Mark Preston Solo Exhibition by Keith Logan

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022 The lost year… ‘The combination of preparation for the exhibition, the extension and the lockdown, along with 3 young boys at home full time has meant the longest period of distraction from painting I can remember.’ Mark Preston April 2020

‘During normal times I prefer to collect work for a one man show gradually over a 2 year period starting when the previous exhibition is finished, but this time was different. Although my last exhibition at Gallerytop (scheduled for April 2020) was put back 5 months by the pandemic the time spent producing the work was unaffected by it.

However, when I downed brushes in October 2019 after completing the previous exhibition I had no idea that I would not get chance to paint plein air again for nearly a year!. A combination of distractions caused by a very prolonged building project, lockdowns and playing my part in home schooling 3 young boys meant that I wasn’t able to start painting again until the following September. Having this time away from working certainly made me cherish the time to paint again and I returned with renewed enthusiasm. The following months of painting were cathartic and a great relief to be able to channel any of the previous year’s frustrations into working. There was yet another lockdown and round 2 of home schooling but a strong desire to be back out painting led to improvising with subjects I would not have otherwise painted. ‘

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022 A rare day… ‘This January day in the depths of the second lockdown I was able to head out on foot with my pochade box. It was one of those rare days when everywhere became paintable and looked like Narnia. Heavy snow was stuck to the trees and in the early morning light even the entrance to Sainsburys made me stop to consider painting but I continued walking to Markeaton Park. First I painted “Snow Shadows” then another which led to “Snow Covered Pathway” which is the only studio painting in the exhibition.’

Snow-covered Pathway, Markeaton 60cm x 60cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Winter's Afternoon, Alsop Moor 30cm x 25cm

Snow Shadows, Markeaton 20cm x 15cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

’’eerily quiet…’ New Year’s Eve Lockdown, Earl Sterndale ‘The guidance at the time was to work from home if possible but as a plein air painter I couldn’t miss this rare opportunity to paint snow. In normal times driving along the higher parts of the A515 road from Ashbourne to Buxton can feel like entering a different world, suddenly surrounded by snow covered landscape, but during the lockdown it was also eerily quiet. I had a strange sense I should not be there and at first was unable to settle on a subject but right at the end of the day this farm near Earl Sterndale caught my eye. There was a stillness and quiet in the air and a pink glow started to appear in the sky, it seemed rather a surreal and unusual way to spend New Year’s Eve.’ New Year's Eve Lockdown 2020, Earl Sterndale 40cm x 30cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Autumn Hawthorn 60cm x 60cm

Winter Hawthorn 60cm x 60cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Spring Hawthorn at Ashleyhay… ‘Ashleyhay where I painted this tree is an area where I have spent more time painting than any other and I must have done 20 canvases of this hawthorn over the years. If I am ever unsure where to head for a day’s painting my default setting is to head up to the fields around there. It is a familiar place that has often allowed me to ‘get my eye in’ and get back into a rhythm again after periods of distraction. On this occasion I had been bound to my studio for over a month, throughout May, in order to complete and frame a Cornish exhibition. Rather frustrated on this week of perfect spring weather, I left my studio with a large canvas and headed straight up to Ashleyhay to see what I had been missing. I had no idea it was going to be the start of a series but on seeing the same tree 6 weeks later I was struck by how it had changed and the series began. Winter hawthorn was the final painting completed for this exhibition and the freezing weather on January 7th offered a stark contrast to the blossom and buttercups.’

Spring Hawthorn 76cm x 76cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

August Afternoon, Houndkirk Moor 60cm x 30cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

A Break in the Cloud, Buttermere 25cm x 20cm

Evening Light, Bamford Edge 20cm x 20cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Summer Hawthorn 76cm x 76cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022 buffeted by strong gusts… ‘On this September day having made a steep climb up through woodland fully loaded with kit and a large canvas, I only realised how windy it was when I got up onto Froggatt Edge. Keen to press on with the original plan I set up right on the edge anchoring my easel to a rock with cord. Having perched on the least sheltered spot around I was in for a day of extreme painting! Attempting to keep in control of my kit and stop the canvas blowing away was a constant battle. Painting whilst being constantly buffeted by strong gusts was exhausting and when I finally finished, I don’t think I had another brush stroke left in me!’

