"The Valley"

l am rather proud of the pathworking I created based on this painting. It is intended to take the viewer on an imaginative trip into the painting. The video is an attempt to recreate the performance I put on as part of my "Dreaming Reality" art exhibition in 1988. The video is nine minutes long with two pauses of about ten seconds (which can be paused for longer if the viewer desires). It takes the viewer from a hot summer's day in the country into a mysterious and restful shaded valley. If you would like to experience it for yourself, try the link below!

''The Valley Pathworking"

My Virtual Exhibition on Facebook

My friend, John Rubery, and I were supposed to have a joint art exhibition at Bangor Carnegie Library in April, to be called "Thomas Spencer and John Rubery Exhibition - The Class of '76" (since we went to Art College together).

Unfortunately, due to fears over the Coronavirus, that had to be cancelled. However, I have decided to create a virtual exhibition on my professional Facebook page, Thomas Spencer Artist, posting pictures with a short explanation about them.

Please visit!

Market Square, Lisburn

"Market Square, Lisburn", August 2011.

Oils on canvas,  61 cm x 45.5 cm

Just finished this painting. The Island Arts Centre in Lisburn has invited submissions for an exhibition, so I thought I would try for it with a scene of local interest. Apparently, the city is building up a permanent Collection, linked to The Anna Cheyne Visual Award. But even if they do not purchase my painting, there will be an exhibition of as many of the submissions as they have room for, so there is a good chance it will be exhibited at least.

New Art Gallery!

To call this an Art Gallery may be a bit of an over-statement! What we are doing is using the area of the landings and stairs as a gallery space, open to the public.

This is just the way you come up from the ground floor. The blue door leads up to Dennis Crawford's picture framing premises, "Simply Frames", and the studios of Clinton Kirkpatrick and Pat Callaghan. The painting at the left is one of mine, then one of Pat's and a couple of Clinton's.

Coming up to the main, broad landing area, these are another two of my paintings. A door here leads to Jill Graham's jewellery business.

Next to the large window overlooking Market Square, three more of Clinton's paintings.

Next long wall, a couple of Pat's.

Heading up towards the second floor, this is some of Andrew Cranley's work.

Further up the flight of stairs to the second floor there is quite a bit of potential display space still being developed.

This is along the final stretch of corridor, to Andrew Cranley's studio and my own. These are a couple of my own paintings.

At the moment, the display of work is a bit haphazard, but this should improve. When we are properly organized, it could be a good idea to have some sort of open day, when members of the public could visit our studios, as well as the exhibition.

Clinton Kirkpatrick's, ‘Through The Eyes Of The World’ exhibition

Clinton with his painting,

"The Road Ahead", oil on canvas, 75 x 100 cm.

Went to see Clinton's new exhibition on Friday, 30th July (missed the opening unfortunately). Very impressed. I like Clinton's abstract work, but his figurative work has more appeal for me personally. "The Road Ahead", with it's image of death on a road under a burning sun, is very powerful.

"Fires Rage", oil on canvas, 100 x 150 cm.

This painting is another one inspired by Clinton's recent visit to Australia. The split between the massive image of fire in the background and the cool foreground with its isolated house, gives the painting a tremendous feeling of threat and fury.

The exhibition is on until 6th August 2010 at the Safehouse Gallery, Donegall Street, Belfast. Open every day from midday, but Clinton will be there in person from 4.30 - 7 pm every evening. Well worth a visit, if you can get there.

See http://clintonkirkpatrick.com/

Art, Music and Poetry at the “Noughtie” Exhibition

Saturday, 14th November, I was at the Reception for a group exhibition by Clinton Kirkpatrick, Emily Mannion and Kelly Ratchford at Studio 23. Very enjoyable! In addition to the paintings, there was some music provided (sorry, didn’t get their names) and poetry by Séamus Fox.

"As Far As I Can See", by Clinton Kirkpatrick.

Some work by Kelly Ratchford

A few of Emily Mannion's drawings.

Séamus in full swing, background hangings by Kelly Ratchford.

