmeor Artists Now
Four leading St Ives painters will open their studios in

this inspiring and rather unique four-day workshop. Discover
how their styles developed via talks and demonstrations.
16-19 June, St Ives School of Painting, Cornwall, 295.
www.schoolofpainting.co.uk
Exploring Colour
Unlocking Creativity
Outdoor Creative Painting
Printmaking: Developing Your Style
Available across either one-, three- or six-days, this

experimental course allows you to either dabble in different
media or immerse yourself during a residential stay.
Dates throughout 2014, Callington School of Art,
Cornwall, from 50. www.callingtonartschool.com
An always-popular course at this excellent Dartmouth

venue, abstract artist Gerry Dudgeon encourages you to
develop self-expression and observation skills together.
7-11 July or 11-15 August, Coombe Farm Studios,
Devon, from 425. www.coombefarmstudios.com
Stroll the banks of the Thames with tutor Katharine

Prendergast on this urban landscape course. Over ve
days, students will produce a series of works in various
styles perfect for nding the one that best suits you.
4-8 August, Art Academy, London SE1, 295.
www.artacademy.org.uk
The OCA allows artists to develop at their own pace

hrough distance learning. This Level 2 course
equires some prior knowledge of techniques,
but also encourages creativity and study of
other artists work as you develop your skills.
Open College of the Arts, 1,280.
www.oca-uk.com
DALVARO
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Looking for
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Enjoy what is arguably the

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demonstrations from an ever
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With all inclusive accommodation
in our villa, set in the Valencian
countryside amongst the olives,
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or individuals,
club groups
d for
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tutors wishing
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One week painting holidays with expert

instruction in watercolour, acrylics, oils
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Plein air painting instruction, to stimulate the senses
capture the visual memory, followed by additional studio
based technique practice with Arnold Lowrey, Charles Evans,
Sue Ford, Derek Oliver, Anne Maria Bourke, Les Darlow,
Barry Herniman, Trevor Waugh, Margaret Evans,
Dolores Alvaro, and more
Contact: Loli Alvaro Spain - Email: lolialvaro@telefonica.net
www.dalvaro.co.uk
CAIA MATHESON, EVENT HORIZON, OIL, PASTELS AND DYES ON CANVAS, 153X150CM
on the job
What exactly is Art in Ofces?
A company pays a set monthly fee and we provide a

rotation of artwork to hang in their ofces. The cost
includes everything shipping, framing, insurance
and installation. The client doesnt have to worry at
all, except for when I come in with a drill and start
making a racket! At the moment, its on a bespoke
basis. However, Im looking to develop more xed
subscriptions in the near future.
How did you get Art in Ofces off the ground?
I created a business model while studying a Masters

in arts management at Birkbeck, University of London.
I then attended a free workshop called Web Fuelled
Business, which was run by Dragons Den entrepreneur
Doug Richards, and it promised to teach you how to
run your business for free using the Internet. It was
very empowering. I did almost everything Doug
suggested simple things like getting business cards,
starting my social media and building a website. After
that, it was just a question of nding some artists.
Founded in 2012, Art in

Ofces is a consultancy
that allows companies
to buy or hire paintings,
prints and sculpture
for the workplace
How did you nd your rst artists?
I started with three. My rst was a sculptor called

Aishleen Lester, who was exhibiting at Imperial
College London. The next artist was my mums
cleaners niece, Charlotte Katsuno. I looked at her
work and her exhibition CV, and she was just
amazing. The third artist was a friend of a friend who
had recently graduated from the Royal College of Art.
How do you go about signing up a new artist?
Usually, I approach artists that I like and ask them but

I like it when artists approach me too. It shows that
theyre proactive. I have around 20 artists on my
books at the moment. I also have original prints by
the likes of Picasso but I work with another art dealer
on these. Pictures by certain dead artists are difcult
to advertise because of Artists Resale Rights, Picasso
in particular, so it helps to have an expert involved.
Is it a risky business to work with famous artists?
Its not if its under 900 because thats when the

Artists Resale Rights come into play. The dealer I
work with has been doing this for a very long time
and he is careful about what he buys. He always gets >
ON THE JOB
Katie
Henry
As founder of the Art in Ofces consultancy, Katie is
on a mission to brighten up boardrooms across the UK
INTERVIEW: TERRI EATON PHOTOS: STEVE PILL
CAIA MATHESON, KEEP DANCING, OIL, PASTELS AND DYES ON CANVAS, 100X150CM
the provenance correct and the certicate of

authenticity, so I trust him in that regard.
What do you look for in an artist?
There are plenty of people who are very good painters

but they havent got the right temperament. I want
someone with that extra energy, extra drive, extra
creativity and that ability to make good decisions
based on advice from their peers critiques. I nd
those people are more successful.
What do artists get out of the deal?
If the company wishes to buy the artwork outright,

then we act as a broker so the artist will receive the
prot minus our commission. However, if its a
subscription or hire purchase, theyll be paid in
monthly instalments. A lot of artists say they really
like the idea. Its like getting a small monthly income.
However, its different to selling your work through a
gallery because Im non-exclusive. Art in Ofces is a
start-up business and I want to support the artists as
much as possible to support themselves.
Which styles are popular at the moment?
Abstract landscapes, like those painted by Caia

Matheson. Ofce workers dont want to see anything
erotic or random people they dont know. Its got to be
interesting and colourful.
Do you have an artistic background at all?
Yes, I studied sculpture at Central Saint Martins.

I loved it. We were one of the last batches of students
to get the old-fashioned art school experience there
were no set targets, you basically just rented a studio
space for three years with lots of other like-minded
people. It denitely helped me to spot proper artists.
Do you still have time to make your own artwork?
Sadly, no. Any spare time is devoted to being with my

family or running the business. Actually, you dont get
any spare time when youre running your business
even when youre off sick, your mind is ticking over!
www.artinofces.co.uk
30 Artists
& Illustrators
Katie handles prints by Miro and Picasso, as

well as pieces by more than 20 contemporary
talents, including former Brighton Artist of
the Year Caia Matheson
WATERCOLOUR COMPETITION 2014

Calendar Painting Competition 2015
Become part of the Hahnemhle FineArt Calendar. Enter your
artwork for the 2015 edition with the theme CONTRASTS, all
painting techniques welcome!
Competition entries must be painted on Hahnemhle or Lana paper.
CALL FOR ENTRIES
Please contact us, visit www.hahnemuehle.com or scan the QR code for
Cordula Kerlikowski
further details on how to enter.
A prize for contemporary

watercolour painng
Arsts are invited to submit
works for the 2014 exhibion
Prizes total 18,000
DEADLINE: 2 JUNE 2014, 5PM

Enter online at: www.parkerharris.co.uk
Visit Hahnemhle at the following shows:
Patchings, Nottingham 5 - 8 June 2014
Art in Action, Oxford 17 - 20 July 2014
t: 01372 462190 e: watercolour@parkerharris.co.uk

Alexandra Park by Christopher Green
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Timeless
visions
As the Royal Academician Sonia Lawson turns 80 this
month, biographer Nicholas Usherwood takes a look at
her remarkable career so far, from the rawness of her
early work to her later visionary scenes
S
BELOW Figure at
Dawn, 1966-67,
oil on canvas,
183x153cm
TOP RIGHT Sonia in
the studio, 1960
32 Artists
howing remarkably shrewd

self-knowledge of the
fundamental reason she
paints, Sonia Lawson once
observed of herself: I am in
painting like a sherman is part of the
sea. The often distinctly unpredictable
twists and turns her art has taken over
more than half a century of intense
activity have less to do with stylistic
and artistic considerations and
everything to do with the emotional,
the personal and her intense sense
of the feminine.
Her paintings are, in that way,
her life; the activity of painting
representing and expressing her
responses to her varied experiences,
& Illustrators
her intellectual passions and her

deepest memories what she would
term her reality.
She has always understood that
about herself too, writing in 1973,
I hope to retain a rawness that is
like young blood, that is eager and
unlaboured, depending on my
realisation, vision and feeling over the
tyranny of appearances I like to
turn things up, be like the seasons,
exible but with order. Rouault said he
would like to have changed a bit but
could not because one thing was
expected of him. Poor man.
Such an approach represents what
art historians, with their love of neat
little pigeonholes, would term
Expressionism, a style which English
artists have tended to give a wide
berth to, even in 20th-century art. But
it does make the development of her
work, with all its dramatic shifts of
direction, better seen as being as much
part of a European tradition as a
simply English visionary one as
much Max Beckmann or Edvard
Munch as Stanley Spencer or William
Blake. Though all of these artists have
always been of huge importance to her
throughout her career.
Sonia Lawson was in painting from
the day she was born on 2 June 1934
the only child of two professional
painters: Fred Lawson, a much loved
and respected painter of the Yorkshire
Dales landscape, and Muriel Metcalfe,
a hugely gifted artist with a clear
understanding of Fauvist innovations
and the works of Czanne. Fred had
trained at Leeds Art School before the
First World War and had been close

friends with the Modernist circle
around the great Jewish Expressionist
painter Jacob Kramer.
As a consequence, a wide circle of
Leeds and London intelligentsia used
to visit Fred and Muriels cottage in
the remote Wensleydale village of
Castle Bolton the writer JB Priestley,
the poet James Kirkup and the painter
William Roberts among them. Sonia
remembers the time and place vividly
and with huge affection the oil
lamps and the gentle radiant warmth
that bathed the room and, above all,
the social circle that gathered there.
Meanwhile it was on her uncle and
aunts small farm in the nearby valley
that Sonia developed her lifelong
passion for animals their sculptural
form and their warmth were amazing
that is still so much part of her work
today. It was an extraordinary and
exciting time generally for an
observant child; the small town might
have been remote geographically but
this was wartime and not only was the
huge Catterick Camp nearby but also
soldiers were on active training in the
valley while Italian and German
prisoners-of-war worked on the land.
On a more personal level, Sonia
began, aged 10, to keep scrapbooks
of items, drawn from magazines and
newspapers, documenting the
concentration camps and the
Nuremberg trials.
The idea that these horrors had
happened while I was growing up free
and happy in the Yorkshire Dales
became an important driver for her
LEFT Still Life, 1969,

oil on canvas,
121x152cm
paintings when she rst reached

artistic maturity.
There had never been any question
about Sonia becoming an artist and,
after training rst at Worthing and
then Doncaster art schools she got into
the Royal College of Art in 1956.
Initially her reaction on going there
was to abandon the kind of landscape
and gure painting she had practiced
at Doncaster for a bold semiabstraction based on still life and
interiors. It taught her about colour,
abstract shapes, timeless forms outside
the here and now.
The twists and turns that Sonias art has taken have less
to do with stylistic considerations and everything to do
with the emotional, the personal and the feminine
With the support and friendship of
the professor there at the time, Carel
Weight, she became something of a
star, gaining a rst-class degree and a
travelling scholarship. She gradually
began to nd her voice as well with an
astonishing series of paintings begun
in 1966. Encompassing themes of
prisoners of conscience, the brutalising
impact of war on men and womens

lives and the abuse of children,
paintings like Figure at Dawn, have a
ferocious, engaged energy and visceral
painting technique which, allied to a
powerfully-controlled use of colour
and a monumental formal structure,
make them among the major artistic
achievements of the period.
>
sonia lawson
and now, spending an increasing
amount of time each summer in
Wensleydale, where she and her
husband had bought a house, her art
took on an altogether more personal
and celebratory turn. It was a time,
above all, to reconsider her past, her
relationship to her mothers artistic
and intellectual inheritance and out of
that came a ood of autobiographical
memory, of childhood, landscape,
stories and histories, all brought
together in an impressive sequence of
major paintings on a wide range of
narrative themes.
A 1981 return visit with her mother
and daughter to the Bront Parsonage
Museum in Haworth, West Yorkshire,
for example, inspired a series of
gurative paintings featuring the
Bront sisters.
As always with Sonias work, these
werent simply homages to writers she
read and admired, but became fused
with more personal imagery as in
1981s Night Writing: Homage to Emily
As she approaches 80, Sonia has not lost any of her

power to conjure up powerful feelings within us, her
subject being, as ever, the human condition
ABOVE Homage to
Emily Bront, Night
Writing, 1981,
oil on canvas,
153x122cm
RIGHT Lone Figure
Looking Out to
Sea, c.1995, oil on
canvas, 53x70cm
34 Artists
In a 1982 catalogue essay, Weight

observed of that painting: I dont
believe Francis Bacon has done
anything more disturbing.
When Sonia had started this series
she was living in London but, by the
time it gradually came to a conclusion,
she had married and gone to live in
Bedfordshire. She also had a child
during that time, her only daughter,
Zoe. She had not enjoyed living in
London and never felt particularly part
of any artistic grouping, preferring
then, as now, to follow her own
particular artistic path. She had no
commercial gallery either and thus
only slowly began to gain an audience.
In this she was fortunate, however, to
have the support of the annual Royal
Academy Summer Exhibition, which
always showed everything she
submitted even prior to her election
to the RA in 1991.
Meanwhile, by the end of the 1970s,
Sonias life and art was changing
again. She had said what she needed
to say about the world at large her
demons exorcised as she puts it
& Illustrators
Bront. The artists mother always read

until late into the night, as Sonia did,
and out of this series a further series of
canvases and works on paper emerged
that continue to this day on the theme
of night writing and reading. During
the 1980s Sonia also began to achieve
more success and recognition,

including election to the Royal
Academy, major commissions and
public gallery shows.
Meanwhile, Sonias work was to go
through two more major shifts of style.
In the 1990s, she abandoned the
complex narrative style for a bolder
and more abstract way of working; the
themes, often of single women, being
painted in erce blocks of often
unmodulated colour, the forms
simplied into more generalised
symbolic shapes. Boats and Solitary
Figure is a good example of what she
was after. The paint [has] its own
indulgence; oil, pigments, colour,
honed and wrought not just gestural
notations, but something made and
built, growing and lling out like a
fed thing, she observed. If I am
concerned with the materials
themselves and the application
process, whilst at the same time
dealing with expression and emotion
(but free from unnecessary
embellishment), then a plump,
vigorous minimalism is needed.
In the mid-1990s she evolved a style
of working on a large scale that also
allowed her to use drawing more
directly in her paintings. Drawing had
always been a key underpinning of her
work and at one point during that
period even became a major
expressive outlet in its own right.
Constructing her paintings out of
large blocks of impasto abstract
shapes, she began to incise gures
nudes, horsemen, animals directly
sonia lawson
into the paint with the handle of the
brush or cut into the thick layers of
pigment with a palette knife. It proved
the perfect technique for what she now
wanted her painting to do: tackle
themes drawn from history,
archaeology and even geology by
delving down to reveal something
that comes to the surface, like
something that has held out against
time and invites us into the circle.
In her most recent works, like Night
in a Private Garden with its pair of
kissing lovers set against a screen of

trees and pergolas alight with stars in
a dark bluish sky, the form becomes
ever looser, the mood simply ecstatic.
As she approaches 80, it reveals that
Sonia has not lost any of her power to
conjure up powerful feelings within
us, her subject being, as ever, the
human condition.
Nicholass forthcoming book, Sonia
Lawson: Passions and Alarms, will be
published by Sansom & Company.
www.sansomandcompany.co.uk
ABOVE Sonia today

LEFT Night in a
Private Garden,
2010, 128x100cm
COLLECTION GEMEENTEMUSEUM DEN HAAG, THE NETHERLANDS 2014 MONDRIAN/HOLTZMAN TRUST C/O HCR INTERNATIONAL USA
A new
le
Piet Mondrians minimal abstract paintings may not be to everyones tastes but, 70 years after his
death, his unique contribution to art is ready to be reappraised as Steve Pill discovers
36 Artists
& Illustrators
mondrian
COLLECTION GEMEENTEMUSEUM DEN HAAG, THE NETHERLANDS 2014 MONDRIAN/HOLTZMAN TRUST C/O HCR INTERNATIONAL USA
walk around the small

Dutch city of
Amersfoort is a
charming experience,
all curving canals and
cobbled streets like Bruges, only
with less tourists. But if it werent for
the fact that the locals are so proud of
him, youd never quite believe that this
was the birthplace of Piet Mondrian.
A giant of 20th century abstract
painting, he is best known for his later
works careful compositions
consisting of thick black lines and
blocks of primary colours. These
graphic paintings were in tune with
the times, suggestive of US city grids
or modernist architecture rather than
the quaint scenes of his hometown.
Mondrian was a painter of traditional
landscapes from the Hague School but
then when he went travelling, rst to
Paris and later New York, he took a lot
of inuences from the modern art in
the whole world, explains Onno
Maurer, acting head of Amersfoorts
Mondriaanhuis. It is a miracle this
man who was born in a traditional
town developed into this world
famous inventor of abstract art.
That style is known as De Stijl.
Formulated in the Netherlands during
the First World War, it saw artists,
designers and architects come together
over a shared love for abstraction,
asymmetry and simplicity. As such,
Mondrian is often stereotyped as a
cool, detached character but nothing
could be further from the truth. As
two forthcoming UK exhibitions
running almost simultaneously at Tate
Liverpool and Margates Turner
Contemporary are set to reveal, there
is far more to this popular Dutch
master than clinical lines.
It is a miracle this man who was born

in a traditional town developed into this
world famous inventor of abstract art
Pieter Cornelis
Mondriaan was born on 7
March 1872 in an upstairs
room at the primary
school on Kortegracht
where his father, a
qualied drawing teacher, lived and
worked. When the family moved east
to Winterswijk in 1880, the young
Pieter would regularly join his uncle
Frits for a spot of plein air painting
along the river Gein.
Suitably encouraged, he enrolled at
Amsterdams Academy of Fine Art and
begun a series of landscapes that
irted with the distinctive styles of
Matisse, Seurat, Monet and others.
These works, many of which will be

displayed in Turner Contemporarys
Mondrian and Colour, reveal a lesserknown side to the artists portfolio.
Working primarily with earth colours,
he used umbers, siennas and ochres to
depict windmills, canals and other
local subjects. The early signs of
abstraction were there, however, as he
began to simplify elements and create
geometric patterns with tree branches.
It was during this period that
Mondrian simplied his surname and
dropped the second A, frustrated by
peoples inability to pronounce it
correctly (it is Peet Mon-dree-un).
He also became interested in
theosophy the wisdom of the Gods,
a belief system based upon a mystical
insight into the divine nature. He
joined the Theosophical Society and
set about trying to express this
newfound spiritual outlook in his art.
Nevertheless, a change of scenery
was soon required. A stint in Paris saw
Mondrian immerse himself in the
Cubist works of Picasso and Braque, >
ABOVE Farmhouse
with Wash on the
Line, c.1897, oil
on cardboard,
31.5x37.5cm
LEFT Oostzijdse
Mill with Extended
Blue, Yellow and
Purple Sky, 190708, oil on canvas,
67.5x117.5cm
OPPOSITE PAGE
Composition with
Large Red Plane,
Yellow, Black, Grey
and Blue, 1921,
oil on canvas,
95.7x95.1cm
37
mondrian
before a brief visit home to Holland in
1914 left him stranded for the duration
of the First World War. He sought
solace in the company of artist Theo
Van Doesburg with whom he laid the
groundwork for the De Stijl manifesto.
When the war ended, Mondrian
headed straight back to Paris. In his
studio on the Rue du Dpart, he
resolved to paint using only black,
white and the three primaries, and
began to decorate the walls with bold
squares of similar colours. It was in
his Paris studio that he decided not
only that his painting should be this
way but his entire life, says Maurer.
Nevertheless, Mondrian enjoyed the
trappings of Parisian nightlife during
Les Annes Folles (the crazy years).
When Louis Armstrong played a
fortnight-long residency in 1929, the
Dutch painter attended every night.
Through jazz music, he developed a
better understanding of art. Whether
listening to records at home on his
trusted Linguaphone or dancing in
New York jazz clubs with artist Lee
Krasner (the soon-to-be wife of
Jackson Pollock), the Dutchman saw
how he could enhance his own work

with tempo, rhythm and energy.
Like the greatest jazz musicians,
however, Mondrians skill lay in the
way he put those elements together.
Reproductions of his later works can
make the artists trademark style seem
clinical and measured. See them in
person, however, and you can really
appreciate the human element. This is
real painting, as Hans Janssen,
curator of modern art at The Hagues
Gemeentemuseum, puts it succinctly.
If it was design, it could have been
made by machine.
Mondrians hand-painted lines
wobble occasionally or vary in size by
a millimetre or two across the course
of a single canvas. That this is still
visible in the end result is very
important, says Janssen. What you
see is something living.
Perhaps the greatest lesson we can
learn from Mondrians work is how far
a constant desire to experiment with
paint can take you. At every stage of
his career, he absorbed new inuences
and pushed his own art forward.
Seventy years after the artists death
and with two fantastic
shows on the horizon, the
time is ripe to investigate
his work further and read
between those pulsing
black lines. A&I
This is real painting, says curator

Hans Janssen. If it was design, it could
have been made by machine
MORE MONDRIAN
If the two UK exhibitions
inspire you, head to Holland
for the bigger picture
Gemeentemuseum
With 500,000 visitors each year,
this is Hollands most popular
museum outside of Amsterdam
thanks in no small part to the
largest collection of Mondrians art
in the world. An entire 750m2 wing is
dedicated to De Stijl with the artists
last, unnished masterpiece,
Victory Boogie Woogie, among the
many highlights.
Stadhouderslaan 41, 2517 HV The
Hague. www.gemeentemuseum.nl
Mondriaanhuis
For a true Piet pilgrimage, head to
his birthplace in the pretty medieval
city of Amersfoort. The artist was
born upstairs on 7 March 1872 and
today it is home to early paintings,
personal effects and a recreation of
his Paris studio. Meanwhile, the
upper oor contains temporary
exhibitions of work by artists
inspired by the man of the huis.
Kortegracht 11, 3811 KG
Amersfoort. www.mondriaanhuis.nl
Villa Mondriaan
RIGHT Composition
with Yellow, Blue
and Red, 1937-42,
oil on canvas,
72.7x69.2cm
38 Artists
& Illustrators
Mondrian and Colour runs from

24 May to 21 September at Turner
Contemporary, Margate. Mondrian and
his Studios runs from 6 June to
5 October at Tate Liverpool. For more
information on visiting Holland, head
to www.holland.com
2013 MONDRIAN/HOLTZMAN TRUST C/O HCR INTERNATIONAL
A second former home of the

Mondrian family was saved from
demolition in 1984 and now forms
one wing of this permanent tribute to
the artist. Opened in May 2013, the
inaugural exhibition, Waar het
allemaal begon! (Where it all
began!), featured early works that
the artist painted in Winterswijk.
Zonnebrink 4, 7101 NC
Winterswijk. www.villamondriaan.nl
SATURDAY 21 - SUNDAY 22 JUNE : 10AM - 5PM
MIDSUMMER
ART FAIR
ADMISSION 4, CONCESSIONS 3,
UNDER 16s & LAC MEMBERS FREE
LandmarkArts
Landmark Arts Centre
Ferry Road, Teddington, TW11 9NN : 020 8977 7558
www.landmarkartscentre.org Registered Charity No: 1047080
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FREE
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with JULIA MANNING

WORDS AND PHOTOS: JENNY WHITE
ulia is a passionate printmaker who was elected to the

Royal Society of Painter Printmakers last year. She is
also a member of Somerset Printmakers, The Devon
Guild of Craftsmen and an associate member of the Society
of Wildlife. She sells greetings cards through a dedicated
website, www.juliamanningcards.co.uk
Youve made a living as an artist for

over 30 years. Whats your secret?
Ever since graduating Ive earned my

living with a paintbrush I was a
single mum with two kids so I had to
keep going all the time.
After I trained I produced art by the
yard. In the 1980s, I used to paint a lot
of faux marble that is, painting
surfaces to look exactly like marble,
which was very popular at the time.
Then I became a portrait painter,
working in oils. On one occasion I was
commissioned to paint Neil Kinnock
but it never happened.
You spent nine years living in Paris.
How did that affect your style?
There was no demand for portrait

painting in France so I started
producing medieval-style painted
tapestries. Id studied late medieval
and early Renaissance tapestries and
could paint any subject into the same
style. I worked in special vinyl-based
40 Artists
& Illustrators
paint on thick linen canvas, which

