Painters Online

16 OCTOBER 2020 LP Open  Royal Talens Award Yoko Archer Ageless , mixed media, 11¾ x 16½in. (30 x 42cm). Originally from Japan, Yoko has painted in watercolour for six years. She attends part-time classes and takes courses at Edinburgh University and Leith School of Art. ‘I had almost given up on watercolour, as I found it to be an unforgiving medium. I settled on the idea of not worrying too much about achieving transparency; I just kept painting and experimenting, and remembered that we also find muddy colours in nature! I enjoy mixed-media work as it makes more impact on the watercolour. ‘I spotted these flowers in a pot in my garden on a chilly November night. Although the main plant was withering, small pink flowers were blooming; they seemed ageless. In one hour, I sketched what I felt on A5 paper. To capture the impact of the flowers and leaves drying out, I used oil pastel on watercolour.’  Leisure Painter Highly Commended Award Neil Kear Out to Pasture , oil, 10½ x 15¼in. (27 x 39cm)  Clairefontaine Award Lynne Wootton Tony , oil, 13½ x 10¼in. (34 x 26cm). ‘This is my husband, Tony and the painting, which is an oil on board, was completed from a photo taken on the beach at Fraisthorpe, near Bridlington.  It started as a detailed, gridded pencil drawing which I then underpainted to establish the good contrast between the strong sunlight and the dark shadows. There is also a bit of underlighting from reflected light off the sea and sand. ‘Tony has a well lived-in face with lots of character, which I tried to capture.’ ‚ St Cuthberts Mill Awards Emma Price Sanderlings at High Tide, Hartlepool , watercolour, 10¼ x 14¼in. (26 x 36cm). Emma is an amateur artist from Hartlepool, who takes her inspiration from local wildlife. ‘It’s perhaps not the prettiest area, but there is beauty here – you just have to look a bit sideways. ‘In winter, the coast is home to wading birds that migrate from the Arctic, like these tiny sanderlings. There’s a spot on the beach that remains dry at high tide; the birds go there to rest and preen while they wait for the next feeding opportunity. I saw this little group one day, loved the look of the silvery birds in the cool morning light by a relatively calm sea, and took photos and notes. When I got home, I painted this fairly quickly – it wasn’t really planned, I just found poses I liked and painted them without any preparatory drawing so it didn’t look like a straight copy of a photograph. I kept to five colours so that the painting stayed harmonious; fortunately, it seemed to work. It’s a strange coincidence that a painting of north-east seabirds won a St Cuthberts award – he lived in Northumbria and may have known these birds’ ancestors.’  Winston Oh Award Sue Denny Azure Window , acrylic, 15¼ x 11½in. (39 x 29cm) Open LP10 12-17 TALP_f.indd 16 19/08/2020 15:17