The Exhibition is on until 28th November at Studio 23, The Cutts, Dunmurry Industrial Estate, Derriaghy, BT17 9HU.

Originally published: Sunday, 9th August 2009 in the Creative Collective Blog

Elements
Unfortunately, I am a bit late with this as the preview is already over! I have only seen some of Jill's jewellery at her place in Studio 23 but, judging from this, the exhibition at The Fountain Centre should be worth a visit. Below is the information about the exhibition that I received from Jill.

ELEMENTS
The Craft & Design Collective presents ELEMENTS, an exhibition of contemporary jewellery featuring new work by Fiona Kerr, Garvan Traynor, Jill Graham and Rachel McKnight, at Space CRAFT, the group’s Shop/Gallery/Exhibition Area, up the escalator at The Fountain Centre, College Street, Belfast, from Friday 7th to Saturday 29th August 2009.

The Preview takes place on Thursday 6th August 2009, 6pm to 8pm.

Four of Northern Ireland’s leading Jewellery Artist/Designer/Makers have come together to make new work based on their own unique interpretations of the four elements; Air, Earth, Fire and Water, “We decided that we would like to put together an exhibition that not only challenges us to make new exciting work based on the elements, but would also challenge the viewer to think differently about jewellery.”

Fiona Kerr will explore the element ‘Fire’. Fiona combines beautiful stones with precious metals to stunning effect. The primary themes in her work are light, colour and movement. There is a discreet kinetic element to many of Fiona’s pieces.

Garvan Traynor will explore the element ‘Air’. Garvan specialises in hand crafted, custom designed jewellery. He uses platinum, gold, silver and precious stones in a distinctive and ingenious way. He transforms geometric, manmade structures into contemporary jewellery design.Jill Graham will explore the element ‘Earth’.

Jill works only in precious metals mainly sterling silver and 18ct gold. Her main source of inspiration is from organic structures and elements of plant life. She also likes to explore the themes of layering, movement and texture.

Rachel McKnight will explore the element ‘Water’. Rachel uses polypropylene, perspex, rubber and silver to produce original and innovative jewellery. Simple and uncomplicated shapes and the idea of duplicating these shapes also form the basis of Rachel’s jewellery.

Venue
Space CRAFT
Shop/Gallery/Exhibition Area
9b The Fountain Centre, College Street, Belfast, BT1 6ET
GO UP THAT ESCALATOR!

Dates
Friday 7th to Saturday 29th August 2009

Opening Hours
Monday to Saturday 10.30am to 5.30pm

Further Information
Contact: Jan Irwin
T: 028 9032 9342
M: 0779 327 9161
E: jan.irwin@virgin.net

About Space CRAFT
Space CRAFT Shop/Gallery/Exhibition Area is a non-profit taking social economy enterprise managed by the Craft & Design Collective designed to enable the purchase of work made by emerging and established Artist/Designer/Makers.

About the Craft & Design Collective
The Craft & Design Collective is an independent membership organisation formed in 1997 by Artist/Designer/Makers for Artist/Designer/Makers, to help raise the profile, manage and facilitate the development of Craft, Applied Art and Design.

With over 130 members the Craft & Design Collective is the biggest Craft Network in Northern Ireland. We are dedicated to the promotion, representation, understanding and development of Craft, Applied Art and Design in Northern Ireland and beyond.

Visit our website for further information about us, our members, and the events that we organise
http://www.craftanddesigncollective.com/

Originally published: Sunday, 21st June 2009 in the Creative Collective Blog

“Yesterday’s News”, Clinton Kirkpatrick: Safehouse Gallery, 25 Donegall Street, Belfast

Clinton in front of his paintings, Colour Field(s) 1-8.

I went to Clinton’s Reception Evening at the Safehouse Gallery on Friday, 19th June. I had seen a few of his paintings before at his studio space in Studio 23, Dunmurry, but this was the first time that I had seen his work properly presented and “en masse”. It makes a major difference to see work in the right setting. I particularly liked the display of eight of Clinton’s painting that I photographed with him in front. Each of the Colour Field paintings is for sale individually (and good in its own right), but they would be stunning if they were kept together and displayed in the same way in a modern, possibly minimalistic, room.

