A short break (except for LAOTY)

I'm currently feeling absolutely inundated with a very long "to do" list of tasks which have been on the back burner for far too long

So, consequently, I'm taking a short break from "Making A Mark" - EXCEPT for my weekly reviews of Landscape Artist of the Year which will still appear each week.

You never know by the time I come back I may have sorted out the email subscription issue!

Review: Episode 5 of Landscape Artist of the Year Series 9 (2024) - Liverpool Three Graces

This is my penultimate Heat Review of Series 9 of Landscape Artist of the Year . One more to go and then it will be the semi-finals! This week's fifth heat came from Pier Head in Liverpool.

• On one side of the Pods were the Three Graces - very large and historic buildings associated with Liverpool's past. 
• On the other side was the River Mersey and the Mersey Ferries Terminal - which attracted a lot of the wildcard artists.

Heat Paintings lined up
in front of the former offices of the Port of Liverpool Building

Episode 5: Liverpool - The Three Graces

This is my review of the fifth episode of the 9th series of Landscape Artist of the Year 2024.  As regular readers will know by now, it considers:

• the location and weather
• the artists' profiles
• themes arising during the episode
• judges decision-making
• who was shortlisted and who won.

Location and Weather

Subject Matter: Three large buildings for the pod artists
(note the pods on extreme right of Pier Head)
wildcards could choose the buildings
OR turn towards the Mersey Ferries Terminal, the River Mersey and the Ferries

This week's heat was on the Liverpool Waterfront at Pier Head - adjacent to:

• The Three Graces at Pier Head (from left to right)
• the Royal Liver Building (1908-11) - one of the first buildings in the world to be built using reinforced concrete. It's a landmark building in Liverpool and is famed for the two Liver Birds which standing on top of the two cupola watching over land and sea
• the Cunard Building (1914-16) - this is a mix of Italian Renaissance and Greek Revival styles. It used to be home home to Cunard's passenger facilities for trans-Atlantic journeys departing from Liverpool. 
• the Port of Liverpool Building (1904-1907) - formerly the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board Offices, more commonly known as the Dock Office is a Grade II* listed building. It was the first big building on Pier Head and was constructed with a reinforced concrete frame clad in Portland Stone
• The statue of the Beatles on Pier Head
• The Gerry Marsden Terminal at Pier Head of the Mersey Ferries which was renamed in 2022 in honour of Gerry Marsden who made "Ferry across the Mersey" famous.

The Three Graces are part of what is Liverpool's FORMER UNESCO designated World Heritage site, the Maritime Mercantile City.  

Unfortunately, back in 2021, the status was removed after rather too many buildings of little architectural merit and no connection to the port were also built along the waterfront (see extreme right of the above image - which were part of the last heat). (see Unesco strips Liverpool of its world heritage status and World Heritage Committee deletes Liverpool - Maritime Mercantile City from UNESCO’s World Heritage List)

Weather 

It was a very hot day - and yet again the pods are out in the sunshine. The artists get the benefit of fans but there is absolutely no shade. 

• I'm not quite sure how the legal requirements for taking care of the health and wellbeing of the participants allows for no shade at all on a very hot and sunny day. 
• Or maybe there is shade and I can't see it? I know the top of the pod is opaque. It would be nice to know it contains a strong UV filter. Thing is when I look at the programme all I can see is artists in pods in full sun (i.e. there are shadows from items on the floor of the pod) who are complaining about how hot it is. I know they put fans in the pods - but the problem with fans is they don't stop heatstroke or UV.

If I was in a pod with no shade on a hot day I'd walk out - or insist they sorted out some shade for me.

Pods on pier head on a very hot day with no shade.

The other problem with painting in bright sunlight is you cannot see colour properly. If you're also looking at white buildings, it becomes a bit like snow blindness.

What they need is a venetian blind system which the artist can control to cover the pod if required. Alternatively the equivalent of an upright sunshade within the pod - big enough for artist and painting.

