You may have seen me during recent months at various spots on Wimbledon Common or in the Village, paintbrushes in hand and glued to my easel. I am local to Wimbledon and have been for 13 years, but it has only been in the last 12 months that I have taken to the streets to capture SW19 in oil.
‘Where shall we go?’ Oil on linen
Historically I have always been a studio painter, taking inspiration from outdoors in the form of photographs and watercolour sketches, returning indoors to put a piece together. But I became envious of the plein air painters posting their adventures on Instagram and Twitter; their reaction to the environment was immediate and emotional, with the challenge of changing weather and inconveniently parked lorries thrown in. I wanted to work in the same way and produce paintings that capture form, light and mood with suggestive and loose brushmarks.
‘Winter sun’ 2016. Oil on linen.
After a few months of hesitation, I took the plunge and was hooked. I planned to paint a few Wimbledon scenes as a ‘warm up’ to going further into London, but I kept finding new angles in my home town that were just crying out to be captured. This last month has been particularly inspiring with the almost pearlescent light we have enjoyed on those crisp bright winter days; the bold blue a magnificent backdrop to the autumnal shades of russet and amber. The festive mood in the Village is just magical and it has been fascinating to capture this on canvas; the baubles adorning the Ivy Café were a particular highlight! The reaction to my work has been so wonderful; the people of Wimbledon are just so supportive and encouraging.
‘Bike and baubles’ 2016. Oil on linen (40x50cm Available)
I will be painting through the seasons (and welcome any suggestions for spots to paint) in preparation for a solo exhibition of my complete collection of works (Norman Plastow Gallery, Wimbledon Tennis Fortnight, 4 to 17 July 2017).
‘July dawn’ 2016. Oil on board.
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