Id stretch to the wall.
Did your work change when you
moved back to the UK?
Yes, I embraced printmaking. Id

always wanted to be a printmaker and
when I was in France Id had a chance
to go and work in the municipal print
studios and I just fell in love with it.
When I moved here I was still making
prints and my partner Paul said it was
time to stop being an art tart and to
do what I really wanted to do. Since
then Ive never looked back Ive
made a living as a printmaker.
Could you describe your process
of making a new print?
I go walking and make lots of

drawings as well as taking a few
photos as reminders. The drawings
lead to the prints; Ill make
preliminary sketches that allow
me to play around with the image,
in the studio
and then Ill draw straight onto

the blocks and cut them. This
preserves the dynamism of
the drawing.
Sometimes I take a slightly
different tack and blow drawings up
onto tracing paper before transferring
them to the blocks. I tend to put a lot
of colours into each plate, and I
usually use relief and intaglio within
the same print. I learnt the basics of
printmaking at college and have
taught myself since then. Life is full of
experimentation and I havent nished
yet Ive got lots to learn.
What made you settle in your
present studio?
I bought the house because of the

outbuilding, which is now my studio.
We think it may originally have been
an abattoir because it had a big
replace there and strange drains.
It needed a lot of work but, bit by bit,
I did everything to it.
What are you working

on at the moment?
How does your studio reect your

way of working?
The area near the window is more the

conception end. I use the easel, and a
drawing board that belonged to my
father, who was an architect.
The opposite end is my messy end
its where I keep my ink and my
rollers, and my most important item:
my huge press. It was made for me by
an engineering friend.
Your studio is full of unusual objects.
What role do they play in your work?
I collect lots of nests and skulls. I dont

agree with drawing from photographs.
If at all possible I like to be able to
touch the thing and understand how it
works. With this in mind, I also have
quite a number of stuffed birds.
Ive been working on a

large-scale project with a group
of artists known as Pine Feroda.
These big collaborative works
are fabulous because everybody has
something they bring to the table so
its a great learning experience.
How do you see your artwork
developing in the future?
Im rather into geology and the

essence of islands. Im going to be
going around from one island to
another and making work based on
what I nd. My interest in plants and
animals and nature goes back to
studying A-level zoology and botany.
Its what Ive always been interested in
but, as time goes on, it develops in
different ways.
Julias next exhibition runs from 1-28 August at Art Matters,
Tenby, Pembrokeshire. www.artmatters.org.uk
41
Portfolio
A selection of the most creative

artworks made by our readers on
PortfolioPLUS
picture
of the
month
HOWARD MASON
New CD, oil on canvas, 92x122cm
I love to paint gurative work showing
emotions and daily life experiences.
I try to capture the mystery of inner
dialogue outwardly expressed. I am
fascinated by expressions and the
colours of skin. I mainly paint in oils as
I love the texture. Nearly all the people
in my work are people I know. Here it
is friends and family passing around
the new CD.
www.artistsandillustrators.co.uk/
howardmason
42 Artists
& Illustrators
portfolio
Maggie Robinson, The Music of the Landscape Opus 18: The Longshaw Estate, Derbyshire
www.artistsandillustrators.co.uk/maggierobinson
Ronald Haber, Bridlington Harbour

www.artistsandillustrators.co.uk/ronald-haber
PortfolioPLUS
4'#6' ;174 190 9'$2#)'
*19%#5' n 5'.. ;174 914Portfolio Plus is the Artists & Illustrators
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to the tens of thousands of visitors to
our site every month. To sign up for
your own personalised Portfolio Plus
account today, simply visit www.artists
andillustrators.co.uk/register
In each issue, these pages will
showcase the best new artworks
uploaded to Portfolio Plus every
month. To have you work considered
for inclusion, simply email portfolio@
artistsandillustrators.co.uk with
a link to the latest additions to your
Portfolio Plus account and well print
a new selection each month.
43
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(U
Chiltern Arts Fest 28-29 June
Hazel Soan's
Watercolour
ainbow
At Chiltern Open Air Museum - Chalfont St Giles
Come and see

Artist and Illustrator
Artist of the Year
(Readers Choice)
and many
other Artists
in action all
weekend!
Book tickets online now

to avoid the queues
www.coam.org.uk
See Artists in Action, Take Part in Workshops & Be Inspired!
44
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YOUR32-PAGE
PRACTICAL
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64 3TEP BY STEP SUNSET DEMONSTRATION s 68 ,EARN TO DRAW WITHOUT FEAR s 70 Alla prima portraits
TALKING TECHNIQUES WITH
CATHARINEDAVISON
Moving to Edinburgh has proved the catalyst for this Irish artists most inventive work to date.
She shares her ever-evolving and award-winning landscape painting methods with Steve Pill
T
BELOW Catharine
with The Craggs
at Dawn (from
Calton Hill) at the
2014 Lynn PainterStainers exhibition
46 Artists
he judging panel for this years

Lynn Painter-Stainers Prize,
myself included, looked at
several thousand artworks over the
course of several days.
The shortlist eventually settled
upon was intended to show the cream
of representational painting in the UK
over the past 12 months, though
when it came to selecting an overall
winner, there was only one work upon
which we could all agree.
Catharine Davisons The Craggs at
Dawn (from Calton Hill) was a thrilling
& Illustrators
piece of landscape painting that

excited the artists in the room with its
inventive mark making and clever use
of colour, while also pleasing the art
critics via its keen observations and
refreshing lack of obvious inuences.
When the painting won the 15,000
rst prize at the awards ceremony in
March, it felt in many ways like the
culmination of a major body of work.
In actual fact, it was part of the
fascinating and evolving style of an
artist who really hit her stride after
moving to Edinburgh seven years ago.
As soon as I moved here, my work

was being recognised with various
awards and I think that was more to
do with the integrity of the drawing
coming through in the work. I was
shortlisted for the Jolomo Foundation
Award a year ago and I hadnt even
discovered the glazing technique that I
used in The Craggs at Dawn (from
Calton Hill) at that point.
It wasnt only her draughtsmanship
skills and painting methods that were
galvanised during this period. I fell in
love with the landscape from Calton
Hill and Blackford Hill, explains
Catharine, who titled her recent
exhibition at Edinburghs Open Eye
Gallery, This Land Ate My Heart.
It was a really poignant moment
where I realised I had found a subject
that I wasnt aware had been fully
explored or wasnt being fully
explored. As a plein air painter, I knew
there was something there that I could
get to grips with and suddenly I saw a
lifetimes work in front of me.
Born in 1970 in the small Northern
Irish market town of Kilkeel, Catharine
was a very visually aware child. For as
long as I can remember seeing has
played a part of who I am so even
when I was a child I remember being
reprimanded for staring in case I was
being rude. Actually I think my eyes
are the way I make sense of the things
and its that process then of
interpreting what I am seeing through
my work that makes me feel that I am
engaging with the world. I dont
necessarily do it consciously either
its just my way of living and being.
Nevertheless, like many edgling
painters, Catharine was encouraged
down the science route at school and

fought hard to pursue the idea of
becoming an artist, even if she didnt
really have a grasp on exactly what
that entailed. All I knew was that the
act of drawing really made sense and I
needed to look at it further.
A foundation year at Manchester
Polytechnic and a degree in
illustration from Liverpool John
Moores University followed. It was
here that Catharines drawing tutor,
Julia Midgley, encouraged her to
develop her location drawing skills.
It resulted in a place at
Buckinghamshire Chilterns University
IFELLINLOVEWITHTHELANDSCAPEFROM
BLACKFORDHILLISUDDENLYSAWA
LIFETIMESWORKINFRONTOFME
College for an MA in
illustration and printmaking.
During that time, Catharine
undertook a major, two-year
project at the Laphroaig
whisky distillery on the island
of Islay, which was
sponsored by Allied Domecq
Wines and Spirits (and featured
in the July 1999 issue of Artists &
Illustrators).
On moving to Edinburgh from
Berkshire in 2007, Catharine was
encouraged to work in oils by her
artist boyfriend Robbie Bushe and,
being entirely self-taught in that
medium, she has adapted the

printmakers approach of building an
image in separate, pre-planned layers.
Catharines recent oil paintings have
all begun with a rather thorough
preparation of the painting surface in
her studio prior to going out on
location. Boards are rst covered
>
ABOVE Observations
from Blackford
Hill, oil on board,
60x66cm
talking techniques
BELOW The Craggs
at Dawn (Calton
Hill), oil on board,
75x120cm
with an oil-based undercoat to give

them a pleasing sheen before an
experimental layer of colour is applied.
For this, the artist mixes oil paints
with Robersons Glazing Medium and
turps in large Tupperware containers,
before pouring or dripping the dilute
colour on to the boards surface to
obliterate the white background with a
make and they will be inspired by

different sources for different reasons.
Then Ill just select a board depending
on the weather, the time of day, how
much time I have on my hands, and Ill
go out and Ive got something to work
against straight away.
The next step is to take these
boards out on location and familiarise
herself with the subject.
I spend quite a bit of time
looking and I might make a
few thumbnails on the spot
and I make a little plan like
you would with printmaking,
I plan how the image is going
to evolve in layers with
written notes. Then I spend
quite a lot of time with my palette,
mixing the pigments to maintain quite
a restrained colour palette.
It may sound like quite a leisurely
approach but Catharine is incredibly
regimented and organised in her
methods. For The Craggs at Dawn
(from Calton Hill), she was up at 6am
every day for practical reasons as
much as anything.
I knew the location was plagued by
tourists and the only way I would get
peace would be to get there rst, she
says. Also the parking was expensive,
IMTRYINGTOMOVEAWAYFROMTHE
DIRECTCOLOURSIHAVEINFRONTOFME
ANDEVOKESOMETHINGBEYONDTHAT
series of thin, transient glazes.
The palette of colours might come
from a picture Ive seen in a magazine
or a still from a piece of lm that Ive
photographed, she explains. I even
take photographs when Im watching
television sometimes.
Im trying to move away from the
direct colours I have in front of me
and evoke something beyond the
immediate world. I might do a whole
series of boards in one sitting and I
have ideas of what they are for. I make
ongoing lists of works that I want to
48 Artists
& Illustrators
so I had to get there before I had to

pay. Its not just about making the
work sometimes, it is also about
negotiating these other factors.
On the rst day, Catharine began
the painting in the distance. I started
with the sky, which dened the shape
of the crags on the left, leaving the
negative space. I mixed a black glaze
after that which went on the left-hand
side and that may have been it for
that rst sitting.
Sessions would only last a
maximum of three hours at a time and
Catharine wouldnt always return the
following day if the light wasnt right.
Nevertheless, layers of colour and line
work would build the vast panorama
of the Scottish capital over the course
of later sittings.
Similarly to her studio prep, she
mixes glaze medium with pigment in
Tupperware pots on location. Bluishwhite highlight lines picking out
certain buildings or details were
added towards the end with a rigger
brush, as she acknowledged not only
the sprawling landscape in front of
her, but also maps and other outside
references.
One of the many distinctive
elements of The Craggs at Dawn
talking techniques
TECHNIQUES
VINCENT VAN GOGH, THE HARVEST, 1888. NATIONAL GALLERY OF ART,

WASHINGTON, COLLECTION OF MR. AND MRS. PAUL MELLON
(from Calton Hill) is the way in which

the composition doesnt adhere to the
rule of thirds, a favourite of landscape
painters that says a horizon line
should always be placed a third (or
two-thirds) of the way down the image.
Catharine doesnt ignore such
academic guidelines but instead
prefers to be selective with when she
uses them. If you know the rules then
you can break the rules, cant you?
she reasons. Thats got to be part of
the joy for me: that playfulness. For
this particular type of location work,
the paintings would start to become
complacent otherwise. Youve got to
INFLUENCES
MATERIALS
As a self-taught oil painter, Catharines

methods are often based upon those used in
other mediums. Layers are planned out like a
printmaker with notes, while the fragility of
her work in gum Arabic and watercolour is
echoed in her use of thin washes of dilute oils.
Catharine uses Winsor & Newton or Michael

Harding artists oils with her stalwart palette
including Indian Yellow, Cerulean Blue and
Indian Red. Ill introduce a new colour from
time to time to inject new excitement and Ill learn
about colour all over again as I see what it does.
retain an excitement and, whether

that is through materials or subject
matter, youve got to constantly push
yourself out of your comfort zone.
For now, the Lynn Painter-Stainers
Prize money has afforded Catharine
the chance to take stock of a rapid
period of experimentation and
development. Thanks to another prize
win at the 2013 Society of Scottish
Artists annual exhibition, she is
working towards a solo show at the
British Embassy in Bratislava this
summer and can now afford to visit
Slovakia ahead of this to create
new paintings.
The Irish artists broad range of inspirations

includes Victor Pasmore, Ben Shahn,
Claude Monet and Joan Eardley. Another
early inuence were the drawings of Van
Gogh: There is always a pause in his
drawings where the eye can rest.
After this, Catharine is considering

making work based on her garden,
staying at home for a while to conserve
energy and collect her thoughts.
She has idenitied the hills around
Edinburgh as having the potential to
become the basis for her lifes work
but she is not about to rush things
and blow the progress she has made
on unmotivated or substandard work.
Im recognising the need for a pause.
I might need to look elsewhere and
give Blackford Hill and Calton Hill a
break. Its hard but I need to step
away and come back to it fresh.
www.catharinedavison.co.uk
ABOVE The City

(from Blackford
Hill), oil on board,
80x100cm
ANATOMY OF A PAINTING
4.VARNISH
Continuing his ve-part series about the fundamental aspects of painting, leading
artist and tutor Ian Rowlands reveals when to varnish a work and how to do it
V
BELOW An art
conservator at the
Gemeentemuseum
removes unwanted
layers of dirt from
unvarnished work
arnishing is often seen as the

nal act in the painting process,
almost an ofcial statement
that the painting is nished. But it is
not entirely clear as to whether it is
necessary or will improve the painting.
I speak as an artist who very rarely
varnishes their work and, on the
occasions that I have, Ive often
regretted doing so. Varnishing is a
matter of choice so it is helpful to
understand what functions it performs.