So far as the wildcards are concerned, it's entirely up to them how they position themselves and whether they bring any shade with them. I'm thinking those tents fulfil lots of purposes from keeping you dry to providing shade....  See the winner of the wildcards to see how she handled it (below)

Artists' Profiles

I'm beginning to think that the cameras which record the artists work must have stopped working - because we have LOST the official listing (which is a great pity) of:

• the correct spelling of every artist's name
• links to their social media sites
• a video of how they created their landscape artwork

It stops after Heat 3.

These are the artists who painted Pier Head in Episode 5

Below links to the artist's website is embedded in their name - if they have one.

• Ruqayya Aftab  - a fine art student from Birmingham. No social media so far as I can see. Her submission was of a woodcut of a market in Pakistan.
• Penny Bearman (Instagram) - from Deal in Kent. She considers herself to be an impressionist and likes to produce atmospheric landscapes and dramatic cloudscapes. 
• Mark Bonnello  (Instagram) - an HGV driver living in County Antrim. He's a self taught painter who works mostly in oils. He has been taking his painting seriously since 2018 and has exhibited at the RUA, the RSMA and the ROI and lists his smaller works on his website.
• Chris Dorning (Instagram) - a mixed media artist from Cumbria. He is a professional mural artist and likes painting on a bright red ground.
• Kerry Doyland (Instagram) - from Essex. She qualified as an architectural designer in the 1980’s and started her own design company. She was awarded British Designer of the Year and Freedom of the City of London for her work in this field. She now paints in acrylics. Her submission painting was both beautiful and sad - of a terrace at a hotel in Venice which she visited after she lost her husband to Covid.

Below Kerry is seen with a camera hanging over her shoulder - should anybody be under any illusion as to what it's actually like for the artists in the pods!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kerry Doyland (@kerrydoyland)

• Quentin Martin (Instagram) - a British architectural designer, artist and art tutor who enjoys painting. Working mostly in oils, his subjects mainly include landscapes. Produced en plein air, the work is as much about the journey, in search of the subject, as it is the subject itself. He has exhibited widely including many open exhibitions.
• Ciaran Meister (Instagram) - a multidisciplinary artist, musician and filmmaker living and working in Wicklow, Ireland. He paints rural scenes with broad flat vertical strokes. His practice is concerned with mark-making and explorations of time and memory.

Liverpudlians are sound. Stopping and saying nice things about my painting in the best accent was a highlight.

If you’re thinking of entering @artistoftheyear definitely do. It’s a cool experience and impressive to see how such a big production comes together on the day.

• Monica Popham (Instagram) - a digital media manager and landscape artist and illustrator from Gibraltar. Currently based in Guildford. The main body of her work focuses on the tangible quality of sunlight, and how it interacts with the architecture in Gibraltar and other Mediterranean towns. 
• HIGHLY RECOMMENDED READ This is her blog post about applying for LAOTY and then appearing in the series. in which you can see a lot more paintings of Liverpool which she produced while waiting to know which location her pod would be in.

There were several weeks between the call and my heat, so I set out to practice as much as possible. There were lots of emails and calls during this time with an extensive artist questionnaire all about my background, painting technique and personality.

We were told our location was along the Liverpool waterfront so after looking on google maps, I assumed it was going to be either the Albert Docks, The Liver Building or the Liverpool Museum. After studying the blogs of previous episodes on Making a Mark (which I suggest any artist who is going on the programme to do), I practiced painting in the 4 hour window.

As always I'm hugely appreciative of those who give my blog and reviews a mention! 

Themes

The problems of painting on a hot day

Here's some of the things that happen to artists / painters on a hot day.

Review: The 6th John Ruskin Prize

Yesterday I went to the exhibition for The 6th John Ruskin Prize at Trinity Buoy Wharf - and I was VERY impressed! I HIGHLY RECOMMEND paying this a visit if you like artwork which has been made by thoughtful artists who make you think!

Below you can find out about:

• what is the John Ruskin Prize
• why it's worth a visit 
• how to see it
• who won the prizes on offer
• names of artists shortlisted for the exhibition

What is the John Ruskin Prize? (In a nutshell)

Selected from over 4000 entries, the final shortlist of 78 pieces from 68 artists, makers and innovators have been given a platform for the unseen to be seen and the unspoken to be heard. 

