Exhibition: Richard Hoare ‘Alchemy of Light’
ART
by Edwina Baines edwina@theblackmorevale.co.uk
The medieval Tithe Barn at Messums Gallery and Arts Centre in Tisbury is reputed to be the largest of its type in England. This impressive building is now open as an Arts Centre and cultural institution for the South West of England. Originally built as a storage barn for the Abbess of Shaftesbury and owned by Shaftesbury Abbey until the Dissolution, in recent years the barn, set in the beautiful landscape of Fonthill Estate, has been extensively restored to its former glory. Incongruously, it was a dark, rain-sodden morning when I visited Richard Hoare’s exhibition entitled an ‘The Alchemy of Light’; but despite the dank weather outside, golden light emanated from his paintings. Richard lives in Shaftesbury, and his main focus is the Fonthill landscape, with its central lake surrounded by a myriad of caves and bridged by a weir. The bewitching effects of light on these is beautifully captured by Richard at different times of day and year: the lime greens of Spring contrast with the rich browns and ochres of Autumn; tumultuous skies roll with huge, powerful grey clouds while tantalising glimpses of blue pierce through the trees.
Other paintings in this exhibition include the hills and woody thickets of Berwick St John, Dinton Park, East Knoyle and Horse Hill – an Iron Age tumulus hill near Shaftesbury. I started by asking Richard about
the origins of the exhibition’s title ‘The Alchemy of Light’. He sees alchemy as the dance of matter and energy from one state into a higher form - a seemingly magical process of transformation. It is also an explanation for the mystery of how paint can be transformed in a light filled picture. “The way I work is intuitive. All the work in the exhibition has been generated from a spark. When I see something I’m drawn to - usually it is trees, the lake, an island or mountain – an archetypal subject or perhaps just one tree in the landscape - I feel a tug at the heart and I respond to this through the ‘gesture’ of painting. My work is the response to that initial impact witnessed in and from nature.” Richard went on to explain how he communes with nature to
capture her essence by feeling a calmness in the presence of the beauty of the place. Rather than paint literally the appearance of the landscape, he tries to paint what he sees behind the surface, and that is something which cannot be described in words. “I’m painting the tree as it resonates with life in that moment, not what it just looks like. The painting comes from that moment of being as completely present as possible. “All good journeys contain some revelation about oneself, or the place one visits. A pilgrimage or journey from looking to seeing is a good allegory in my experience, for this life as a painter.” Richard’s two-year residency in Japan, his stay in Ireland and his walks along the pilgrim routes of England, France, Spain and Turkey have amplified his love
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