FROM MOOR TO SEA Alan Cotton, one of the most revered artists in our midst, was invited by the Brook Gallery to select a body of work from artists across the UK known for their love and portrayal of the West Country. Landscape in the West Country is a way of life. Many of the artists in this exhibition work plein-air, allowing them to capture the mood and spirit of a place. From those allowing the elements of rain and wind to move the paint on his canvases, to the use of various brush and palette knife techniques to recreate the natural textures of rocks, leaves and grass evident in both Martin Bentham and Alan Cotton’s own paintings. Another focus in this exhibition is that of man’s interaction with the natural landscape and how people inhabit and relate to it, as shown in the works of Martin Procter and Gill Watkiss. Architecture and geometry are also strong themes, expressed through both abstract compositions and detailed portrayals of rock formations. Each of the exhibiting artists bring their own personal connections with the West Country to their artwork. Vanessa Gardiner, for example, returned to the Cornish Coast where she used to holiday as a child and spent years investigating the structure and colour of the landscape as a practicing painter. Whereas, the unique consortium of five printmakers that make up Pine Feroda collectively create a new identity and outlook on the landscape of the West Country through their large scale woodblock prints. From the sandy beaches of Dorset, to the creeks and inlets of Devon, via Somerset's high cliffs and Cornwall's secluded coves, the West Country landscape is as diverse as it is long, as portrayed by the varied artist styles included in Moor to Sea. Some of the UK’s best Fine Artists, given a subject as challenging as our region’s landscapes and ‘lifescapes’ brings to the walls of the Brook Gallery in Exeter, following into Budleigh, the most astonishing selection of styles, colours, moods and hues to excite and inspire you.
Alan Cotton
Angela Yarwood, Brook Gallery
Alan Cotton Winter Sun at Hartland Oil on canvas 91cm x 71cm £10,000
Misty Light at Hartland Oil on Canvas 36cm x 36cm £5,500
Alan Cotton is one of Britain's most distinguished Landscape Painters. Cotton was brought up in Redditch, Worcestershire and undertook his art studies at Ruskin Hall, Bournville School of Art, Birmingham College of Art, Birmingham University and at the University of Exeter. He has channelled his success into many charitable works, including his 2013 Art for Life Auction for the Children’s Hospice South West.
Ebbing Tide at Welcombe Mouth Oil on Canvas 61cm x 61cm £7,500
Silver Coastline at Hartland Oil on Canvas 36cm x 36cm £5,500
Cotton’s relationship with oil paint is the key to his now immediately recognisable and internationally sought-after work. His understanding of the medium's allure, challenges and caprices translate into assertively textured landscapes that join impasto with atmospheric perspective. Executed in high colour keys, these paintings retain a purity of pigment that is exceptionally difficult to retain in oil.
Vanessa Gardiner Path Line 33 Acrylic on Board 52cm x 61cm ÂŁ3,000
Cliff Wall Acrylic on Board 45cm x 45cm ÂŁ2,000
As a landscape painter Vanessa Gardiner is captivated both by the beauty of the places on which her work is based and by the processes involved during the making of the pictures. In a sense they go hand-in-hand: the immediacy of drawing directly from the seemingly haphazard natural subject matter, with the careful selection and ordering of the compositions back in the studio.
Harbour Coast 29 Acrylic on Board 61cm x 85cm £3,500 SOLD
Field Edge 28 Acrylic on Plywood 37cm x 90cm £3,200
Harbour Coast 32 Acrylic on Plywood 27cm x 61cm £2,200
Concentrating on the singular coastlines around Cornwall, Ireland and more recently Greece, Gardiner have become increasingly aware of the connecting elements found within these landscapes. A bursary awarded by the British School at Athens in 2009 to enhance her work from Greece has focused my interest in the geometry of architecture and its relationship with both the landscape and the visual language she uses within her work.
Ray Balkwill Gilded Light on the Exe Mixed Media 61cm x 61cm ÂŁ1,800
Evening Fades on Wings of Fire Mixed Media 38cm x 36cm ÂŁ800
Ray Balkwill, SWAc is a well-known West Country artist whose watercolours, oils and mixed media paintings are much sought after. Born in Exeter in 1948, he graduated from Exeter College of Art, thereafter making a career in advertising as an Art Director. In 1990 demand for his paintings led him to give up his job to become a professional artist. He has held numerous successful solo exhibitions, as well as showing in group and
Upon Jeweled Shore Mixed Media 38cm x 36cm ÂŁ800
Emerald Sea Mixed Media 31cm x 31cm ÂŁ750
open exhibitions. These include the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolour, Royal West of England Academy and South West Academy of Fine and Applied Arts. He also runs painting courses in Essex, Cornwall and from his studio in Devon. He is a regular contributor to art magazines and is also author of seven books, produced two art instruction DVD's and is a regular contributor to art magazines. He also runs painting courses in Scotland, Cornwall and from his studio in Devon.