The John Ruskin Prize:

• is a multi-disciplinary biennial art prize in the UK
• was inaugurated in 2012 by The Guild of St. George and visual literacy charity, The Big Draw. 
• Entry is eligible for all artists, designers and makers - especially those whose artwork defies easy categorisation
• encourages entries in a wide array of media
• requires all submissions to respond to the theme of the biennial exhibition
• The judging panel consisted of Narinder Sagoo MBE, Cornelia Parker CBE RA, Bob and Roberta Smith RA, Gary Hill, Julian Stair OBE, Dr Rachel Dickinson and Jane Barnes.
• Organised and delivered by The Big Draw

The prize aims to reflect a central thread of John Ruskin’s thought; as a writer and artist - and as an impassioned critic, not only of art but of society and life - he believed that art has the power to reveal and celebrate universal truths, and that a good artist and maker in any medium should always be guided by that search.

The Prize used to hold an exhibition every other year - but the pandemic made sure that didn't happen so this is the first one since 2019.

These are links to the past exhibitions on The John Ruskin Prize website

• 2012 (1st) A New Look at Nature - https://www.ruskinprize.co.uk/the-1st-john-ruskin-prize
• 2014 (2nd) Recording Britain Now - https://www.ruskinprize.co.uk/the-2nd-john-ruskin-prize
• 2016 (3rd) Recording Britain Now (Society) - https://www.ruskinprize.co.uk/the-3rd-john-ruskin-prize
• 2017 (4th) Master of all Trades - https://www.ruskinprize.co.uk/the-4th-john-ruskin-prize
• 2019 (5th) Agent of Change - https://www.ruskinprize.co.uk/the-5th-john-ruskin-prize - this attracted over 1260 entries / 3000 artworks.

If after reading this review and/or visiting the exhibition you're interested in entering the next one - in 2025 for an exhibition in 2026 - you may like to read the Submission Guidelines & FAQS for the 6th Exhibition

The 6th John Ruskin Exhibition

In summary:

• Artists were invited to respond to the theme for the 6th John Ruskin Prize Exhibition in 2024, Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken. This could be explored and interpreted in many different ways. 
• Artwork for the 2024 Exhibition was selected from over 4000 entries from UK and international artists. You can see the Judges here.
• The final  shortlisted artworks of 78 pieces from 68 artists, makers and innovators can be seen at The Buoy Store, Trinity Buoy Wharf, until February 17th (more details below)

Entries were welcomed from artists, designers, architects and makers, at all stages of their careers. For the first time, entries were open to 

• the medium of photography 
• creatives across the globe (but only in respect of digital entries).

Why this exhibition is worth a visit

The 2024 John Ruskin Theme - Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken

The theme for the 6th John Ruskin Prize

One of the requirements of this exhibition is that ALL artworks must respond to the set theme. 

WHAT DO I NEED TO SUBMIT FOR THE JOHN RUSKIN PRIZE? 

Make sure your work responds to the theme, Seeing the Unseen, Hearing the Unspoken? Submission Guidelines and FAQs

The exhibition theme is a major characteristic of The John Ruskin Prize. 

• It's very much NOT just a "send us your artwork" exhibition. 
• Hence, by definition, it appeals to a certain type of artist who has no problem creating artwork based on a concept.

It also means that the exhibition can include artwork which comment on current or recent topical issues.

The standard of artwork in this exhibition is unusual. In terms of thoughtfulness, imagination and creativity, in my opinion, it far exceeds artwork typically seen in most open art exhibitions. 

RIP Robert Wade (1930 - 2024)

I've always really liked the Australian watercolour artist Robert Wade and I'm very sad to hear he has died. 

My first acquaintance with him was via one of his art instruction books. I found his book "Painting More Than The Eye Can See" (North Light Books 1990) to be an absolute revelation when I first encountered it in an art shop and needless to say it came home with me and now sits on a bookshelf just to the right of where I'm sitting. 