Whether the painting has been
made with oils or acrylics, varnishing
has two distinct functions. Firstly, it
provides a protective layer against
pollution where its surface absorbs,
or lessens the effects of damaging
agents in the atmosphere such as
dust or ner particles.
Nowadays, paintings are displayed
in a much friendlier atmosphere than
was previously the case; lighting and
heating our rooms with cleaner fuels
(rather than oil lamps and coal res)
has meant that there is no longer the
same urgency to varnish paintings.
This leaves us with the second
function, that of optical modication,
which is now more likely to be the
reason to varnish. A paintings
unpredictable effects of the various

colours absorption rates across the
chosen range can cause lack of
surface unity. Acrylic paintings are
less likely to suffer from these
problems as manufacturers can
modify the binder to even out the
sheen across the range, enabling a
unied nish.
Mixing matt with gloss or adding a
matting agent to a gloss varnish can
be difcult; it is wiser to purchase a
matt or satin varnish for such a nish.
Prior to use, matt and satin varnishes
should be stirred to fully disperse the
matting agent, as failure to do this will
result in a glossy or patchy nish.
It is worth noting that the matt
varieties of acrylic and oil varnish tend
to reduce the colour saturation of a
VARNISHINGISAMATTEROFCHOICESOITISHELPFUL
TOUNDERSTANDWHATFUNCTIONSITPERFORMS
appearance can be modied by
varnishing, either enriching colours
that have dulled down by increasing
gloss and colour saturation or reducing
the paintings sheen making it easier
to read. That optical modication also
extends to surface unity, whereby a
painting that has developed an uneven
surface sheen during construction can
become more coherent when varnish
is applied all over.
In an ideal world we would
determine the surface nish as we
proceed with the painting rather than
using a coating at the conclusion.
However, this issue arises in oil
painting where the sometimes50 Artists
& Illustrators
painting due to their matting agents,

which comprise either microscopic
white pigment particles or waxes that
break up the surface changing the
degree of reectivity but at the cost of
being slightly milky. Certain varnishes
with UV lters also tend to behave
similarly as they contain microscopic
opaque particles that can reect and
block a percentage of UV light.
VARNISHES FOR ACRYLICS
With acrylics, varnishing is perhaps

more useful as an optical adjustment
of the paintings surface. However,
although acrylics dry to form a tougher
anatomy of a painting
Matt or gloss?
The varnishes
show their relative
qualities when
seen side-by-side.
The gloss and matt
types respectively
increase and
decrease sheen
and colour
saturation, while
the satin keeps
things constant yet
discrete.
GLOSS
SATIN
MATT
Oil vs acrylic
varnish
Matting agents, by
their nature, create
a slight milkiness
especially over
dark colours. On
this high gloss
acrylic test panel
we see a matt oil
varnish on the
left and a UV lter
water-based acrylic
varnish on the right
where the clouding
is slightly more
pronounced.
OIL VARNISH
surface than oils, the nature of the

lm can be described as
thermoplastic where its degree of
softness is increased as ambient
temperature increases. This leaves it
more prone to dust penetration. Under
the microscope the lm is also slightly
porous and heavy dilution with water,
or the use of retarding agents, can
increase this; varnishing will therefore
improve the paintings prospects.
Acrylic manufacturers offer gloss,
satin and matt varnishes, all nonreversible, that are based on waterborne acrylic emulsions similar to the
ACRYLIC VARNISH
paints original binder but slightly

harder to provide added resilience.
Acrylic varnish is slightly more difcult
to apply smoothly and free of ridges
but modern synthetic lament varnish
brushes have improved matters in this
area somewhat.
VARNISHES FOR OILS
Due to the dimensional changes that

occur throughout the life of an oil
painting, the requirements of an oil
varnish are more complex, needing to
full many criteria. It should provide a
barrier that absorbs pollution and be

reversible so that in years to come,
you, or a conservator, will be able to
remove the varnish with a solvent as
basic as turpentine or white spirit.
This allows the dirt and dust that have
become embedded in the varnish to
be easily removed without the need of
harsh solvents that could damage the
painting surface.
The varnish should be transparent
and colourless in order not to interfere
with the optical qualities of the
painting and should be capable of
being brushed out to a thin lm, as a >
thick lm is more likely to crack and
discolour. It should be able to expand
and contract with the painting, as a
brittle varnish would exert contrary
forces that cause it to crack.
The varnish should not bloom: a
clouding of the surface caused by
varnish taking in moisture from the
atmosphere condensing inside the
lm. The effect is of a cool frosting of
the paintings surface.
residue that remains after an

essential oil is distilled from the
syrupy coniferous tree sap, known as
balsam. These resins are soluble and
reversible in turps alone, whereas
white spirit and odourless thinners will
only partially dissolve them.
Damar, the palest of natural soft
resins, makes a varnish with a straw
coloured and slightly cloudy
appearance due to natural waxes, but
these will disappear from the dry, thin
layer of varnish. It has the advantage
of staying colourless longer than other
natural varnishes. The primary
sources of the resin are Malaysia,
Borneo and Java, but the high-grade
The soft resins used for natural
No. 1 Singapore is best suited for
varnishes are made up of the solid
artists use, being harder and
less prone to blooming.
Another soft resin, mastic,
comes from trees found in
the Mediterranean. Its name
Following a light
derives from the word
dust, your painting
mastication, acknowledging
is ready to varnish.
its use in earlier times as a
For ease of application,
chewing gum. A primary
pour your varnish out
source for mastic is the
into a glass bowl, like
Greek island of Chios where
the ones you nd in
the harvesting of the resin is
cooks shops.
an important industry and
the grade produced here is
Choose a good
of a special quality.
quality varnish
Mastic is sold in crystal
brush to apply the
form, known as tears, which
coating smoothly.
are soluble in turps and also
Began by painting the
alcohol; the latter produces
varnish in one direction.
a non-reversible varnish that
is good for tempera work, but
not oil paintings. Mastic
initially dries more clear than
With the varnish
damar but over time it tends
still wet, lay off the
to bloom and darken, turning
strokes lightly at right
golden yellow or greenish
angles (as you would
brown. This, combined with
when glossing a door)
its high cost, is the reason
to ensure a smooth
for its lower popularity than
nish.
damar. The natural resins,
with age, become more
difcult to reverse.
The satin varnish
applied here
remained glossy for at
least two hours before
settling to a pleasing
Synthetic resins emerged
mid-sheen.
during World War II, when the
supply of natural resins was
disrupted and it was
necessary to nd materials
that behaved in a similar
way. Since then, the
chemical industry has further
NATURAL AND
SYNTHETIC VARNISHES
HOW TO VARNISH A PAINTING
SYNTHETIC RESINS
developed these resins, often more

expensive than natural varieties, that
have in many cases superseded their
natural counterparts. Although their
use does not go back as far as the
older materials, the modern chemist
has sufcient technical back-up to
predict how these materials will
perform over time.
The synthetic resins are based
on either acrylic solutions or ketone
resins that are soluble in white spirit.
The acrylic solutions, not to be
confused with acrylic emulsion
varnish, are based on methyl acrylate
resin, complex mixtures of acrylic
resins and other compounds.
The ketone (or polycyclohexane)
resins behave very much like damar,
brushing out well and bonding to the
paint surface.
Both can replace natural resins
being harder, more durable, virtually
colourless and non-blooming. We can
expect a lifespan of 20 years or more
in ideal conditions and good
reversibility in white spirit.
They are easier to apply to a uniform
nish with a low surface tack on
drying, promising that paintings are
less likely to attract and hold dust.
WHEN TO APPLY
Your oil painting should be thoroughly

dry before you apply varnish and this
could take up to 12 months, depending
on the thickness of the paint lm, the
colours used and whether painting
has been fattened up with an oily
vehicle. A good rule of thumb is to wait
for at least six months. Starting too
early could cause the varnish to mix
with the paint surface and remain
tacky, making it difcult to remove
without disturbing the paint below.
More problematic is that the
varnish could permeate the paint lm
rendering the paint sensitive to
solvents, with a future danger of
cracking which could be further
transmitted to the paint lm.
Even if fast-drying media such as
alkyd resin-based mediums have been
used during the painting process, the
apparently dry surface may conceal
softer underlying layers that need
to mature.
It is advisable to test that the
painting has cured after the
suggested waiting time. Do this by
moistening a cotton bud in white spirit
or turpentine, and test a discrete area
of the painting by stroking it gently
against the surface; if no colour is
transferred it should be safe to
varnish the painting.
The appearance of some colour
on the cotton bud could be due to
areas that appear matt having
insufcient binder, allowing some
transfer of free pigment. Such
unevenness will prove to be
problematic even after varnishing
when it is likely to be amplied.
The issue can be rectied by oiling
out the nished painting (see
demonstration, right), before waiting
six months and testing with a cotton
bud again. It is possible that this
process may provide you with the level
of sheen that you require and replace
the need for varnish.
Oiling out
A mixture of
odourless thinners
and commercially
produced,
thickened linseed
oil is gently rubbed
into the surface of
the painting.
Perfect nish
The oiled-out
square on the right
of this photo shows
the improvement in
colour saturation
and the unity of
surface sheen.
OILING OUT
Oiling out is the application of oil

medium to a painting that has lost its
oil to the layer underneath. It also
works well during the course of
painting as a remedy for sunken
(or dull) areas.
To oil out a painting, a mixture of
either stand oil or thickened linseed
oil should be mixed with solvent and
combined thoroughly.
UNEVENNESSINTHEVARNISHINGLAYERCANBE
RECTIFIEDBYOILINGOUTYOURFINISHEDPAINTING
The ratio of oil to solvent should be
slightly greater than that of the
medium in the nal layer. If glaze
medium or alkyd resin-based media
have been used then you should oil
out with the same medium.
To apply this mixture you can use
either a lint-free cloth and rub in the
mixture gently in a circular motion
over the whole painting. Alternatively
you may use a varnishing brush and
brush out evenly across the surface of
the painting. Leave the solution to sit
on the surface of the painting for 30
minutes or so (less for fast-drying
mediums) and return with a clean
cloth to wipe away areas where the
solution has sat on the surface. The
painting will have taken up the
solution where it is needed but will sit

on the surface where it is not needed.
In six months, a fully oiled-out
painting should be ready for
varnishing should you wish to apply it.
HOW TO VARNISH
Prior to varnishing, store paintings in

a dust-free environment with enough
diffuse daylight to aide drying and
prevent yellowing of the oil in the paint
lm. Just before varnishing clean the
surface with a dry micro-bre cloth to
remove dust. The room should be
warm, dry and clean, preferably just
vacuum cleaned.
With the painting laid at on a table,
pour some varnish into a clean bowl
wide enough to accommodate your

brush. Do not overload the brush and
apply varnish methodically with a
smooth action in one direction.
I prefer the brush method of
application to spraying it on, because
it is easier to regulate the thickness of
the lm and it is possible to reduce
the shine by continuing to lightly brush
the surface as the varnish begins to
dry; the result is a satin nish.
Varnishing brushes are made of soft
exible hog hair and will serve you
better if stored wrapped, against dust,
and kept for varnishing alone.
For acrylic paintings varnishing rules
are the same except that emulsion
varnish can be applied immediately.
It is possible to apply oil varnish to
acrylics, especially if a high gloss is
required but you should wait a couple
of weeks before doing so to allow the
paint to mature.
Next month: Ian concludes his series
with a look at ideal studio set-ups.
PART
TWO
FACE to FACE
Last month, we challenged Hero Johnson to paint her fellow portrait artist
Ian Rowlands for the rst time. Now he returns the compliment as he reveals
the benets of his contrasting oil painting techniques
THE CHALLENGE
When Hero and I discussed this
project we decided that our differing
approaches would provide an
interesting contrast in terms of
ambitions, methods and outcomes.
Hero would work from life without
studies, whereas I would spend my
face-to-face time drawing as a form of
visual research that would allow me
to work independently at my studio.
My art education placed great
emphasis on drawing and has led me
to feel that I can engage more deeply
with the subject when I am drawing it.
My tutors, John Lessore and John
Wonnacott at Norwich and Norman
Blamey at the Royal Academy Schools,
all advocated working from drawings
and did so themselves showing by
example that it was possible.
Recently, drawing from great paintings
at the National Gallery has further
cemented my belief in the important
relationship between the drawn mark
and the painted mark. When drawing
from great paintings by the likes of
Rembrandt and Velzquez, in addition
to studying and benetting from great
draughtsmanship, I was tapping into
the painters language by drawing
BELOW The various

stages of Ians selfportrait: sketch,
iPad drawing and
canvas painting
their brushstrokes and decisions,

rather than a real object, and being
constantly made aware of the power
of the mark to describe. Painting from
drawings seems to me to be a reversal
of this process. As a result, my
drawings became more assertive,
less pretty and more informative.
A self-portrait I made back in 2010
set the template for how I intended to
work from Hero. It started from a
sustained drawing of roughly 10 hours
over three sessions. Having gaps
between the sessions gave me
sufcient time for enquiry and
revision. Two half-day sessions of iPad
painting using the drawing as my basis
were followed by a period of painting
on canvas from the drawing and iPad
study, leading eventually to two or
three days working directly from the
mirror. The drawing was returned to
when neccessary to gather new
information. The palette enabled

me to develop structure and reach
towards colour. The challenge with
Hero would be to make a larger
painting in the same way.
THE SESSIONS
From the outset, I planned to work
almost exclusively from studies made
directly from Hero, allowing me to
work independently in my own studio
and at my own pace but eventually
completing the work directly from life.
Our sittings began in late October,
with us each aiming for two hours
per session to work.
Throughout my drawing of Hero,
I hoped to gather enough visual
information to get the painting off the
ground. Although Ive known her for
several years, I was not immediately
familiar with the structure of her head
and the relationships between the
MYARTEDUCATIONPLACEDGREATEMPHASISONDRAWING
ANDHASLEDMETOFEELTHATICANENGAGEMOREDEEPLY
WITHASUBJECTWHENIAMDRAWINGIT
facial landmarks. Starting loosely with
probing lines travelling in all directions
across the paper, I eventually settled
down to reiterate the valid marks and
erased the probing ones that had led
me to them.
The pencil marks themselves were
made with brush marks in mind, in
particular their weight and direction.
When drawing in this way, I seek to get
away from the archetypal and discover
something particular, unknown and
maybe surprising; the approach is
54 Artists
& Illustrators
face to face
Digital studies
Colour recall in the absence of the sitter is the missing
link when working from drawings. Experimenting with the
iPad for my self-portrait proved useful in this respect.
Building on this, I imported my drawing into the Art
Studio painting app on my iPad and spent two sessions
adding colour notes, effectively converting it into a
painting albeit a virtual one.
Art Studio is, with time, fairly intuitive, allowing ne
adjustment of mixtures and the ability to move them
to a virtual palette. The ability to step backward and
reconsider the decisions that have not worked is
especially useful. The brush size and stroke can be
tweaked and, should a bias develop, the entire colour
balance of the work can easily be adjusted. This helped
me with the broad colour scheme of the head in context
but not the specics of local colour.
rather like mapping a landscape to

fully understand it. After two hours
I stopped but I was not yet satised
that I understood this new landscape.
During session two, I was able to
identify the weaknesses in the drawing
Stage 1
Stage 2
to improve the structure and likeness.

I had a viable means to proceed.
Much like Hero, my preferred
palette was arrived at many years ago
when I was a student. As a painter, I
am interested in appearances and so
LEFT Ians drawing

of Hero bears
battle scars
from the process,
including oil stains
when painting people from drawings

the need for colours that approximate
esh and have sufcient latitude to
push towards perceived colour is
benecial. For some time a muted
primary triad has carried most of the
weight when looking at esh. It is
comprised of Yellow Ochre Pale, a
synthetic iron oxide that is much
cleaner and versatile than its darker
natural counterpart, Indian Red, which
is violet-leaning but can be warmed up
or cooled down with the other two
colours, and Ivory Black, which itself
functions as a blue and is particularly
adept at creating fairly pure violets
and greens in mixtures with the other
two colours.
Although surprisingly resonant,
this muted triad can be well
accommodated within the naturalistic
limitations of eshy mixtures that I
seek to produce. Cadmium Yellow Pale
and Cadmium Red effectively push
the possibilities further by enhancing
mixtures that have insufcient purity
for particular tasks such as a rosy
cheek or a golden mid-tone. I had
recently returned to using Indian Red
when the use of Venetian Red had
resulted in a red bias to my paintings
of people; I found Indian Red helped
keep the temperature down.
Having drawn Heros head at the
scale intended for the painting, I
transferred the drawing to a small
canvas that would be easy to
transport to her studio. I spent six
hours over three sessions at my
studio, working to a colour system of >
face to face
subtle browns, reds, golds and
oranges generated from the restricted
palette and, although Id initially
intended to block in largely in tone,
I found that I was able to recall certain
local colours observed while drawing.
THE FINAL PAINTING

Once I had made some progress with
the nal painting alone in my studio,
I wanted to reconnect with the sitter
and resolve certain elements by
painting from life again. During the
process the painting had developed
its own life and seemed difcult,
through the machinations of working
from diverse source material, to
disrupt. Through the dark winter days,
the painting stuttered on: one minute
a corner seemingly turned; the next, a
realisation that it was false dawn.
Poor light plagued us.
To gain fresh insight a few
remaining sessions saw me drawing
RIGHT Ian at work

INSET Hands study
Heros hands
were in an
uncomfortable
position that was
difcult to hold
but this study
anchored the
awkwardness
of the pose.
BELOW Study in oils

I worked on this
study directly
from Hero for two
hours. It allowed
me to work
independently
from her on the
nal painting.
ONCEIHADMADESOMEPROGRESSWITHTHEFINALPAINTING
INMYSTUDIO,IWANTEDTORECONNECTWITHTHESITTERAND
RESOLVECERTAINELEMENTSBYPAINTINGFROMLIFE
again from Hero with the primary
focus on reworking the eyes which
I had completely misunderstood,
leading me to make a second drawing
aided by pouncing the original drawing
onto fresh paper. With the pressure of
the deadline I reluctantly introduced
the camera in order to freeze the folds
in the pullover and to record the
position of tresses of the hair.
The nal stages of the painting
centred on the hands, which had
become too keenly observed to t into
the larger scheme of the painting.
Heros eyes provided a particular
challenge where her eyeliner very
much a feature resulted in a lack of
unity in the head that drew the eye.
The solution was to take the longer
route to the mixtures and use
prismatic colours to create chromatic
dark greys. I was essentially nding
commonalities between other areas
of the painting and this rather
different area and it seemed to work.
A technical issue that plagued me
throughout the process was the
sinking of dark passages of colour and
56 Artists
& Illustrators
resulting matt look. Although I had

been gradually adding stand oil to my
painting vehicle (odourless thinners)
as the layers accumulated, I was
forced to oil out the painting several
times and the result was more gloss
to the paintings surface than I would
have liked.
The journey of getting to this result
seemed long and challenging. I could
never hope to get the required number
of sittings to achieve the results I aim
for so I feel that the means are valid.
I am happy that so many elements
of the original drawing have survived,
especially in the head. With the
benet of hindsight, I would have
made a drawing at the same scale
as the painting to tie all the separate
studies together and also made a
painted study of the hands.
Ians painting of Hero will feature in the
Royal Institute of Portrait Painters
Annual Exhibition 2014, which runs from
8-23 May at the Mall Galleries, London
SW1. www.therp.co.uk
face to face
THE VERDICT
Hero Johnson: Ive sat for
several painters in the past, but
Ians method was unusual in
that none of the actual painting
happened with me present.
Instead the sittings were about
meticulous research through
drawing and study.
This slow and considered
approach, and apparent lack of
progress on canvas would
concern me, given how precious
time with the sitter is, but
interestingly the nal work is
very bold and direct.
The experience has
reminded me how important
preparatory drawing is, and how
time invested in this way at the
early stages can lead to
condence and added certainty
in the nal execution.
WATERIN
WATERCOLOUR
As the name suggests, watercolour
is the perfect medium for painting
water. Landscape master
Joe Dowden shares 13 tips for
handling this most tricky of subjects
aintings have a ashpoint where

they light up and spark into life.
Achieving that ashpoint is the
challenge, so it might seem odd that
something as mundane as grey could
revolutionise your watercolours. My
new book, Joe Dowdens Complete
Guide to Painting Water in
Watercolour, ags up this foundation
stone of painting. It examines a wide
variety of subject matter so you can
see techniques in practice and nd
how they can widen your scope.
Techniques are applied to paintings so
you can see how they work.
Many aspiring painters turn to a
watercolour book to get that boost to
their work and thats exactly what I did
when I was starting out. A small
Search Press watercolour book by
Richard Bolton, Painting Detail in
Watercolour, helped give my work a
shove in the right direction. Then,
when I was commissioned to write my
rst Search Press book, Water in
Watercolour, it closed a circle. The
rst generation of Search Press books
had helped raise a second generation
of authors. I wonder how many
publishers can say that? Painting
Detail in Watercolour is still in print
nearly 15 years on and I still refer to
Richards books today.
IT IS ALL ABOUT
NEGATIVE SPACE
Identifying such
shapes is a key
skill when painting water
For this Venice scene, I applied masking

uid to the sky and the ripples in the
canal. When dry, I applied a light grey
wash all over, before leaving to dry again.
I then masked the boat decks, before
applying a darker grey all over, saving a
few highlights. Cadmium Red was applied
down the canal centre, before further darker shadows were added. I then
removed all the masking uid and touched in the boat details.
PAINTINGSHAVEAFLASHPOINTWHERETHEY
LIGHTUPANDSPARKINTOLIFE.ACHIEVING
THATFLASHPOINTISTHECHALLENGEFOR
WATERCOLOURARTISTS
Value has nothing to do with colour

but everything to do with how colourful a painting looks
Work out values rst. Value means light and dark as in a black and white
photograph not colour. Add grey to colours. In this painting of Dubrovniks wet
streets, the yellow is greyed with Cobalt Blue and Burnt Sienna. The feeling of
brightness comes from the sharp contrast between white lights and black sky.
58 Artists
& Illustrators
Contrast is key
Balance bright colours with strong darks
Use blues to make greys. Start with blue and add brown.
Remember you can turn blue brown but you will never
turn brown back to blue.
In this painting of Arabian Wadi rocks, Ultramarine Blue,
Cerulean Blue and Cobalt Blue added to Burnt Umber,
Burnt Sienna and others created an array of greys. The
paler rock greys were dragged with Cobalt Blue, Burnt
Sienna and Yellow Ochre one layer at a time. Ultramarine
Blue and Burnt Sienna were added wet-in-wet and wet-ondry to the darker rocks.
Use bright colours in a landscape with strong darks. The
bright turquoises and blues in the water sit comfortably
because a strong Paynes Grey balances them.
4
5
VARY THE
TEXTURES
Combine techniques
to suggest sunshine
after the rain
To create the reections on the

tarmac seen here, I dipped a
toothbrush in masking uid and
dragged my thumb over the
bristles. I also dipped the
toothbrush in paint and repeated
the technique for the ne
grain effect.
For the murky puddles, I applied
clean water to the puddle area and
added three or four strokes of gum
Arabic with a No. 6 pointed round
brush. I then added dark vertical
strokes to indicate the trees while
this is still wet.
ADD A LITTLE SPARKLE