The exhibition organiser, Danny Burke, giving a brief talk introducing Clinton’s work. He is standing in front of two of Clinton’s paintings, “What Lies Beneath” (top) and “Slightly Ajar”, (bottom).

A lot of Clinton’s work is semi-figurative and powerfully coloured, making reference to the visual culture of today, its news flashes and headlines. I would consider that it is well worth a visit before it closes on the 9th July.

Originally published: Sunday, 3rd May 2009 in the Creative Collective Blog

James Millar, at The Whalley Gallery, Holywood, Co. Down.

James Millar, in front of one of his works.

Last Thursday, 30th April, I went to an exhibition of work by Jack Pakenham and James Millar at the Whalley Gallery, Holywood, Co. Down. I like the work by Pakenham, but my main reason for going was to renew a friendship with James Millar, with whom I had lost touch over the years when I was teaching in Cookstown.

I met James first when I was just about to leave art college in 1976 and I got to know him quite well (in 1978, I painted his portrait), but a few years after I had to move to Cookstown I lost touch. However, I still retain my admiration for his work. James was deeply interested in pyschology, particularly the work of C. G. Jung, and this has inspired much of his oeuvre. The show is of particular interest because it is exhibiting important pieces of his work from 1975 to the present. Of his more recent work, I particularly liked a linocut, “Circus Act II” (so did someone else, as it sold very promptly). James appears to be gradually acquiring the recognition he deserves, but I would still consider that his work is grossly under-valued - which makes it a good time to acquire some of his pieces!

"Circus Act II", by James Millar. 24 x 36 inches, linocut.

Originally published: Sunday, 5 April 2009 in the Creative Collective Blog

“Passion, Love and Revolution” at the Grand Opera House, Belfast


In the evening of 1st May, I went to opening of a group art show in the Grand Opera House. Two large, dramatic paintings on paper (plus one smaller one) should have set the opening mood for the exhibition but, unfortunately, these could only be displayed on the walls of the restaurant at the back of the foyer, so they were easily missed on the initial entry into the building (I only discovered them on the way out).

It’s a long time since I have been in the Opera House but, on inquiry, I was directed up the stairs to the second floor. There I was greeted by a young lady who marked me as attending the exhibition by tying a strip of red cloth around my arm and I received a red stamp on the back of my hand, all very suitable for an exhibition entitled, “Passion, Love and Revolution”! I was then shown through a black curtain into a large darkened room, where a short, grainy black and white film was endlessly repeating. Shortly after this, the show was duly opened by the curator of the show, Liam Brendan de Frinse with a few, well-chosen words and his reading of a short poem written by another member of Kult Pulp Productions, the group behind the show.

Kult Pulp Productions is a bunch of professional artists, some well-established, some just emerging, coming from a wide range of different specialities. They desire, and I quote, to demystify art by “making it more accessible, beautiful, affordable, exciting, fun, different, and above all radical.” One nice little idea, which certainly made it more fun, was the availability of badges, all different, which were available for purchase. The badges were sometimes witty, always decorative, and generally unusual. I liked the badges which, at only £2 each, allowed one to pick up a small, but meaningful souvenir of the exhibition.

The main group of pictures are exhibited in the Phoenix Gallery in the Opera House, so to get there I had to leave the darkened room, cross the landing and into a small corridor towards the front of the building. In the corridor outside the gallery were another couple of quirky touches. To the left, a small bag invited one to take a small piece of folded paper from it and to follow the instructions contained within. To the right, another bag, containing a small nest with some strange looking eggs, hung from a red ribbon.

In the Phoenix gallery itself hung about ten pictures, some figurative, some non-figurative. Several pieces appeal to me because of their references to Constructivist art, at the time of the Russian Revolution (before the communists hijacked it). Constructivist art broke new boundaries with regard to graphics and typology. The fact that the paintings were anonymously priced at £500 meant that the paintings were affordable as well as potentially a good investment (work by some of the participating artists normally sell at well above this price).

I enjoyed the exhibition. I enjoyed the quirkiness and inventiveness, the unusualness of a number of the things that were done. My worst problem with this exhibition is that it left me feeling hungry for more. Perhaps the only thing that would have satisfied me is something like the Frieze art fair in London, something capable of attracting large crowds of people for its entire duration. One where this show would only have been one of many and, as a result, have attracted an even more diverse audience. The feeling of excitement could be continuous and sustained. At the moment, if you want to get the “buzz” at an art exhibition, you really have to attend the opening night, full of people and chat (although not necessarily with the best view of the actual paintings!) However, this is when most art exhibitions are most truly “events”. Perhaps, someday, something like this will happen in N. Ireland.

At this stage I am going to digress somewhat. I am going to live dangerously and venture in some detail into one of the pictures that I particularly liked (which is not to say that my understanding of the painting is at all the same as that intended by the artist).

After Ché Guevara’s violent death in Bolivia, in 1967, he became something of a cult figure for students in particular (who were suitably distanced from the reality of violence and death in South America). The reference to “dissidents” gives the painting – possibly – a reference to modern day politics in N. Ireland. The word “questionmark” written out in full, rather than as a conventional question mark symbol, adds another little element, indicating – perhaps – that the statement has to be read visually, rather than literally. The use of stencil for the lettering, plus the deliberate distressing of the writing and of the surface – which makes it look ancient – gives another little twist, distancing the statement in time, even when other aspects touch it with a sense of the immediate. The little red star, like a signature, is the only element of bright colour, dragging the view down to the bottom right. Finally, a shiny black border, like the black border around an old-fashion funeral notice. What does it all mean? I suspect that you are being invited to weigh the elements for yourself, before you decide if it really means anything or if it is simply meant to puzzle you and to make you think! In any case, I found it an interesting piece.

In a blog I wrote some time ago I said that I thought that the language of much modern art is constructed the same way as most jokes, from statements which seem familiar and even banal – and which are then twisted to give a shock value. We laugh with surprise because we have been lead in one direction and yet suddenly find ourselves understanding the words as conveying a totally different meaning from the one we understood at first. I don’t mean by this that art is necessarily meant to be funny or should not be taken seriously, but it works in a similar way. Individual visual elements frequently appear familiar, straight-forward, even uninteresting – but are given new meaning and a “shock” value by being combined in unusual ways. You, the viewer, are invited to puzzle out the meaning, which may be subject to personal interpretation and is rarely obvious.

Does the artist, in this case, approve of Ché Guevara? Does he approve of dissidents in general or in particular? We don’t actually know. Is it meant to force the viewer into forming an opinion of their own? Again, we don’t know. That is the thing about much art, it doesn’t set out to give precise answers, but it may be designed to provoke discussion and to give an opportunity to form opinions and to exercise taste and judgment – to like or dislike! Is this piece in any way about real politics or revolution? Or is it just tongue in cheek, making you wonder if it is about real politics or revolution and it is about nothing at all to do with either? Perhaps it is only about the qualities of paint and surfaces and the purely visual? I don’t know. You must form your own opinion!

Exhibition at the Canvas Gallery, 76 Stranmillis Road, Belfast

On Thursday evening of the 26th March I went to the opening of a group art exhibition at the Canvas Gallery, in Belfast, as I know one of the participating artists, Andrew Cranley (he has an art studio on the same premises as I do, at Studio 23). The gallery was crowded and there was an excellent atmosphere. The five participating artists were very different in their style of work, which helped to make it an exciting exhibition, but – for me – the most interesting work was that by Andrew.

What I find particularly interesting is his vibrant use of colour. The backgrounds tend to be made up from dabs and streaks of brightly coloured paint, with a layer of contrasting colour underneath, which gives a sense of movement to the paintings as a whole. Figures are painted much more broadly, which gives them a solidity which makes them stand out from the background. They tend to be static, frozen in a moment of time, while the surroundings shimmer and move around them. The result is a dream-like, magical quality in the paintings as a whole.

Andrew, in front of one of his paintings.

Downpatrick Exhibition

The exhibition in the Downpatrick Library Gallery opened last Wednesday (6th February) night. It is in support of the Harmony Community Trust, Glebe House, Strangford, and was opened by one of the local politicians, Margaret Ritchie of the SDLP. It went well, but I was a bit disappointed with the attendance, only about thirty or so. However, two of my five paintings are sold, so that is a start. It is a good exhibition space, basically one large, well-lit room, at one side of Downpatrick Library. Hopefully, because of its position next to the library, this will help there to be a reasonable number of further visitors.

Because of the need to get my paintings ready in time, I went for producing five small landscapes. They were quite successful (and I am pleased with them), but the exhibition made me aware of how many others are producing work in a similar format. I think that I need the larger formats in order to stand out. Also, paintings of towns and buildings are relatively rare, so I think that my paintings of town scenes also stand out for that reason.

The more that I see work of local artists, the more convinced I become that the truly memorable work is nothing to do with either skill or technique. It seems to me that most of the work which has reached the history books has done so because it encapsulated something personal about the artist's life and times. Much of the work I see is attractive, some of it is highly skilled, but I am not convinced that it rises above the decorative. It is not that I am knocking decorative work as such, but I feel the need for something more.

For more photos, see ArtMagic; Downpatrick Exhibition.

What Happens to Prices?

In my last post, I included a jpg of a small painting of mine, which I priced at £120 plus P&P. But that is not the end of the story with regard to pricing. When I first started, I calculated the price purely on the actual working time. Since I was working directly in the street, I didn't even consider preparation time or time taken selecting my subject, working out my idea, or anything else. This gave me the freedom to sort myself out at my leisure, but is not a practical way of working out how much one needs to make from a painting, simply because the actual painting time is so intense. I certainly could not keep up a 40 hour week consisting purely of painting! However, in reality the painting time is interspersed with the need to sort out canvases and materials, to travel to a specific site, to get set up, to clear away and even for things like eating and drinking! All of these have to be allowed for as well.

The example I gave, "Drumlins near Ballynahinch, Co. Down, N. Ireland" was a particularly simply one to create. The site was close by, the painting very straightforward, expenses incurred were minimal. Hence the price calculated is also a very basic one. If someone living nearby saw it and bought it at that price, P&P would also be eliminated and, with a minimum of inconvenience I would receive a sum of money which, whilst not going to make me rich, would be a useful aid to my general maintenance and well-being. (P&P costs to somewhere else in the world will depend on the type of secure packing needed, carrier costs, insurance, etc. But since I have not yet sold any work in this manner, I have not yet got a clue as to what this entails. Essentially, I will be waiting for the demand to arise before I worry about it!) However, I am also getting together a number of landscapes for a group exhibition in February. Already started, these required me to go out of the way to select my subjects, so some extra time will be added in. Some will take longer than others, so this will also effect the price. In addition, I will have to get the work framed, allow for the commission charged by the gallery and the effort and time involved getting work to and from the show. Some of the work may not sell, so I have to allow for the fact that I will have to keep this work until sometime in the future when another opportunity for a sale may arise. So (a lot of guesswork is involved), here is an attempt to recalculated the selling price required for the same small painting if I put it in as part of an exhibition.

£120 - to cover working time in production
£50 - average cost of framing
£40 - to cover an averaged 2 hours collecting and delivering times (guestimate)
_____
£210 total so far.

Galleries charge differing amount of commissions. A local show might only charge 20% of the final price, but a commercial gallery commission could be 60% of the list price. At 60%, the final list price would be:

£525!

Some galleries would charge less commission, but I believe that this sort of estimate gives a ball park figure for the sort of pricing that a painting of this type and size would require in the general art market around here.

But I am still not going to get rich - at least if my work is all sold through galleries on this basis! However, on a more optimistic tone, if substantial amounts of my work start to sell at gallery prices, this will start to increase the value of my work generally. The main advantage of selling through galleries is that my work can, potentially, reach new buyers that otherwise I would not have access to.

Pricing one's artwork.

"Drumlins, Near Ballynahinch, Co. Down, N. Ireland", November 2007.
Oils on canvas, 30.5 cm x 25.5 cm. (6 hours working time).
£120 unframed, plus postage and packing.

Pricing one's artwork:

This is not an attempt at advising others on how they can price their own work, just my own musings on the subject, with an invitation to others to comment.

It seems to me that this is always going to be a thorny subject. Price yourself too high and you are unlikely to find buyers. Too low, and, effectively, you end up subsidising your buyers. You can, therefore, only continue to produce artwork if you have other means of support. This also makes it difficult to raise your prices in the future because you have firmly set yourself in the bracket of amateur artist. Of course, one way out of this dilemma is to find a dealer who likes your work sufficiently to promote it, but this has the disadvantage of meaning that you have to be able to fit into a recognised slot in the art market.

My own case is slightly peculiar. Because I taught art for many years, my skills and knowledge of the subject are quite highly developed. However, because I was concentrating on my teaching career, I have built no reputation for myself as a professional artist and established no slot for myself in the art market. Indeed, on leaving teaching, my morale was so low that, at first, I had difficulty in believing that anyone would be interested in anything that I might produce!

Because I have a pension, I do not rely on selling my art to cover basic living expenses. However, as a mature person with commitments, neither can I completely devote every moment of my time to my art career. Essentially, the two aspects balance each other out. My pension covers my non-art commitments, but my art work has to sustain, through sales, my ability to produce more art work and to develop my career as an artist. I also have no desire to subsidise my buyers. If my work is worth buying, then it is worth the buyers paying a realistic price for it!

I decide that, as an entry level-artist, without an established reputation, that the best initial policy was to price myself as a skilled and professional craftsman. However, I also had to allow that non-commissioned work, which might not sell immediately, would involve marketing expenses which also had to be covered. I therefore decided to that the price of my art work would be calculated according to how long each piece took to be produced, at a basic rate of £20 per hour. Since commissioned work brings in cash as soon as it is completed, I give a discount of one third on all commissions.

This is not great money, but it has been adequate to allow me to establish a local reputation - which is keeping me busy with a steady flow of commissions. This , in turn, has meant that I have started to build up a reserve of non-commissioned work for sale at exhibitions. For the immediate future, commissions take priority, because these are what allow me to keep going. For the longer term future, the non-commissioned work is vital, because these will allow me to establish both a wider reputation and higher prices.

From a pricing point of view, non-commissioned work can be split into two categories. Relatively quick work, such as small landscapes and people studies (which therefore carry relatively low prices) and more elaborate and impressive pieces, such larger landscapes and studies of towns (which are time-consuming and thus have to carry larger prices). Landscapes have proved popular in the local market and, as they carry the full price tag, are more profitable - providing I can wait for the financial return! Larger, more elaborate pieces, have to sell between £1,400 and £2,000 if, even on my present pricing system, they are to be worth doing. Since a smaller percentage of the population is prepared to pay this sort of money, this means that I have to gradually become better known to attract the right sort of buyers. However, by their nature, the larger pieces are more impressive so, eventually, this should happen.

There are limits on how much work that I can produce so. hopefully, a point will be reached when I cannot fulfil the demand (to a small degree, this is already happening). This means that I can afford to discourage some buyers by asking for higher prices. If I am getting higher prices, than the value of existing pieces is also likely to go up and so my work should acquire an investment value, which in turn should boost sales. This is clearly a delicate balance, but the big advantage - to me - of higher prices is that it gives me more freedom to select the sort of work I want to do and to experiment with other media (for example, I have planned some pieces of sculpture that I would like to be able to cast in bronze). Greater financial freedom should also bring me more freedom in terms of where I can exhibit and thus widen my potential market.