The books I used to find worked the best for me were written by people who were practising artists and teachers who emphasised the many different aspects of making art rather than the '5 easy steps' (I'm thinking of people like Charles Reid and Robert Wade). Art Instruction Books #1: different ways of learning | Making A Mark (January 2009)

He's also one of the people I used to follow on Facebook (this is his Facebook Page). He could always be relied on to post his work from time to time - even if latterly he was sharing posts he'd made in previous years.

Robert Wade in 2019

Below is the tribute by the Australian Watercolour Institute posted yesterday on its Faceboook Page following his recent death aged 94. Followed by my summary of his achievements based on his artist's page on the AWI website.

Vale Robert Vale OAM, our esteemed AWI member and acclaimed watercolourist. He will be profoundly missed.

In Robert’s words....

‘Watercolour captures each and every one who takes up the challenge to paint with this glorious and capricious medium. In painting the type of subjects that I do, my main concern is to create an expression of my emotion through light, form and movement. To be able to translate these feelings of excitement from my mix of imagination and reality, and then put them down on paper, takes much intense observation and interpretation. I call my process ‘Perceptive Observation,’ which I define as ‘seeing with your BRAIN, feeling with your EYES, interpreting with your HEART.’ Hopefully, this mix will eventually lead to a sensation that will flow through to the viewers of my work’.

Educated at Scott’s College, Robert A. Wade was introduced to watercolour at the age of six by his artist father but is otherwise self-taught, having undertaken no formal art training. He worked for forty years in the fields of advertising, screenprinting and graphic arts.

In 1986, he received the Advance Australia Medal for his contribution to Australian art and, in 2003, was awarded the Medal of The Order of Australia for his service to Watercolour as an artist, educator and promoter of Australian artists. He is the author of three instructional books, over 100 articles for art magazines and produced five films.

Art Prizes and Awards 

His profile page indicates that Wade exhibited with most of the world’s major Watercolour Societies, winning 

• 13 major awards in England, France and the United States, 
• as well as 120 awards in Australia. 

Among these are 

• the Cornelissen Award, Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours, London, 1983; 
• the Talens Award and Public Choice, Grand Prix International, Tregastel, France 1994; 
• Clay Kent Medal, International Society of Marine Painters, Washington, D.C., 1985; 
• eight major awards of the Salmagundi Club, New York; t
• he Emanuel Krueger Memorial Award,1988; 
• three Gold Medals for Watercolour at Camberwell Rotary Exhibition, 1981, 1985, 1987 and 
• the 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award, International Watercolour Society, Istanbul.

Collections

His artwork is represented worldwide in numerous public, corporate, and private collections, including 

• the Brooklyn Museum, New York; 
• the Royal Watercolour Society, London; 
• the Salmagundi Club, New York; 
• the Bank of Tokyo; 
• the National Museum of Watercolour, Mexico City and 
• the regional Galleries of Hamilton, Mornington Peninsula and Castlemaine, Victoria, and Grafton, New South Wales.

Memberships

Wade was elected a member of the Australian Watercolour Institute in 1983 and a Life Member in 2010. 

Other memberships included:

• A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, London, 
• a Fellow and former Council Member of the Victorian Artists’ Society and 
• a Life Member and Patron of the Watercolour Society of Victoria, 
• his signature memberships include 
• the American Watercolor Society, 
• the International Society of Marine Painters, United States, 
• the Pure Watercolour Society, United States, and 
• the Salmagundi Club, New York. 
• He is an Honorary Member of both 
• the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours, London, and 
• the Sociedad Mexicana de Acuarelistas, Mexico.

I always had the impression he inspired people all over the world. Indeed the last time I wrote about him was in connection with his friendship with Tony Bennett

Maybe the two friends will now be talking about painting in heaven!

A post on my Facebook Page

Review: Episode 4 of Landscape Artist of the Year Series 9 (2024) at Stonehaven Harbour

This is my review of the fourth episode of the 9th series of Landscape Artist of the Year 2024. 

Regular readers will be interested to know that in this one I'm calling out the short-listing decision and some other things that were said by the Judges. Maybe they were having an off day....

Heat 4 artists lined up with their paintings waiting for the shortlisting.

