I have always wanted to develop my painting and drawing skills. I spent my time outside the ‘day’ job and family commitments reading about the works of others whenever I could. This ‘self-tuition’ helped but progress has been slow. Frustrated by a lack of resources to study old master paintings in real life and to work with painters I admired, I applied for the AME Bale Travelling Scholarship. I was fortunate to be an Art Prize finalist in 2007 with “Jeff”, a Travelling Scholarship finalist in 2018 and finally, the winner of the Art Prize and Travelling Scholarship in 2022.
AME Bale Awards – Twenty Melbourne Painters Society Inc
The scholarship enabled me to travel to Europe for five months in 2023, to explore figurative and portraiture work, done from life. I attended several courses. The first was at Studio Escalier, in the little village of Argentonnay. The second with Jon Doran, at the Newlyn School of Art and the third in Rome with American Artist, Hollis Dunlap. I learnt to paint slower after observing for a long time, focussing on light and shadow and the shapes they reveal. I also visited museums and galleries in Paris, Madrid, London, Rome and Germany where I studied works of the old masters and more contemporary painters, including Sorolla, Velázquez, Carlos de haes and Mariano Fortuny, Sargent, Munnings, Monet and Ken Howard. Lesser-known galleries that I visited in my travels, included Oriel ynys môn gallery in North Wales where I studied the works of Charles F Tunnicliffe and Kyffin Williams, both of whom had been an inspiration for me as a young man.
Take-home messages from my study trip included the importance of working from life, simplifying and creating a hierarchy of focus, observing then painting, go slow in portraiture. Sharing my painting experiences and struggles along the way with other artists, was invaluable. The AME Bale Travelling scholarship made all this possible for me.
’From Life’ is a collection of some of the portraits, figurative work and small plein air studies that I completed during my travels and on return to Tasmania.
Exhibition Poster
When
30th Nov 2024 – 5th January 2025
(Opening on 29th Nov at 6pm by Lucinda Sharp, FortySouth)
Where
Lady Franklin Gallery, 268 Lenah Valley Road
Open Fri, Sat, Sun 11am – 4pm
Erica, Rome
Coffee break, Adele
Angelo and the yellow teapot
A plane of light in the studio
Sager
Sager (framed)
The ballet dancer, Enrico
Enrico (framed)
Argentonnay evening
Medieval barn, Argentonnay
Bridge, end of winter, Argentonnay
By the river, spring, Argentonnay
By the river, spring, Argentonnay (framed)
Afternoon still life, Argentonnay
Tonal study, Argentonnay
Artists bedroom, Argentonnay
L’eglise St Gilles and black cat, from Rue Geoffroy de Blois
Atlantic ocean from Les Sables-d’Olonne
Rue la Montagne, Argentonnay, early spring
Rue Saint-Georges, Argentonnay
The road to Voulmentin from St-Aubin-du-Plain
Collioure market
Collioure beach
Collioure barque
Mousehole harbour, Cornwall
Newlyn Bridge
Breakwater, Sennen, Cornwall
Morning haze, Afon Menai, N.Wales
Morning haze, Afon Menai, N.Wales (framed)
Tryfan, N.Wales
Tryfan, N.Wales (framed)
Low tide, Conway castle walls
Low tide, Conway castle walls (framed)
Via Del Governo Vecchio, Rome
Fontana del Nettuno, Piazza Navona, Rome
From Ponte Giuseppe Mazzini, Rome
Piazza Navona showers, 6.30am
Davey Street, Hobart, winter morning
Salamanca spring
George Davis at 92
Richard Warner-A very patient man
My friend Steve
The model, Steve, with portrait
Georgie listening to Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy
Fun in the waves at Goats Bluff
Fun in the waves at Goats Bluff (framed)
Adamsons Peak from Gardners Bay. Print
Azure Kingfisher. Print
Blue Skiff, Franklin.Print
Blunnies on the beach. Print
Calm afternoon, Franklin. Print
Collioure harbour. Print
Collioure street 2-Rue Marceau. Print
Franklin Wharf boat. Print
Gulls in surf. Print
Ironpot. Print
kunanyi from Montague Bay, evening. Print
Maltilda and The May Queen, hazy morning. Print
Rock Hopper, Dodges Ferry. Print
Snow in accomodation paddock. Print
Sunflowers, Nicholls Farm, Richmond. Print
The boat and her fish. Print
The white ketch and kunanyi, Lewisham. Print
Windmill, Oatlands. Print
