Drawing Skills: Part 3 Project 5 Research point 1(a)

Contemporary landscape

John Virtue

John Virtue is an artist who has pushed the boundaries of the concept of landscape. Between 2003 and 2005 he was associate artist at the National Gallery. The associate artist scheme enables leading artists (by invitation and for a period of two years) to work with a collection of paintings that were made before 1900. The idea is that the old masters can continue to influence contemporary artists. (1)

Although he is influenced by oriental brushwork and American expressionism the main inspirations for Virtue were Turner (1775-1851) and Constable (1776-1837). Other influences are Ruisdael (1628-1682), Koninck (1619-1698) and Rubens (1577-1640). If the aim of the National Gallery associate artist scheme is to demonstrate the influence of old masters it seems that Virtue obliges in spades.

As I have noted in another post Virtue uses whatever geographical situation he is in to inspire his art so it follows that working in a studio at the National Gallery would enable him the produce paintings of the London landscape.

Virtue works on large canvases in monochrome using white acrylic paint, black ink and shellac.

Virtue's studio at the National Gallery (1)

Michael Glover (Independent 08.02.2013) finds himself unsure of exactly where Virtue positioned himself to make his London sketches:

there is much here that we can very quickly, and very readily, identify: the Gherkin, the NatWest tower, St Paul's Cathedral, all pent within the near-vanished walls of the old Roman city. What exactly is the vantage point here? We know that Virtue has favoured two during the ongoing making of this series of London paintings (all of which, curiously, are numbered but not named), the Oxo Tower and Somerset House. Is this a view from Somerset House then? Is that not the Victoria Embankment we can see underneath its walls? But could you achieve quite so broad and compendious a view from the topmost vantage point of Somerset House? Or does this painting merely take that vantage point as its starting point, and then range – spread its shoulders – more fancifully? (2)

Landscape No 710 - John Virtue. 2003-4 (2)

I like the thought that the London skyline can be changed by a brushstroke. Michael Glover goes on to remark on Virtues' ability to make atmospheric paintings that "puts us in mind of Turner, whose paintings were often charged by elemental drama" just like the one above. (2)

The roof of the National Gallery was a favourite vantage point. This is where he found Horatio Nelson from a different perspective:

Half way up Nelson's Column - John Virtue (3)

View from the National Gallery roof - John Virtue (4)

I have found Virtue's work very hard to understand because it seems so dark and brooding. However, as I look at his work more I find the light sometimes winning through. I find his sketches inspiring and as I progress though Project 5 I will be looking at these a lot as I learn about perspective.

Like Turner, Virtue has turned his hand to all sorts of landscapes

The Sea - John Virtue. 2011-2013 (5)

I find this painting very exciting with its sparkling water and huge rollers.

Tim Curtis

A friend alerted me to the work of Tim Curtis whose work she had seen in a northern exhibition. He is a community based artist with wide experience who has some interesting ideas in his work with children.

Bovvered Bout Bradford - 2009. Mixed media
Y7 Grange and Titus Salt Secondary School, Bradford (6)

Lister's Mill pod skeletons - Tim Curtis 2008 (6)

I'm not quite sure what "pod skeletons" means but I like the perspective drawing.

This idea particularly caught my eye. Curtis has used discarded corrugated cardboard on which to draw a townscape.

What did you do in the Nineties Daddy? - Tim Curtis. 2011
Mixed media on corrugated cardboard. (6)

Near and Farscapes - Tim Curtis 2013 (7)

The use of the card to emphasise the verticals is (I think) brilliant.

Much of the time Curtis spends working with groups of children, although adults seem to be welcome. I can find little regarding his working techniques but he is someone I'll keep an eye out for.

Julian Bray

I came across Julian Bray's work as I trawled through past exhibition photos of Retford Art Society. (8) His work is sometimes very architectural but remains sensitive and full of life. Initial drawing gives Bray the structure to use multi media in both dramatic and subtle ways. Sometimes his work is semi abstracted and at other times it is atmospheric and plays with light and shade. In his own words

I celebrate shape and colour and I hope to encourage the viewer to see their surroundings afresh. (9)

The following paintings are from a series Bray did while he was working on the Chatsworth estate in Derbyshire. The series seems to me to give him scope to use all his talents; the detailed drawing skill in the architectural work and the fanciful and flamboyant in paintings like Magical Garden.

Magical Garden - Julian Bray (10)

Chatsworth Magnificence - Julian Bray (11)

In direct contrast but showing Bray's multifaceted skill is a more draughtsman like work that emphasises perspective in a very rigid way:

Chatsworth Perspective - Julian Bray (12)

Bray does not stop at landscape and architecture but has an elegant touch with people as well:

Fletchers workshop, Welbeck - Julian Bray (8)

I can only marvel at this sort of diversity.

My task in the research was to look specifically at the work of John Virtue while he was associate artist at the National Gallery. A further suggestion was to look at other artists who might inspire my own work and both of the artists I selected do that. I am led to wonder what the thread is between the three artists who are so different yet can still inspire me. I have come to the following conclusions: