Author Archives: jonathanretallickart

At the beginning of this new academic year I got started with my most ambitious painting yet. Measuring 220 x 180cm this canvas is the largest I have ever painted. It came into my life as a reject from another student’s abandoned portfolio. I took it under my wing, re-stretched it and over a periodContinue reading “220X180”

Smooth canvases open up many doorways in fluid mark-making. My plan of attack is to layer up many transparent layers to allow the physical properties of the paint to be shown off to best effect. One thing about my cliche verre images is that I felt they were sometimes quite visually flat and monochromatic. NothingContinue reading “The Images”

I bought good quality, deep edge stretcher bars, enough to make 30 canvases and set about stretching and priming them over the summer months. Summer was time to explore and observe landscape afresh without the confines of deadlines and a working schedule. This opened me up to taking long walks around the neighbouring countryside withContinue reading “The Saga Continues…”

The tension I put into stretching each canvas was bordering on too tight when, I applied the first layer of primer on the surfaces. The back supports nearly bowed to snap. They creaked for an hour under the pressure – It was nerve wracking. Fortunately the supports returned to their original state when the layersContinue reading “Priming Saga”

Week Eleven 14 April 2019 After spending some time contemplating last week’s painting work , and realising they wouldn’t be dry enough to paint on this week, I had a new plan! I would continue the paintings after the Easter break but for now I spent my time attempting to finesse canvas priming. I decidedContinue reading “Hidden Beauty”

Week 10 Continuing from Week Six, ‘Hope Seeps Through’ I purposefully created layers on newly prepared canvases in order to layer add a white layer and then see what happens when I add colour again. Building up thin layers gradually. I have been interested in the ways in which overlaying thin, transparent paint effects theContinue reading “Natural Flow”

31 March 2019 Week Nine Reinvigorated by last week’s discovery I was yet again mentally and physically geared up for more painting. I had recharged my artistic force. Although I had a small break from painting, I was able to spend more time seeing and experimenting elsewhere. I spent some time stretching canvas on someContinue reading “Strange Lights”

24 March 2019 Week Eight I am incredibly excited about a new discovery of mine. Over my week ‘off painting’, I confined myself to the print rooms in the School of Art. I am after all taking printmaking! Due to unforeseen circumstances I found myself playing around with some photography chemicals and film. I haveContinue reading “New Ground”

17 March 2019 Week Seven This week met with great struggle. I felt blocked which hasn’t happened often for me but when it happens I usually know what action to take. Drastic action! I took all of my work off the walls and turned all canvases away from my destructively judgemental eyes. I was toContinue reading “Critical Eyes”

10 March 2019 Week Six The experiments continued. Painting on canvas, this time working larger, 80 x 80cm up to 120 x 120cm. I was eager to work larger. I had been working on my lap or a table previously, which is quite unusual for me, I usually prefer working at an easel, but theseContinue reading “Hope Seeps Through”