Use scrap paper for an unpredictable mark
To recreate this sparkling sea scene from Mlini in
Croatia, I used a small strip of ripped typing paper
coiled tightly and soaked it in masking uid, before
dabbing it sideways across the sea area. The ne
marks were masked with a small, pointed synthetic
brush maybe a size 0 or 2.
water in watercolour
Always spatter upwards

Reducing droplet size gives
a sense of perspective
To create a foreground texture, spatter

masking uid from the bottom up by using a
No. 8 sable or larger and banging the brush
rmly down on an object such as a roll of
tape. Apply paint with the same method.
Start at the base each time you replenish the
brush. Reducing the droplet size as you go up
gives a sense of perspective. When the paint
is dry, repeat with darker colour.
WATERCOLOURISTRUTHFUL.
NOTHINGCANBECOVERED
OVERORHIDDEN
LIGHT FROM THE BACK

Create drama by facing into the sunlight
For the backlit effect in this painting of a sailing boat at Littlehampton, I placed masking
tape along the bottom line of the left-hand sail. To do this, I crunched the head of a hog
hair brush before dipping it in a saucer of masking uid. I gently dabbed the splayed
bres across the waters surface for the spiky look. I buy cheap brushes for this
because it ruins the bristles.
MAKE CONFIDENT STROKES

Accuracy is a very powerful tool in
the quest for beauty in watercolour
Watercolour is truthful: the more immediate the

application, the more satisfying to observe. Nothing
can be covered over or hidden. Good watercolour has
a visual integrity with universal appeal.
Break the surfaces

Sticks and rock can help to indicate shallow waters
To paint a shallow brook, mask sticks or other items breaking the

surface. I mix a light yellowy brown of Naples Yellow, Burnt Umber,
Cadmium Lemon and Phthalo Green for these sorts of subjects,
wetting the brooks with clean water rst and then applying the colour
with a No. 8 round sable.
10
Add interest in layers

Broken fragments can suggest
complex reections
To paint the puddle in the picture of the Land Rover, I brushed a

strong wash of Burnt Sienna and Cobalt Blue on the muddy left and
a similar wash with Phthalo Blue and Paynes
Grey on the right to suggest a sky reection.
I left the odd eck of white paper as a highlight.
I then applied Burnt Sienna and Cobalt Blue
Brown leaving underwater leaves as rough
rectangles. Once this was dry, I repeated the
pattern with a darker wash, leaving more
leaves in the rich brown layer in addition to
those already saved. I dropped Burnt Sienna
wet-in-wet for the blurred underwater effects.
I nished with wet-on-dry branch reections.
For this, I dragged a Naples Yellow, Cobalt Blue
and Burnt Sienna mix over the distant puddles.
60 Artists
& Illustrators
water in watercolour
11
PALE WATERS RUN DEEP

Suggest depth by employing
subtle, light washes
For this deep-water effect at Burrator Reservoir, I applied Cobalt

Blue, Burnt Sienna and Quinacridone Magenta wet-in-wet and
then darkened the foreground water area. When dry, I masked a
few random streaks and then brushed the background hill and
its reection in a single wash.
TRADITIONALASPECTRATIOS
VARYFROM3:2TO5:8.CHOOSE
ANALTERNATIVEFORMATTO
BOOSTYOURCOMPOSITION
12
Remember
watercolour is
transparent
Keep the palette wet

to ensure you make the most of it
To brush transparent veils across lake and
river scenes, colour must ow off the brush
easily. To do this, you need to keep your
palette wet at all times, even up to the last
brushstroke. Inevitably paint is wasted on
the palette after completion but this
is necessary.
13
CONSIDER RATIOS
Change the dimensions of
your picture to add interest
A pictures aspect ratio refers to the ratio

between its longer and shorter sides.
Choose an alternative aspect ratio for a
composition boost. This painting of
Yosemite Falls, based upon a photograph
taken by Richard Thaxter, demanded a
tall, upright format of about 15:7 in
other words, it was just over twice as high
as it was wide. Traditional landscape
aspect ratios can vary between anything
from around 3:2 to 5:8.
Joe Dowdens Complete Guide to Painting Water

in Watercolour is published by Search Press,
RRP 19.99. www.joedowden.com
61
COLUMNIST
KEEPITCLEAN
Avoid charcoal smudges on crisp white areas by keeping a steady

hand or using a rest. I made a rest using a piece of wood with
a couple of blocks either end to suspend over the picture. It was
ct but proved invaluable.
The Working Artist

This month, Laura Boswell plays her
cards right on a new source of income
Ill
be attempting to gather my family around

the kitchen table this weekend to help me
pack greetings cards. Having
professionally printed greetings cards of your
artworks is a great way to earn money and
promote yourself too. I sell cards at every event
and class; I sell them through galleries and shops
and even my local tourist ofce. People dont just
buy cards to send, they often keep them as
reminders and I have had more than one sale of a
print off the back of the sale of the card version.
Begin by getting excellent high-resolution
photographs of your best artworks and make sure
you like the colour (printers will not correct the
colour balance for you, so always ask to see
sample proofs before you conrm your order).
When choosing a digital printer, look for the
ones offering to print short runs of greetings cards
and ask for samples. Many printers will offer you a
layout template as part of the cost, while all good
ones can print from a high-quality PDF if you wish
to design your own layout. My cards are blank
inside and have a short note about me on the
back, alongside the prints title, medium and my
web address (always make sure cards carry
contact details). I order cards in runs of 200
so I can change my stock regularly.
Cards should be packed with a decent quality
envelope into a glassine bag. You can buy bags
and envelopes in bulk on the internet. Cost the
cards up and then work out what you can charge
per card; youll need to offer a lower trade price
to any shop or gallery buying your cards to sell.
I agreed a cost with a trusted gallery and now use
that as my trade price. Finally, display them in a
nice rack or container with clear pricing at
every opportunity.
www.lauraboswell.co.uk
SHOWYOURWORKING
Creating something detailed doesnt necessarily mean making

it look photographic. Try working on a rough paper to give your
picture a sense of the marks made, recommends Rosie. It really
makes a difference when people see the work in the esh.
HOWIMADE
One OClock, Two

OClock, Three OClock
Charcoal and watercolour on paper, 60x180cm (triptych)
RHS Gold medal-winning botanical artist

Rosie Sanders on balancing charcoal with paint
he idea for this triptych goes back to a set of

etchings I did for the book A Printmakers Flora.
I thought the velvety feel of the charcoal mixed
with the gentle watercolour would be perfect.
I began with a soft and pulpy paper made by Aquari,
who have now sadly gone out of business. Youve got to
be careful with a soft surface because you can damage
it more than something like Arches hot pressed paper,
which is as tough as old boots. The paper actually looks
whiter than it is but thats the illusion because it glows
against the charcoal background.
The dandelion was a great subject because it stays
put until you blow on it, unlike the owers Im used to
painting that are constantly changing. I drew the middle
rst of all before working my way outwards using a
mixture of Derwent Charcoal Pencils, though I always
use a trusty 2B for very dark lines you can make your
lines more precise with pencils.
I got the rst layer of charcoal down before I applied
watercolour but the two mix quite well so it isnt the end
of the world if the dust invades the paint at times.
However, you should always allow your watercolour to
dry thoroughly before applying more charcoal. I also
advise you occasionally stand your picture up and gently
tap the back to remove any excessive specks.
I have an extensive palette of Winsor & Newton
Artists Watercolours that I always work with but the grey
you see throughout the body of the clock is made from a
mixture of Cobalt Blue and Permanent Alizarin Crimson
with a bit of Viridian and Burnt Sienna. I used a sable
brush, as it was kinder on the fragile surface of the paper.
To nish, I sprayed a layer of Winsor & Newton
Professional xative. The charcoal still might smudge so
my recommendation is to handle it as little as possible.
Rosies next exhibition runs from 12 June to 5 July at
Jonathan Cooper Park Walk Gallery, London SW10.
www.rosiesanders.com
CHARCO
Rosie recommends using either Cont Compressed Charcoal,

which allows you to vary the thickness of your line quickly, or
Derwent Charcoal Pencils, which sharpen easily. The pencils are
ideal to reect the feathery texture of the dandelion, especially
around the wispy outer edges.
Masterclass: Sunrise and sunset

Lighter evenings and longer days provide ample opportunities to capture dawn and dusk in paint.
Watercolourist Rob Dudley reveals a great way to record these eeting changes of the light
have always enjoyed painting

sunrises and sunsets in watercolour.
The obvious challenge of capturing a
scene before the sun climbs or the
7+(&+$//(1*(,6&$3785,1*$
6&(1(%()25(7+(/,*+7)$'(6
light begins to fade calls for a rapid
yet considered approach to painting.
With the clocks going forward last
month, it provides us artists with the
most wonderful of opportunities to
paint at both ends of the day, thanks
to later sunrises and earlier sunsets.
64 Artists
& Illustrators
My process is to sketch in
watercolour, trying quickly to capture
the atmosphere of the scene
unfolding in front of me. I also take a
series of reference photographs, not
as a means to capture the colours (for
it is rare for a snapshot to accurately
portray these in a sunrise or sunset)
but to record the shapes of the clouds
and any lighting effects on the
landscape below.
I then return to the studio and after
considering composition and design,
construct the painting from the
information gathered.
For full details of Robs 2014
demonstrations and workshops, visit
www.moortoseaarts.co.uk
TOOLSOFTHETRADE
3$,176
Winsor Blue Green Shade, Ultramarine

Blue, Permanent Rose, Cadmium Red,
Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Orange, Burnt
Sienna, Green Gold and Cobalt Blue,
all artists quality watercolours
3$3(5
Bockingford 140lb NOT, 38x28cm
%586+(6
Da Vinci Series 438 mop brush and

Euroart Kolinsky sables, sizes 6 and 10
%3(1&,/
0$6.,1*)/8,'
masterclass
For a br
igh
like the t light source,
white p sun, reserve
ape
to emph r around it
asise
strength its
With the watercolour sketches and photographs gathered around

me in the studio, I drew out a few designs and compositions until
I arrived at one that I felt captured what I wanted to say in paint
about the scene I had observed. I also like to carefully consider the
colour palette that I will use in a painting in this case, warmer
colours for the sky and cooler colours for the landscape.
I lightly sketched in the main landscape elements in 2B pencil.

I chose not to draw any details in the sky as this might lead to the
muddying of colours through the introduction of any graphite into
the wash. I also did not want to have to ll in any cloud outlines,
preferring to work the sky more freely and thereby allowing me to
respond to the colours and shapes on the paper as they occur. At
this stage, I protected the sun with the application of masking uid.
With the masking uid completely dry, I dampened the paper with
a wash of clean water leaving a gap of dry paper between the
edge of the wash and the sun. By keeping a ring of dry paper
around the sun (see inset), the washes of paint that I apply later will
not creep into this area and the white of the unpainted paper will
ally add to the overall effect of brightness.
ushed on a strong wash of Lemon Yellow
ver the sky area and, while this was still
damp, I added streaks of Cadmium Orange.
After allowing the previous washes to dry completely, I dampened

the top part of the sky with clean water, allowing a few moments
for the water to soak in, before brushing on a wash of Winsor
Blue Green Shade. While this was still damp, I dropped in some
Ultramarine Blue, allowing the colours to mix. This is a colour that
granulates, bringing some texture to the sky. Allow to dry.
>
masterclass
Working carefully so that the previous washes were left

undisturbed, I lightly brushed another wash of clean water onto
the paper. I continued to build up the colours here, indicating
clouds above and below the sun with a mix of Cadmium Orange and
Cadmium Red. I sometimes mixed these rst in my palette and
sometimes allowed them to mix on the paper to vary the effects.
With the paper still damp from the previous stage, I dropped in
a mix of Ultramarine Blue and Permanent Rose into the area of
the sky that was already blue. After allowing this to dry slightly,
I added some Permanent Rose to the bottom edge of the clouds
to indicate the suns fading rays hitting them.
I continued to build up the layers of warm colour mixes in the

bottom half of the sky, ranging from red and orange, through to
rose and purple. While doing so, I was continuing the process of
dampening the paper, adding the wash and allowing it to dry, before
repeating this process. I made certain that the colours closest to the
sun were the warmest in terms of colour temperature.
66 Artists
& Illustrators
With the paint now dry, I began to add some further indications of
clouds using dry brushstrokes. These strokes should subtly stand
out from the soft-edged passages of the rest of the painting. This
hard and soft approach to the clouds will help to give a sense of
depth to the sky. As before, I added the warmer colours to the
sun-lit edges of the clouds.
When the area of sky below the setting sun had dried,
I concentrated on adding a wash of Cobalt Blue and Permanent
Rose. Extra Permanent Rose was added to the clouds below the
sun. I also decided to add a slightly stronger wash of Cobalt Blue
and Permanent Rose to the top right of the sun. As in previous
stages, I did so after rst dampening the paper with clean water.
10
With the sky almost complete, I turned my attention to

the landscape. I brushed a strong mix of Cobalt Blue and
Permanent Rose loosely onto the paper. With that wash still
damp, I then dropped in some more Permanent Rose just below the
sun and allowed it to bloom outwards. Even though the
subject is the sunset, the landscape is impor
this painting as it helps to put the sky into
context and gives scale to the composition.
-wet
Vary soft wet-in er
rd
ha
ith
w
washes
to
ks
ar
m
y
dr
nwet-o
e
ns
create a real se
h
pt
of de
12
11
Continuing using the mix of Cobalt Blue and Permanent Rose,