Clear September Afternoon, Froggatt Edge 40cm x 35cm

Blustery Day, Froggatt Edge 76cm x 60cm (Facing Page)

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Autumn Leaves, Gunhills 40cm x 40cm

Dappled Light, Pratthall Lane 40cm x 40cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Bluebells and Ramsons 50cm x45cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Glistening Light, Taylor's Lane 40cm x 35cm

Calm Reflections, Chee Dale 40cm x 35cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Last Sunlight, Pratthall Lane 25cm x 25cm

Passing Showers, Beeley Moor 35cm x 25cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Moorland Pool, towards Seal Edge 76cm x 76cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022 A precarious situation… ‘I sometimes think when paintings are all finished and presented on a pristine gallery wall it seems hard to believe the challenges that can be involved in producing them. ‘Reflected Gold Chee Dale’ is one such example. I was keen to paint this striking phenomenon and capture this colourful reflection within shadow. It was a perfect, clear December day and as I walked along the River Wye the depths of the valley where the sun couldn’t reach were covered in frost and ice. Having rained continuously the previous week the river was high so the stepping stones down the side of the valley had almost a foot of water flowing over them. This was fine on the way down stream but after the days painting with the light fading the route back was rather more challenging. I had my canvas bag and easel tied to my rucksack so I could hold my painting face down with both hands to avoid large drips coming down off the cliffs. Treading carefully upstream on the stepping stones my bag caught the side of the cliff briefly causing me to lose balance, at this moment I remember looking into the freezing, fast flowing water and realizing how precarious the situation was. Luckily all was fine but the painting very nearly became part of the reflection in the River Wye!’

Reflected Gold, Chee Dale 50cm x 50cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022 Painting Plein Air… The determination to paint en plein air carries with it it’s own demands and all but one of Mark’s paintings for this exhibition were completed on location. To capture the moods and effects of weather and the seasons he is always in front of his subject – a committed engagement with the world around him. Rain, hail and sleet, storm and fury, there is no compromise. Plein air painting was the desire, demonstrated by artists such as Constable, Turner and later the French Impressionists, to represent the luminous effects of natural light and atmospheric effects, rather than the artificial light and stuffiness of paintings produced in the studio. This approach to painting, where works were completed on location, was facilitated by the early production of paint in tubes, together with lightweight easels, which allowed pigments to be easily transported and for artists to work in challenging, often extreme conditions. The problems posed when painting outside are immense and not just because of adverse weather conditions. The light is constantly changing and decisions about tone and relative colour values have to be made continuously. One of the difficulties in approaching the chaotic natural world with it’s constant motion and changing light is that trying to capture it quickly is often at the expense of composition, which is a more considered process. An aspect of Mark’s success is that the competing demands of rapid gesture, control of the medium, decisions about pallete and compositional structure all work seamlessly together, producing his strong, visually satisfying paintings.

Orchid Meadow, Ashleyhay 50cm x 50cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

October Sunlight, Fairbrook 76cm x 76cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Sky Reflections, Derwent Edge… (Facing page)

‘These pools on Derwent Edge were a couple of miles uphill from the car carrying kit and canvas but well worth the effort. It felt like I saw a whole exhibition’s worth of subjects that day but I was content to return with this 20”x30” canvas. The combination of heather and red grasses with the deep blue reflections in the pool made a striking subject. I was so carried away I almost forgot the hour’s descent back to the car, and could only just see the path in the twilight on the journey back down.’

