ABOUT ME
I am a landscape artist living in rural Hampshire, England. Almost all of my work is based upon landscapes within a 10 minute walk of my home. I live tucked away in the middle of fields just outside of a hilltop village. The landscape here offers long views and skies that never cease to captivate me. Skies to me speak of space and freedom and evening and morning light is often spectacular here. My work seeks to express the feeling of being within the landscape, and to capture and celebrate transient moments of beauty.
I seek out places that are as untouched by human hand as possible. Places that have remained unchanged and unspoilt for generations. My landscapes do not contain people, or manmade structures - they are about a pure connection between me, the viewer and the natural world.
Why Do I Paint Landscapes And Skyscapes?
I believe that connection with the landscape can help us in many ways. Nature can be a great healer. For me the landscape is a place to feel free and alive. When the human world can feel uncontrollable, in a state of chaos and flux, I take comfort in the quiet rhythms, constancy and continuity of the landscapes around me. My paintings are a celebration of the energy, beauty and timelessness of the landscapes and big skies that surround my home.
How Do I Work?
I begin by going out drawing within the landscape, using charcoals and/or pastels. I work quickly, focusing on key shapes, tones and colours, trying to capture the energy and feeling of the moment. I draw for the joy of it and to stay attuned to the landscape as it changes from season to season, from day to day, from moment to moment.
Back in the studio I paint in oils from my sketches, memory, and from photographs that I have taken whilst out working and walking in the fields. I work with a limited, but very flexible colour palette and I like to work “alla prima”, adopting a wet-on-wet approach with the oils. I anchor my work in what I have seen and observed, but my focus is to work instinctively and intuitively, conveying a sense of how it felt to be in that moment of connection with nature.
Where Do I Exhibit?
My exhibition history is as follows:
December 2023: Spring Cheltenham - Small Works Winter Show
November 2023: ING Discerning Eye exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
November 2023: Contemporary Art Fair Windsor
September 2023: Contemporary Art Fair Surrey
June - July 2023: Herbert Hedley Gallery, Petersfield - Summer Exhibition - group show
April 2023: AppArt group exhibition, Godalming
March 2023: Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours 211th exhibition, Mall Galleries, London
March 2023: Affordable Art Fair, Battersea
Nov 2022-Feb 2023: Herbert Hedley Gallery, Petersfield - Elementals group show
November 2022: Contemporary Art Fair Windsor
September 2022: Contemporary Art Fair Surrey
June-July 2022: Solo show at Herbert Hedley Gallery, Petersfield
March 2022: Contemporary Art Fair Surrey
November 2021 - January 2022: New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham - Winter Exhibition
November 2021: The Light Room, Alresford. Two person show with Fiona Pearce.
September 2021: Contemporary Art Fair Surrey
June 2021: Surrey Artists’ Open Studios
May 2021: Magpie Contemporary Art Spring Exhibition
November 2020 - January 2021: New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham - Winter Exhibition
September / October 2020: Surrey Artists’ Open Studios
September 2020 - November 2020: New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham - Painting Farnham exhibition
2019/2020: New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham - Winter Exhibition
2019: Alresford Arts Festival
2019: Surrey Artists’ Open Studios
2018: Surrey Artists’ Open Studios
2017: Surrey Artists’ Open Studios
Where Can You Buy My Work?
You are very welcome to visit my studio by appointment - please contact me if you would like to do this. Paintings are also available here:
I am also represented by Wychwood Art Gallery in Oxfordshire and London-based art consultancy Artfully Sorted.
Image & Film Credits
Images of me shown here, and the film of My Story are credited to Esther at Esther Evans Film and Photography www.estherevans.com