I dropped in some Green Gold for the elds and moor. Pulling
this down further into the painting, I dropped in a stiff, strong
mix of Ultramarine Blue too. This blossomed onto the still-damp
paper and grew to suggest trees and bushes. Tone is all important
at this stage: too dark and all the details will be lost; too pale and
it will appear insipid.
Before removing the masking uid, I carefully lifted some of

the colour from the wash below the sun with clean water and a
soft brush to create the impression of light breaking through
the clouds. At this stage, I reviewed the watercolour to decide
whether I needed to soften or add any colour. Id always recommend
doing the same but keep in mind that too much ddling is likely to
result in a tight, overworked painting.
FEARLESSDRAWING
Inspired by our guide to developing your own style on page 19?
Illustrator Kerry Lemon has two exercises to help encourage
you to try a more instinctive approach
DRAWING BLIND
Blind-contour drawing means drawing

an object or scene without looking at
your paper. This is the perfect exercise
to develop our observation skills,
since we are forced to completely
focus on our subject rather than
ddling with the drawing on the page.
As our drawings improve, we need to
get used to spending most of our time
observing the object with only very
quick glances at the paper from
time to time.
For this exercise you are not allowed
to look at the paper at all, which is
actually harder than it sounds. If
youre anything like me youll be
itching to have a look at your drawing,
but its important to resist that urge.
The hardest part of this exercise is
losing your wayonce you take your
pen off the page, its very difcult to
work out where in the drawing you are,
so its tempting to take a quick glance.
But by creating a drawing without
looking at the subject, you will start to
feel the outlines of the object,
training yourself to draw what you can
actually see rather than what you
think you should see.
I nd that working in this way allows
me to relax and enjoy the process of
creationI cant worry about how the
drawing is looking, because I cant see
it. This is another exercise I use when I
need to warm up and loosen up. Its
68 Artists
& Illustrators
an invaluable way to begin sketching

anything new, as it gives you space to
properly observe and understand the
subject. This adventure will produce
drawings that in some areas may
seem muddled and disoriented, but
in many others will be beautifully
observed, demonstrating the
enormous value of keen perception.
Exercise 1
Grab a mug lled with pens, or select
any other object you like. Use a
hardcover book to block your view of
your drawing paper, then use your
eyes to feel along the outlines of the
objects and reect them on the paper.
Dont move anything and try this
exercise again is your second try
better? What elements of these
drawings please you? Which do you
feel are really accurately observed?
As we move on, remember to spend
most of your time looking at the object
you are trying to draw instead of at
your page. You only need to glance
occasionally at your page to orient
your lines. Remember
that all the
information you
need to create your
If you n
d
drawing will be
to lift you it too disorientin
g
rp
found by looking at
page, try encil from the
d
r
your object, so train
entire ob awing the
jec
your focus there.
contin t with a
uous lin
e
BELOW LEFT I have a small ceramic mug

on my desk lled with ve pens, a pencil,
and a highlighter. I used a large, hardcover
book to block my view of my drawing
paper (so I couldnt see the paper and,
therefore, couldnt cheat!) and then drew
the pen mug. After the exercise, I was able
to see many places on the page where
I lost my bearings and I failed to join the
handle to the mug.
ABOVE RIGHT My second attempt at the

same object is a little better as the
pens are more spread out, but again the
handle isnt attached to the mug. Im not
surprised that this one is better after
having looked so closely to draw it once,
I was bound to have a better
understanding of the subject this time.
fearless drawing
DRAWN TO SOUND
I am working, as it just has too great

In this exercise, you will be drawing
an effect on my line. Instead I listen to
under the inuence of sound. By
talk radio, as I nd I can zone out,
focusing on a wide range of different
focus, and maintain a constant
noises and responding on the page to
approach to my work. In this exercise,
what you are hearing, you can create
however, we will experiment with the
a drawing that is dened by highly
effect that music can have on the
personal abstract marks.
types of marks we create. We might
I nd that I have to be very careful
be able to discover new ways of
about what music I listen to when Im
drawing that can be added to our
in the studio, as it really affects the
toolbox of techniques.
quality of line and types of marks
You will need your 2B pencil, and a
I create in my drawings. Drawings are
wide selection of music. Dont worry if
a portrait of both the subject and the
you dont own lots of different
person who is drawing. It is clear in
you can access diverse
the work if the person
sical genres by either
feeling relaxed, rushe
uning in to different
anxious, and music
specialised radio
can provoke these
stations or entering a
and many other
l to close
fu
lp
e
h
it
variety of music genres
emotions. On the
I found
I was able
n
e
h
T
.
s
e
into YouTube.
whole I tend to
and
my ey
the music
n
o
s
u
c
For this adventure
avoid music while
to fo
neous
nta
make spo s
mark
we are focusing on creating lots of

abstract marks by allowing the sounds
to inspire the pressure of the pencil on
the page, the speed at which we draw,
and the shapes that we use.
This is an extract
from Kerrys new
book, Fearless
Drawing, published
by Quarry Books,
RRP 14.99.
www.kerry
lemon.co.uk
Exercise 2
Fill a page of your sketchbook with
marks, remembering to make note of
what you were listening to when you
created the drawing.
Try this exercise more than once,
listening to a very wide range of
noises and forms of music each time,
as this will provide the greatest
contrasts in your drawings.
Have you made marks that seem
alien to your hand? Its really exciting
to be able to tap into an entirely new
way of mark making, which may
inspire you to use a wider range of
marks as we go on.
TRAFFIC
JAZZ
DRILLING
CLASSICAL
BIRDSONG
Here you can see my range of marks and underneath Ive noted
the sounds I was listening to when I created them. I found it
helpful to close my eyes, adjust my pressure, and change my
grip on the pencil to enable the widest range of marks.
69
PORTRAIT WORKSHOP
3. Alla prima study
For the third part of our series, award-winning portrait painter Louis Smith explains why creating a
direct, wet-into-wet study can help you to establish harmonious colour schemes in a nal portrait
reating a painting as a study for

another painting can often
seem odd or unnecessary for
artists but there are certain important
distinctions between this alla prima
study stage and the creation of the
portrait you are working towards.
An alla prima portrait can be
painted in one sitting working
wet-into-wet as opposed to a
traditional portrait, which is a highly
rendered piece of art made by
carefully building up layers of paint
over a number of weeks.
A preliminary alla prima study can

be used to decide the colour scheme
for a nal painting it should be
treated as more of an impression,
looking at the big picture rather than
the details. As an artist, I am trying to
make sure that the overall effect of
the proposed portrait is working.
When you and your sitter are satised,
you can then go ahead with the nal
portrait based on the considerations
you have made.
Alla prima portraiture is all about
bravura having the skill to operate
in a loose fashion, trusting ones

instincts and relying less on
measuring to produce a condent
bold effect. It doesnt try to disguise
the materials but celebrate them.
Remember, we are dealing with paint
on a at surface so why should you try
to hide the brushstrokes and the
texture of paint as would be the case
in a traditional portrait?
An alla prima portrait has a casual
feel as opposed to a traditional
portrait. While it can be used as a
study stage, they will often be a good
enough quality to hang. It suits a
home environment while a traditional
portrait works better in a formal
environment like a boardroom. An alla
prima painting is also more practical
as it can be painted in one sitting,
which may be more convenient for the
sitter if they are too busy or have to
travel a long distance to your studio.
ANOTHER STUDY?
RIGHT In this alla

prima portrait
of Chris, the
brushwork is loose
while still achieving
a good likeness
70 Artists
& Illustrators
The focus of an alla prima study is

different to the preliminary charcoal
sketches we made in the last article.
Colour is secondary to value here and
if the draughtsmanship or values
arent correct then no amount of
colour will improve the nished work.
The rst step towards making a
traditional portrait is to work out the
value system and compositional
elements such as the gesture, lighting
and size. As we showed last month, a
charcoal study or cartoon is
perfect for this. Once you are happy
with the cartoon then the drawing can
be transferred to the canvas and the
charcoal study used as a tonal
reference. Remember that placement
and value is the foundation of any
realistic painting, an element
overlooked by most newcomers who
are impatient to use colour and create
an accomplished painting.
>
portrait workshop
Lucy, oil on board
portrait workshop
IPAINTASMALLERALLAPRIMASTUDYFIRSTTOESTABLISHTHE
FIELDCOLOURANDHARMONIESFORMYFINISHEDPAINTING
BELOW Leaving
brushwork visible,
as in this portrait
of Mike, adds a
pleasingly casual
feel to the painting
When I make an alla prima painting

I am constantly aware of the clock. I
allow myself a certain amount of time
for each step, in a bid to try and avoid
getting caught up in any given part of
it. The rendering of detail should be
reserved for a traditional portrait
when time is not an issue. One of the
benets of having a time constraint,
however, is the freedom to experiment.
I do still keep in mind the steps of a

traditional portrait when Im painting
an alla prima study. A traditional
portrait is built up in layers over a
period of weeks; rst establishing the
placement and value range then
building up the colour with glazes.
We havent got the time to take this
approach with an alla prima painting
so it is better to combine both value
and colour at the same time, bearing

in mind the traditional steps of fall of
light, big form modelling and colour
temperature. To save even more time,
instead of drawing an outline rst, I go
straight into painting the masses of
the shadows with a bigger brush then
rene the shapes afterwards.
When I am working towards a
nished portrait, I usually paint a
smaller study rst, focusing more on
the head and shoulders. Theres no
need to create a full-size study for this
its quicker to create a postcardsized colour study to establish the
eld colour and harmonies for the
nished painting instead.
ALLA PRIMA TRICKS
To keep your alla prima study quick,

useful and focused, there are plenty
of tricks that you can bear in mind.
The rst thing I consider when I
start to paint an alla prima portrait is
the eld colour of the painting, as I
can use it as a guide to work out the
local colours of the background,
clothes and face. When Im happy that
the local colours work in relation to
the eld colour then I can start to work
on smaller and smaller coloured
shapes making sure they are all
relative to the overall effect.
The most important things to
remember is to always view the
painting as a whole. Less is more
having less detail creates a bold
deliberate statement with more
ALLA PRIMA: A PRIMER