September Morning, from Stanage Edge 60cm x 60cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Sky Reflections, Derwent Edge 76cm x 50cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022 ‘One thing leads to another…’ ‘Sunlit Pool, Seal Edge’ is one of the 8 paintings in the exhibition done on my pochade box, a much lighter kit which has given me the ability to walk longer distances searching for subjects and has opened up new possibilities for working faster on fleeting effects. On this September day I was out with my father who was pencil sketching so carrying a light rucksack allowed us the freedom to wander further and explore the moorland above Fairbrook. I also painted Red Grasses Fairbrook and the subjects I found led to two larger paintings in the exhibition.’

Sunlit Pool, Seal Edge 20cm x 20cm

Red Grasses, Fairbrook Naze 20cm x 15cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Sunlit Willowherb, Ashleyhay 20cm x 15cm

Sunlit Thistledown 30cm x 30cm

Pathway, Higger Tor 15cm x 20cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Scarthin’s Bookshop, Cromford… ‘This subject has often caught my eye from the Via Gellia road in route back from painting elsewhere, so I had made a mental note to return one day and paint it. I have often painted harbours in Cornwall on still, grey days, when other subject matter can seem flat, dull and uninteresting. Last December during a week of mainly still overcast days I spent several afternoons painting the reflections at Cromford. Watching the lights gradually beginning to turn on as it got darker reflecting in the still millpond made a great subject on an otherwise uninteresting day.’

Reflected Lights, Scarthin's 40cm x 30cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Sunlight After Rain 35cm x 30cm

Sunlit Stream, Doveswood 50cm x 50cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Wind and Surf, Priest's Cove 30cm x 25cm

Sunshine and Showers, Mount's Bay 25cm x 35cm

Painting in Cornwall… Mark lives and works in Derbyshire but makes frequent painting expeditions to Cornwall. He is inspired by the rugged coastline and the dramatic , ever changing sea. Working outside in all conditions has required Mark to capture the essence of a place very quickly. It’s this decisive application which has honed his approach to plein air painting, resulting in highly accomplished work.

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Morning Light, Porthgwarra 20cm x 20cm Bright Light and Strong Westerlies, Priest's Cove 35cm x 25cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Page again. I feel Having totally spring 2020 been unable to book it was wonderful be back working inFacing Cornwall ‘Having totallymissed missed painting painting spring in in 2020 andand been unable to book trips ittrips was wonderful to be backtoworking Spring Morning, Chypraze likeinthis was one this feeling. blackthorn and gorse along a great Cornwall again.ofI the feel paintings like this wasthat onecaught of the paintings that The caught this feeling.blossom The blackthorn blossom andthe pathway to Porth Eras made 51cm x 40cm spring gorsesubject. along the pathway to Portheras made a great spring subject’.

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Red Campion, towards Longships Lighthouse 60cm x 60cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

The Edge of a Field, Ashleyhay 30cm x 30cm

Willowherb, Totley Moor 20cm x 40cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

The Grouse Inn, from White Edge 35cm x 25cm

Winter Sunlight, Carsington Water 35cm x 25cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

Winter Sunlight, Chrome Hill 55cm x 40cm

Mark Preston Solo Exhibition 2022

We are pleased to be able to offer our customers the Arts Council Own Art scheme. Own Art is a national initiative that makes buying contemporary art and craft affordable by letting you spread the cost of your purchase over 10 months with an interest free loan of up to £2,500. Making an Own Art application is straightforward and takes about 10 minutes in the gallery. We can also arrange for you to make an Own Art application online with an e-signature application. All the paintings, with dimensions, price and additional images are on our website at gallerytop.co.uk

For more information about the gallery, exhibitions and artists news, sign up to our mailing list at www.gallerytop.co.uk If you would like more information about any of the paintings in this catalogue, please call us on 01629 735580 or e-mail us atinfo@gallerytop.co.uk The gallery is open six days a week, from Tuesday until Saturday from 10.00 until 5.00 and on Sundays from 11.00 until 4.00.

For a price list of the paintings in the exhibition, please contact the gallery. Gallerytop Chatsworth Road Rowsley Derbyshire DE4 5DD 01629 735580