Month: June 2020

Sometimes, it’s interesting to see how an Artist works; to understand the layers that go into creating the finished work. To get an insight into their creative processes, learning that in turning the 3D world into a representation on a 2D canvas, every piece contains a joyful number of problems to solve. I say joyful, because to me, I’m trying to help the piece find a way of saying what I want it to say – and that process of bringing work to life is indeed joyful, liberating and exciting.

With this in mind, I’ve created an ‘In the Studio’ tab – you can find it on the menu – and this contains some of the artworks where I have remembered to capture the journey I’ve taken, the process of mark making and layering that is so important to me.

Usually, capturing it digitally is forgotten as I lose myself in the process of creating the work; judging by the positive feedback though I plan to improve how often I remember to do this and to improve the quality of the slideshows (every day is a school day)

Hope you find them interesting to view. As always, let me know what you think.

Warmly, Tess x

A really warm welcome to these gallery pages

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When people learn that I’m an Artist the first thing they always ask is, “what do you paint?”

I always think, “well, how long have you got?” since there’s no quick answer to that.  

Perhaps the honest answer is that I paint what my heart loves

Sometimes, I’m creating seascapes of the East Lothian coast – I can’t get enough of the changing light, the reflections, the shadows in the sand or the colours. 

Other times though, people grab my attention and I end up painting the humans and little humans who happened to be spending time at the coast when I was there.

Perhaps you love old boats?  I know very little about sailing but adore old fishing boats or little rowing boats.  There’s something very beautiful in their old, tattered charm and so these pop up in some of my work in paintings of Anstruther, Pittenweem and North Berwick.

Landscapes feature a lot too; I really enjoy painting on cadmium red canvases, leaving selected areas of the underpainting to shine through which really pops against the predominantly lush, green landscape and across these pages you will find landscapes from Scotland and England and also Italy when I have been lucky enough to travel.

I have also started painting animals; I’m drawn to their eyes and how the light reflects in them.  I always start with those and, it they feel like they are coming to life on the canvas then a new piece will be born on my easel.

Flowers feature, albeit briefly, but I hope do spend more time immersed in nature painting more of these. 

In all of my work, light and shadow remain very important, as does the very process of mark making.  I’m drawn to impressionist styles of painting but tend to the leave the work to unfold itself and so paint instinctively in a way that feels largely unconscious. 

Mostly my work is on coloured canvas.  For a long time, that was red though there are others now on black, cobalt blue, cadmium orange too. 

I hope you will enjoy browsing the images and will fall in love and give one of these pieces a new forever home.

Warmly,

Tess x