Those familiar with these posts will know by now, this review considers:

• the location and weather
• the artists' profiles
• themes arising during the episode
• judges decision-making
• who was shortlisted and who won.

Location and Weather

This week the artists pods were erected along the harbour wall in Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire, 15 miles south of Aberdeen, on the north east coast of Scotland

Pods on the Harbour Wall at Stonehaven

Stonehaven Harbour was designed by the famous engineer Robert Stephenson (grandfather of Robert Louis) to provide a safe place for the herring fishing boats to tie up and be protected from storms at sea- prior to the collapse of the fishing industry at Stonehaven.

It's primarily now a centre for leisure and tourism - which would account for the large number of visitors to the place where the artists were painting. I don't think I've ever seen so many people getting so close to the rear of the pods.

The pods were side on to the buildings and boats on the inner wall of the harbour

The pods on the harbour wall and the view of the twon against the hill

The weather for the fourth heat was a not untypical daynfor the area. It was overcast with thick cloud and then rained heavily part way through the afternoon.

The Artists

Artists in the Pods

Artists pictured on a break from painting

Below you can find profiles of the eight pod artists. Links in the names are to their websites

I would include the link to the videos of the works in progress of each of the paintings alongside the names of all the artists and the social media links they provided at the time - but it's not yet been published. Maybe the production team are having an off day too? Or maybe they're having problems with the videos?

This is the link for where it should be when they get round to it 

https://www.skyartsartistoftheyear.tv/landscape-artist-of-the-year/profiles/series-9/.

• Amy Auld (Instagram) - a baker from Newcastle upon Tyne. Born in south-east London to Scottish and Nigerian parents, she studied at the Royal Drawing School and later went onto do her BA in Fine Art at Newcastle University. (I couldn't find any website or social media sites). Her submission was very tropical.
• Andrew Barrowman ARBSA PS (Instagram | Facebook | YouTube) - an award winning landscape artist and art teacher who lives in Cornwall and teaches in St. Ives and Truro. He paints en plein air in all weathers and from his studio at Krowji Redruth. He worked in charcoal for this competition. I've written about him recently on FB in connection with the Annual Exhibition of the Pastel Society where he has three excellent artworks on show right now. He exhibits regularly with a number of art galleries and the Royal Birmingham Society of Artists, New English Art Club, The Drawing Society and The Pastel Society. I recommend all aspiring plein air painters to take a look at his YouTube Channel.

• Charlotte Corden (Instagram) - an Illustrator from Exeter. She has an MA in anthropology from University College London, and has studied at both the London Fine Art Studios and the Arts Student’s League, New York. Her submission
• Tony Griffin (Facebook) - a Scottish artist born in Glasgow in 1963. He worked as an electrician for many years in Scotland and Canada then started to study art for two years at the Ontario College of Art in Toronto and then studied at the Glasgow School of Art and got a BA Hons in Fine Art Painting. You can see his submission here
• James Leonard (Instagram) - a Welsh landscape artist based in the Vale of Glamorgan. He divides his time between painting the landscapes of Wales and the South of France. He studied Architecture and has specialised in its visualisation for more than a decade. He currently works as a Digital Agency Director.
• Kieran Meehan - a cartoonist who was born in London in 1952 and then moved with his family to Glasgow in 1963. From the age of 16, he worked in several advertising agencies and design studios before becoming a cartoonist for several leading magazines.
• Sophie Parr (Instagram | Facebook) - a contemporary landscape painter from Cheshire. She did her BA (Hons) degree Fine Art at Cheltenham and Gloucester College of Art. She teaches Art & Photography in a secondary school in Ellesmere Port.
• Daniel Roy Sharples (Instagram) - an art teacher from Lancashire. Born in 1988 he grew up in Preston before studying illustration at UCLAN and training as a teacher. He is now Head of Art & Design at a Lancashire secondary school, while also dedicating time to developing his own practice and presence as an emerging artist. He paints in oils and enjoys plein air painting. He's exhibited with the ROI and RBA. He was one of the wildcard artists at Blackpool - see his blog post about this.