All of this is calculated entirely from the point of view of the money required by me, personally, in order to be able to continue to produce work and expand my own art career. However, a time should come when established, commercial art galleries find my work desirable purely from a business point of view. The difficulty with this is that galleries have to factor in their own profit margins, so an increased selling price will not necessarily immediately reflect in more money for myself. What would make this worthwhile would be if the gallery was promoting my work into new markets and could reach further afield. It would also lift the burden from me of having to organise my own exhibitions! In the longest term, this is probably the way that my career has to go, since eventually it would result in the greatest freedom to concentrate on producing the work I want to. However, it is not something that I am feel any urgency about. Galleries have their own concerns! If they see a profit in promoting my work, I think that this will make them keenest to do so!

From an artistic point of view, I am happy with what I am doing. I know my work to be unique and I believe that it offers something special to the various people who have bought my paintings. I just want the financial freedom to be able continue expanding the scope of my art. The above writing encapsulates my thoughts on how I can establish this greater financial freedom. If anyone reading this is also a working artist, I am would be interested in their comments and curious as to their own approach(s) to promoting and financing their careers.

Contemporary Art and Exhibitions

"Two Women Talking", October 2007.

Oils on canvas, 30 cm x 40 cm.

My art exhibition is now over and I am pleased with the results - some sales and enough commissions to keep me busy for much of the year to come! Perhaps more important, in the long term, was that the reaction from visitors was very good. This is important because it encourages me to think that I am on the right track with regard to the type of work I am producing.

However, I have reservations with regard to the number of visitors that I was able to attract. I had about 130-150, which wasn't bad for a one-man exhibition in a small town. Some of my visitors either knew me personally or had a particular interest in art already, so it was not surprising that they enjoyed the exhibition. The particularly encouraging part was that I also had a number of very casual visitors, not particularly interested in art, but who reacted very favourably once inside. The discouraging part was that I did not have more of these casual visitors! I suspect that this was not to do with me personally, but rather that there is a general reaction from many members of the public which prejudges an art exhibition as likely to be boring!

A lot of contemporary art relies on its ability to shock, puzzle, bewilder and/or intrigue the spectator. But these effects are subject to the law of diminishing returns, which means that the increased search for the new and novel nevertheless has a decreased response from the viewer. This, I believe, has resulted in an alienation of the public. To some degree, the gap is filled by hobbyists and by those artists who are prepared to paint simply to suit popular tastes – primarily decorative landscapes. The difficulty with this, is that the quality of the work is often not high. Even if the painting is technically good, it is rarely intellectually challenging. The result is that the popular art going public tends to be confined to the artists themselves, their immediate friends and relations, and buyers who are simply looking for something decorative to hang on their walls.

I do believe that the way forward is a re-engagement with the familiar. By familiar I mean traditional media, oil and watercolour, etc, and traditional subjects, landscape, portraiture, etc. But a painting should not simply be a demonstration of painterly skill. Within this context, the role of the artist – I believe – is to make the viewer re-examine and re-evaluate the subject matter. The apparent familiarity is the tool which persuades the viewer to consider the artwork in the first place (instead of dismissing it out of hand, the “I don’t know anything about art, but I know what I like” syndrome). But it then needs to take the viewer further. Above all else, it needs to build the expectation that the viewer will find future work interesting – and worth the bother of going to see!

Preview Night

The Preview of my Art Exhibition was held on Thursday, 11th October. It went very well, approximately 20% sales on the night, but more important was the feedback I got (very encouraging) and the general "buzz" (which was excellent). I also got several commissions for new work. All in all, a very successful night!

My Art Exhibition

I have been very busy this last couple of weeks. I am putting an exhibition of my art work for the last eighteen months. Hard work, but also quite good fun.

On Thursday, a photographer from one of the local papers came to get some photos for an article on the exhibition! I have put up posters around the town and, of course, a lot of individualised invitations have been sent out, but getting the local press onboard is likely to be critical to the success of the show.