Gill Watkiss Going to St Austell Oil on Board 44cm x 54cm ÂŁ2,200
Church Cove Oil on Canvas 60cm x 66cm ÂŁ4,800
Gill Watkiss, born in 1938, was tutored at the Walthamstow School of Art and taught by Edward Middleditch of the 'kitchen sink' group of artists. With her late husband, the painter and photographer Reg Watkiss, she came to settle in West Cornwall at the end of the 1950s. From a first lodging at Mousehole, they lived in various locations around the district including Zennor, St Just, and Newlyn. Gill focuses her
Watching the Storm, Cape Cornwall Oil on Canvas 62cm x 75cm ÂŁ4,500
Jubilee Pool, Penzance Oil on Canvas 50cm x 60cm ÂŁ3,500
work on the daily lives of people and places around herself in the villages and lanes of Cornwall; depicting evocative figures against familiar backdrops. Her work is exhibited around West Cornwall, including Rainy Day Gallery and Newlyn Art Gallery amongst others.
Martin Bentham Dry Stone Wall Repairs, Mendip, February 2007 Oil on Linen 105cm x169cm ÂŁ16,500
Deerleap Lichens Oil on Linenboard 16cm x 38cm ÂŁ1,500
Martin Bentham has been a full-time professional artist since graduating from Exeter College of Art and Design in 1985. Primarily a figurative painter, Martin prefers to work directly from his subjects, which are mostly derived from the people and landscape of the Mendip Hills, where he lives. He has held successful biennial one man shows since 1993 and has exhibited at
Mendip Hawthorns, Winter Sunlight Oil on Board 22cm x 34cm £1,150
Bristol Channel from Sand Point Oil on Linenboard 16cm x 40cm £1,250
numerous, notable selected exhibitions including the Royal Academy and the Royal West of England Academy. Martin was awarded the Daler-Rowney Oil Painting Prize in 2007 at the RWA Autumn Exhibition and won the Viewer’s Choice Award at the 2008 Exhibition. He was elected an Academician of the RWA in January 2009. Martin Bentham’s paintings are in many private collections throughout the world.
Phil Creek Summer Lane, Autumn Oil on Panel 40cm x 50cm ÂŁ995
Topsham Quay Oil on Panel 48cm x 39cm ÂŁ995
Phil Creek BA (Hons), ATD, SWAc was born in Cambridgeshire, England, in 1951. He received his Honours Degree in Fine Art Painting from Manchester University in 1973 before undertaken Post-graduate study in the History of Art and Design at Birmingham University. After a career in art education, including being Director of The Beaford Arts Centre, lecturing on The Masters in Education Programme at Exeter University and being Chair of SWGaTE he left his last full-time post, as County Adviser for Art and Design in the county of Devon, in April 2011. He now
Hayle Estuary Oil on Panel 46cm x 61cm ÂŁ1,295
Harbour Porthleven Oil on Panel 61cm x 46cm ÂŁ995
concentrates on his painting full-time working on the coast or in the landscape and townscapes of Devon, Cornwall and Dorset. Phil has paintings in private collections in Spain, the USA and the UK and has exhibited in The Mall Gallery, London, The Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery, Exeter Phoenix and The Gloss Gallery, Exeter.
Martin Procter Dunna Bridge Mixed Media on Board 60cm x 60cm ÂŁ3,300
Tin Works Acrylic Mixed Media on Canvas 30cm x 30cm ÂŁ1,450
Martin Procter was born in Yorkshire, England, in 1942, and moved to Devon in 1956. After a career in building and architecture, he became a full-time painter in 1998, and soon was firmly established as one of the Westcountry's leading contemporary artists. His work reflects his academic background in human and physical
Tin Stream Acrylic on Shaped Canvas 100cm x 100cm ÂŁ4,950
Cosdon 2 Acrylic on Canvas 100cm x 100cm ÂŁ4,500
geography, a design base in architecture, and his life-long passion for remote hillcountry and wild places. He has held numerous solo and joint exhibitions, and his work can increasingly be found in many private and public collections, both in Britain and California.
