Author Archives: jonathanretallickart

Illustration was interesting for me. Over the years leading up to university, my work had mainly been illustrative in one way or another. I captured the mental journey after losing a close friend. It was a visual diary of my life, each picture has its own symbolic meaning. I was unable to properly vocalise myContinue reading “Illustration Continued”

I spent a bit of time this week studying the surfaces of both prime and unprimed canvases as well as old and new paintings. The current surface is so smooth that to the naked eye it would seem like a glossy finish. In order to properly compare the difference between smooth and rough canvases IContinue reading “Looking Back – Seeing Forward”

I’ve used some days this week to get out work I did before university. It is important for writing my dissertation that I look back at the entirety of my artistic career in order to gain a bit of perspective and also see where current themes and ideas may have had their origins. My workContinue reading “Isolation Week Four”

I finished stretching all 75 of the large batch of canvases. Stretching the larger, 30x30cm, canvases was far more of a chore but thankfully I had learn to pace myself and just attempted a few a day. I’m unlikely to focus on priming these fully in the near future as my work space in theContinue reading “Isolation Week Three”

Spring has come, and with it the sun. Humidity, heat, or a combination of the two have wreaked havoc with both my recently prepared canvases and the ones I started in the Winter. Saggy surfaces are far from a pleasure to work on as many of you painters would agree! I have spent the wholeContinue reading “Isolation Week Two”

A week has passed since the announcement from Boris Johnson that the country is to be on lockdown. I have so far had two online tutorials, one via sms, the other was a video chat. The latter being rather easier! I was feeling on top of all my work and doing my utmost best toContinue reading “Isolation Week One”

My original plan for the next blog post was to write about the lead up to the end of degree exhibition. Unfortunately the nature of the exhibition has changed dramatically due to the current world health situation. It is looking very much like the show will be held either online or sometime in the uncertainContinue reading “Impending Lockdown”

At this stage of the degree experimentation has nearly completely stopped. This time now is to bring a body of work together that is of consistent high quality and works together well as a whole. Critical analysis of my paintings now is a key part of development. I have dedicated time to reflect on myContinue reading “Seeing”