Five top tips for making the
most of your direct oil study
s Trust your instincts. Condence
breeds success. Sure strokes will
result in a more dynamic study.
s Work on a small scale. A full-size
study is unnecessary if you are
simply testing out colour schemes.
s Choose a eld colour. Establish
consistency by comparing all other
colours to this relatively.
s Select a limited palette. By mixing
all your colours from just a few
pigments, it will ensure a more
harmonious nish.
s Use bigger brushes. They will force
you to work in a looser, quicker and
more painterly way.
72 Artists
& Illustrators
portrait workshop
punch. Alla prima studies are all about
suggestion rather than describing
every detail. Why warble on and show
everything if you dont have to?
Another trick is to limit the palette
depending on the eld colour or
harmony that you want to achieve.
With a limited palette, your paintings
will appear more harmonious because
all the colours will be mixed from a
similar hue. A palette made of primary
earth colours will appear calmer and
more harmonious; a high chroma
palette (in other words, a selection of
colours with bright hues) will have an
energetic contemporary feel.
The main thing to consider before
you start an alla prima painting is to
make sure the canvas is sealed in
order for the paint to ow. If not then it
will be too absorbent and will stie the
ow across the surface of the canvas.
The point of alla prima is to work
wet-into-wet, allowing the colours to
blend with existing layers of paint on
the canvas and this wont be possible
if the paint is sinking into the canvas.
If youre just practising then there is
no point buying an expensive canvas,
but bear in mind that cheap canvases
are poorly primed. Solve this problem
by sealing the canvas with a coat of
shellac or try painting on a canvas
board instead.
For an alla prima study, I normally
use long-handled, long-haired lbert
brushes, as they are better suited for
loose expressive work when
compared with the shorter, stiffer
brushes I would use for the initial
stages of a traditional portrait. When
working alla prima, I am looking to
keep my strokes deliberate so each
one is more of a statement. I want to
stay loose, keep my brushwork varied
and avoid overworking any of the
areas of the painting.
I always start with the biggest brush
rst to capture the gesture and
masses, before shaping them
afterwards. The biggest advantage of
using bigger brushes is quick
coverage and the size will stop you
being distracted by detail. Always use
a brush that is a couple of sizes bigger
than you need it as this will stop your
work becoming too ddly and keep
things looking painterly and loose.
The traditional portrait is a carefully
rendered painting that can appear
stiff if overworked. To some extent it is
an illusionistic painting, creating

something that gives the appearance
of looking through a window at a
person sitting on the opposite side of
the canvas. Two hundred years ago
this would have been magical and the
creator would have been held in the
same regard as David Blaine. Since
photography came along, however, it
is no longer necessary to produce an
illusionistic painting. Pigment and the
illusionistic quality created by a skilled

artist will have much more depth and
longevity than a photograph. Your alla
prima painting then should act as a
general impression rather than a
carefully rendered painting. It will help
you on the way to creating a complete
traditional portrait, as I will show you
in the fth part of this series.
Next month: Louis tackles wash
drawings. www.louissmithart.com
ABOVE For his

painting of Jake,
Louis kept one
eye on the clock
to prevent getting
caught up in detail
Brighter landscapes
Working from photographs doesnt mean you cant use bold colour schemes and dynamic shapes.
Award-winning Australian artist Craig Penny shows you how to take liberties with your pictures
assive geological forces created the

towering red walls of Ormiston Gorge,
located within the West MacDonnell
National Park, 135 kilometres west of Alice
Springs in northern Australia. Ormiston Gorge
showcases spectacular landforms. It was my
rst visit and I was tempted to take a swim in
the nearly permanent water hole, but I was
warned that it was only safe to do so in the
warmer months. I did however take plenty of
photos and complete several sketches, so I
couldnt wait to get into the studio.
I paint from photographs more than I do en
plein air, which is a legacy from my
illustration days. The benets of painting in
the open are obvious but it comes with a
range of challenges like dening the subject
or scene, knowing where to start and what
can realistically be captured by a brush or
pencil. Nothing beats open air painting for
74 Artists
& Illustrators
improving observational skills, but the

convenience of a photo is here to stay.
My approach to all of my work is to attack
it I set a deadline and stick to it. I laid out
the palette of colours I needed before I
began. I prefer to get raw paint from open
jars and mix colour on the paper or canvas.
I only use my wooden painters palette when
I need to mix up a specic colour in a small
quantity. (Larger quantities are mixed in a
small plastic container with an airtight lid.)
www.craigpennyart.com.au
CRAIGS TOP TIPS

Five pointers when working from
reference photos
1 Think you have the perfect photo to
paint? Leave it as a photo otherwise
you will just duplicate it.
2 Choose a photo that lets you be
creative and interpret the scene.
3 Be prepared to crop photos or
explore layout ideas within it.
4 Just because something is in the
photo, it doesnt mean it has to be in
your painting.
5 Spend more time looking at the
painting than the photo. Id suggest
discarding the photo when you are
three-quarters of the way through
the painting.
YOU WILL NEED
s A sheet of 356gsm Arches cold-pressed watercolour

paper, 153x103cm
s Burnt Umber, Australian Sienna, Salmon Pink, Red Gold,
Permanent Orange, Yellow Oxide, Hookers Green, Aqua, Sky
Blue, Cobalt Blue, Prussian Blue, Light Violet, Dioxazine Purple
and Titanium White heavy body artists acrylic paints
s A selection of brushes, including a 5cm at brush, a hog
bristle brush, a 3/4 comb brush and a nylon rigger brush
s A drawing board s Sketchbook
s A hairdryer
s An HB pencil
s Gesso primer
s A water spray bottle
Soak your sheet of watercolour paper and staple it to a wooden

board that wont bow. Let it dry and give it a coat of gesso. A good
rag watercolour paper probably doesnt need gesso when using
acrylics, but it does help to slow down the absorption rate. Once the
gesso is dry, cover the staples and papers edge with masking tape.
I start by drawing the composition out quickly and loosely with an
HB pencil. As I was working from a photograph, working quickly allows
more room for interpretation.
I was aware of the key structural elements of the photo that help
me compose the scene. Key visual points may be things that nish
halfway or a rock formation that protrudes out about a third from the
side or where the water starts about a third from the top.
With a 5cm at brush, I applied a mix of Cobalt Blue and Titanium

White for the sky and dried it off with a hairdryer. For the large
landmass in the background, I used a combination of Hookers
Green, Red Gold and Titanium White, applying it again with the 5cm
at brush. On the right-hand side I intensied that colour using
Permanent Orange and introduced strokes of Burnt Umber to suggest
the darker areas.
With this initial colour in place, I took the painting off the easel,
tilted it and blasted the paint with a water spray bottle, letting it run
down the page. This helped to create the weathered look on the far
side of the gorge. Be careful here: although this is messy and a bit of
fun, be sure to point the spray downwards or you will risk splattering
paint all over your clean sky area.
After drying the painting off with a hairdryer again, I introduced the
large mass of rock coming in from the right with Permanent
Orange. A pale mixture of Red Gold, Hookers Green and lots of
Titanium White was then used in the background mass to add
contrast and bring out its edge. A stronger mix of green was also
applied to suggest distant tree foliage.
I began to introduce detail into the landmass on the right here. Red
Gold and Burnt Umber went in on top of the Permanent Orange,
blending it in while it was still wet. Using a 3/4 comb brush on its
edge, I suggested facets and layers in the rock face, using neat
Titanium White to create highlights. I mixed more of the warm green
from the previous step from Hookers Green, Red Gold and Titanium
White to suggest the distant tree foliage.
>
75
The areas bathed in light at the base of the landmasses were

quickly blocked in using Titanium White. The rock face on the far
left was also blocked in using Permanent Orange, Burnt Umber and
Light Violet towards the top and Permanent Orange blended with
Dioxazine Purple towards the bottom. Some strong brushstrokes of
the Purple and Burnt Umber were added using the 3/4 comb brush.
To cover up the drips from the previous stages, I put down a rst
coat of paint over the water. I let this dry thoroughly the last thing
I want to see is orange drips through the water. I started with
Titanium White at the water line with a hint of Yellow Oxide. More
white was added as I worked my way down. When I was almost back
to pure white, I blended Prussian Blue and ran it off the bottom of the
painting with a 5cm at brush.
The water got a second coat here. It was the same mixture as the
rst, but this time I suggested detail at the waters edge where it
met the landmass in the back of the picture. I used Australian
Sienna (from the paint brand Matisse) in downward strokes for this
with a small amount of Burnt Umber to further dene the waters
edge. I also took this opportunity to strengthen the colour towards the
bottom with Prussian Blue before letting it dry thoroughly again.
I built more detail by strengthening the Titanium White in the areas
bathed in light and suggested shadows using Australian Sienna and
Light Violet combined. I applied some loose strokes of Sky Blue and
Light Violet to the left-hand rock face and some Prussian Blue at the
very base of it. Rocks protruding from the water were indicated using
Titanium White with Prussian Blue and Burnt Umber in the shadow
areas. Light Violet was added for some interest.
For the reections of the rocks and the landmass on the far left, I
simply dragged down wet paint with at brushes and made a wash.
With the edge of the brush, I lifted out the paint to break up the shape
of the reections. A suggestion of a protruding rock formation was
added to the foreground on the left and reections were added too.
The painting was almost complete. With my rigger brush, I added

some ner details here. Simple tree trunks, distant birds and some
edges on the rocks were all introduced. More Titanium White was
added to the rocks in the foreground and some random colours that
cant be seen in the photo were added, including Aqua, Salmon Pink
and Light Violet.
This piece took me two hours, but Id allowed three. When working
from a photo, I nd I can create a more interesting painting if I force
myself to work quickly.
76 Artists
& Illustrators
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Tel: 0191 2615999
E-shop: www.details.co.uk
A Winsor & Newton Premier Arts
Centre located near the Central
Station. Online information:
www.newcastle-arts-centre.co.uk
Whats your rst memory of art?
My parents were always hanging

paintings around the house at
home but it was at school where
I really learned to enjoy art.
My school reports were pretty
rubbish except for art, so my rst
memory was being immersed in
it and nding it very rewarding.
and not worry about dogs, cats

and children playing havoc with
my paintings. Wet paint and
little sticky ngers dont mix!
Were your family artistic at all?
My great-grandfather William
was also an artist. Weirdly, he
was born on 13 June 1874 and
I was born on 13 June 1974.
What is the last art exhibition

that you went to see?
I went to the Paul Klee at the

Tate Modern (see Redgreen and
Violet-Yellow Rhythms, above).
It was excellent, although the big
public rooms didnt do justice to
many of the smaller pieces.
What has been your

career high so far?
Being involved with

the Olympics was a
great privilege and
something I am very
proud of. My rst
exhibition as an
Olympic artist was at
the top of Londons BT Tower
191 metres is pretty high!
What is your favourite art shop?
MY LIFE IN ART
How did you come to be an
ofcial artist of the London
2012 Olympics?
It was initially through Lloyds

Bank, who curated a selection of
sporting artists when London
won the Olympic bid. BT then
became ofcial sponsors of the
Cultural Olympiad and my work
was chosen.
JEREMY HOUGHTON
Artist-by-appointment to Prince Charles and
the London 2012 Olympics, he is currently
working towards a major retrospective
INTERVIEW: TERRI EATON
You were artist-in-residence at

Highgrove for HRH The Prince of
Wales last year. How was it?
It was a lovely job. I pretty much

had a license to roam and paint
whatever I wanted. The house
and garden are quite commercial
these days so I focused on the
parts of the estate which are less
well-known.
82 Artists
& Illustrators
JMW Turner for being so ahead

of his time, Robert Motherwell
for his bold abstractions and Wu
Guanzhong for his zen simplicity.
What have you sacriced
for your art?
Where is your favourite

place to paint?
My evenings and weekends. If

you live and work at home it is
very difcult to switch off.
I live in the Cotswolds and the

views, people and animals are a
constant source of great pleasure.
Whats the best piece of advice

youve been given?
What is your studio like?
I was lucky enough to go

painting with John Ward
CBE before he died in the
late 1990s. He said an artist
should never stop learning
so Ive strived to do this by
challenging myself with
new ideas and portfolios.
Im very lucky and have an old

barn where I can make a mess
Which one art product

could you not live without?
Masking uid. I get

through bottles of it.
When were you most inspired?
I taught art in Cape Town for ve

years and found Table Mountain
very inspiring.
Whats the biggest
misconception about
being an artist?
That it is a hobby. I dont paint

because I want to, I paint
because I have to.
Apart from art, whats your
biggest talent?
I love being a daddy. Kids

remind you of whats important.
Jeremy Houghton Retrospective
opens on 1 August at Ashmolean
Museum Broadway, Worcestershire.
www.jeremyhoughton.co.uk
MAIN PHOTO: JULIAN LOVE; ISTOCK; IMAGE THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART / SOURCE: ART RESOURCE/SCALA PHOTO ARCHIVES
Which artists do you turn

to for inspiration?
What is it that attracts you to

classic sporting subjects?
Im interested in history and the

feeling of nostalgia, and I like the
way sport has provided
excitement and escapism for
generations. Living in the
countryside requires a respect
and understanding of nature,
which is fundamental to many
traditional sports too.
Cotswold Art Supplies in

Stow-on-the-Wold, packed with
lovely ladies who somehow
squeeze millions of arty things
into their pretty little shop.
Capture your
creativity
One-off course or a
BA(Hons) Painting
Study at your own pace from home
and start at a time to suit you.
Support from a one to one tutor who
is also a practising artist.
Be part of a UK and international
student community.
Open College of the Arts

0800 731 2116
oca-uk.com
Joe Clarke, OCA student
MA Fine Art online also available.

Find out more from our website.
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