Richard Slater Beach at Sunset Watercolour 55cm x 72cm ÂŁ650
Fireworks Festival Mixed media 71cm x 56.5cm ÂŁ950
Born in London in 1927, Richard Slater's exceptional talents were early recognised when he won a place at Hornsey School of Art in 1943. He has exhibited all his life: in the 1950s, he exhibited with the World Touring Exhibition of the Arts Council, and at the Royal Academy. After a distinguished career teaching art, Richard moved to Plymouth and in 1980, he devoted himself full-time to his painting. Richard Slater is both a figurative and landscape painter whose strengths derive from the
Sunset Rocks Oil 32cm x 36cm ÂŁ295
Evening Landscape in Devon Watercolour 47cm x 58cm ÂŁ325
particularly British tradition of a romantic engagement with the landscape. His style is related in part to a broader outlook, with its roots in his early training in illustration and lithography, but possessing what one critic has described as "visionary qualities". The rhythmic qualities of his work create an almost dream-like quality, inviting the viewer to engage with the scenes depicted, whether harbours or fields, or, in his more figurative work, figures caught in encounters that invite our curiosity.
Vin Jelly Strongman Oil on Board 122cm x 86cm ÂŁ4,450
Queens of the Forest Oil on Board 122cm x 86cm ÂŁ4,450
My recent landscape work has centred around direct observation, often plein air but also with some later adjustments in the studio. Slight deterioration of my eyesight has actually helped me to understand form and tone more, clearly and to understand how 'impressions' are really formed, and this has led to applying paint with more vigour and energy. It's always exciting to 'play' with materials and use them to explore new ways of expressing yourself. I've been exploring portraiture recently as well as still life when the weather keeps me indoors. These
Before the Forbidden Fruit Oil on Linen 41cm x 30cm ÂŁ585
Naked Beech in Sunlight Oil on Board 55cm x 69cm ÂŁ1,800
disciplines always throw up challenges and part of the quest is to find new visions and not rely on formulaic approaches. The south west has some beautiful landscape though it's not always easy to access if you want to paint it. There's nothing better than working on the spot for 'absorbing' the atmosphere of a place. I do also use digital photography as an aide memoire and also to manipulate imagery when planning paintings. There's nothing wrong with that. It's an exciting development in helping to achieve a vision.
Pine Feroda
January Storm Woodblock Print 133cm x 96cm ÂŁ2750
Pine Feroda is the collective name used by five artists working together in the South West of England to make large scale, dramatic woodblock prints. Pine was formed in November 2013 as a four day experimental workshop in the making of collaborative prints. The stimulus and energy of this collaboration has resulted in the creation of a new identity - Pine Feroda.
Shore Break Woodblock Print 133cm x 96cm ÂŁ2750
All creative decisions are taken collectively, and this requires a great deal of coordination, discussion time and tact. The benefit of this way of working is that, with five artists collaboratively engaged, a tremendous creative energy is unleashed and things get done fast.
Robert Clement Bellever Tor Above Great Sherberton Watercolour 61cm x 36cm ÂŁ750
Sharp Tor High Summer Evening Acrylic 46cm x 36cm ÂŁ650
Clement trained as a Theatre Designer at Birmingham School of Art and worked in theatre for four years before training as a teacher at Bath Academy of Art. He has taught in schools, in Higher Education and was Art Advisor to Devon LEA for over twenty years. He has been making work from the landscape since 1958 and has returned to the same landscapes time and again to absorb and relish the appearance and quality
Sharp Tor from Combstone Acrylic 52cm x 37cm £850
Sherberton Common Watercolour 61cm x 36cm £750
of a particular environment. Since 1979 Robert has been making work based upon the landscape surrounding Great Sherberton, an ancient settlement close to Hexworthy upon Dartmoor. Great Sherberton is a hill farm both open to the dramatic landscape of the Moor and enclosed by its own great windbreak of beech trees. The biggest influences on Clement’s work include Paul Nash, Eric Ravilious and Graham Sutherland.
Sarah Adams
Inside the Arch at Newtrain Oil on Linen 75cm x 180cm ÂŁ18,500
Sarah Adams is primarily a landscape painter, the slate cliffs of North Cornwall offer her a dramatic subject matter: sink holes, natural arches and caverns, often only accessible at low tide. The sea caves of Cornwall are architectural, a rugged Atlantis rising from beneath the waves. Piranesi might have felt quite at home on this coast, where crumbling triumphal arches and vaulted ceilings seem to mimic the romantic ruins of classical antiquity. Twists and spirals are set against sheer
Bryher Mist Oil on Board 15cm x 30cm ÂŁ1,800 SOLD
Bryher Path Oil on Board 15cm x 30cm ÂŁ1,800
walls of stone all in glorious ragged decay, and thrift and sea campion grow wherever they can. Each section has a particular character, dictated by localised formations and geology. Viewed through the grey arches of Porthmissen, a series of strata known as Marble Cliff loom up and catch the light; a pocket of limestone tipped upside down and weathered, the ledges are now home to nesting fulmars.
Anita Reynolds Day 9 Hartland Quay Carborundum & Collagraph 17cm x 17cm ÂŁ250
Jackdaws at Carrick Luz Carborundum & Drypoint 25cm x 60cm ÂŁ500
Anita is a landscape artist living in South Devon, surrounded by the wild moorland and dramatic coastline of the South West Peninsula. Spending large amounts of time working outside, revisiting locations at different times of the year, her mark making is both gestural and energetic, reflecting her total immersion in the landscape.
Day 15 Sky, Rock, Sea, Thrift (Gunver Head) Carborundum & Drypoint 17cm x 17cm ÂŁ250
Charlestown Harbour Carborundum & Drypoint 25cm x 60cm ÂŁ500
Pushing the boundaries of printmaking techniques she is constantly exploring new ways of representing her ideas. The wide range of printmaking techniques and the innovative use of new and unusual materials satisfies her constant need to invent and make.
Laurence Belbin Charmouth Beach Towards Lyme Regis, Dorset Oil 76cm x 76cm ÂŁ1,750
Scattered Light Oil 71cm x 71cm ÂŁ1,650
After a career in graphic design and printing Laurence Belbin became a full-time painter in 1989. As a self taught artist Belbin began painting in oils in 1972, land and seascape are often the chosen subjects with a main focus on the creation of an atmosphere with the careful use of colour to express a sensation of light. Belbin is
Low Tide, Penzance Oil 38cm x 43cm £795
Sparkling Light Porthleven Oil 47cm x 47cm £825
also drawn to describing the qualities of water in all its forms and locations from snow and puddles to sea and rivers, choosing to paint en-plein-air all year round. Most of my work is produced in this way. Belbin’s work is exhibited in Cornwall, Isle of Wight, Guernsey and occasionally in London.
Kathleen Caddick Ropes and Posts Lyme Regis Acrylic on Canvas 51cm x 61cm ÂŁ3,000
Although born in Liverpool, Kathleen spent her childhood in Buckinghamshire where the beech woods and far reaching views across the Chiltern Hills must have subconsciously implanted her love of trees. She trained at High Wycombe College of Art and graduated with NDD Hons. in painting. She worked as a freelance designer and art teacher while her son was growing up. She then returned to run a graphics design studio, during which time she was also an examiner for the City and Guilds London.
Otter Head Etching 15cm x 20cm ÂŁ120
Lyme Regis Etching 13cm x 15cm ÂŁ75
She started painting full time in 1968 exhibiting mainly in London. In 1976 she began etching, working with the Reich British Art in Germany and CCA Galleries, London. Since then her work has been widely exhibited and collected in this country as well as in Germany, USA, Canada, the Far East and Australia. She has worked on commissions for the National Trust and the Woodland Trust. Kathleen's vision of landscape is the subject matter of her work expressing feelings of space, peace and tranquillity through her use of muted colours. We have displayed work now for many years and she remains one of our most popular artists.
Tina Morgan Girl on the Cliff Oil 51cm x 76cm ÂŁ2,800
Afternoon Sun, Sidmouth Oil 45cm x 45cm ÂŁ1,390
Tina Morgan was born in Lynton, Devon in 1952. She studied art and design in Cornwall. After gaining an S.I.A.D. in industrial design, Tina worked as an Art Director in London for a number of top creative advertising agencies. In 1985 Tina Morgan began painting as a full time professional artist. Since then Tina has exhibited her art work widely and is known know for her impressionistic paintings of the coasts, markets and streets of the UK, Europe and America.
Yellow Reflection Oil 30cm x 30cm ÂŁ1,050
Keeping Out of the Sun Oil 30cm x 30cm ÂŁ970
Tina Morgan has been inspired by a number of artists in particular Royal Academicians, Fred Cuming and Ken Howard. Today, Tina is a member of the Royal Society of Women Artists Her softness of palette and great skill in observing and depicting people creates art work with a timeless quality. Tina Morgan art works display a free style and subtle use of colour. She creates a unique luminosity in her paintings which reflects her continuing love of the British coastline and landscape.
Brook Gallery I Fore Street I Budleigh Salterton I EX9 6NH 1 Barnfield Crescent I Exeter I EX1 1QT www.brookgallery.co.uk I 01395 443003 info@brookgallery.co.uk