Artists & Illustrators - UK (2020-04)

COMPOSITION

actual subject is largely immaterial

• it is the passages of paint that
  I ultimately apply that will make the
  painting work or not.
  The key to achieving such a result
  (or at least having a chance of doing
  so) is to take the many different
  elements that are present in reality
  and link them together to create a
  relatively small number of
  interconnecting random shapes.
  This not only simplifies the subject
  but also makes it stronger by avoiding
  the details that may distract the eye.
  Each part of the painting should be
  interesting to an extent, but perhaps
  not too interesting. This is where an
  initial sketch can help. Many painters
  avoid sketching before painting as
  they see it as an unnecessary waste
  of time, yet I find this is never the
  case. Is it not better to think and plan
  with a pencil that can easily be
  erased and altered rather than start
  straight in with the paint and perhaps
  realise halfway though that a different
  approach would have been better?

SIMPLIFYING A SUBJECT
In my photograph, there is a huge
amount of detail in the buildings on
the far bank of the river – as much as

is visible on the bridge. However,

when looking at the scene in reality,

I was very aware that the buildings

were a considerable distance behind

the bridge and so appeared to be

much less important. In the sketch for

example I merely showed the bulk of

the group of buildings with just an

indication of the perspective lines.

This is the area where photographs

must be treated with caution.

A camera simply records everything

that is in front of it. It will not help you

be discerning and, unless you use a

shallow focus, it can’t show depth.

Of course, a painting also has no

actual depth – it is a flat sheet of

paper, after all – but we can create

the illusion of depth upon it by using

aerial perspective [see the box on

the right].

The problem with aerial perspective

is that, in reality and especially on

a bright day, it only really becomes

apparent at quite a considerable

distance but if we use these effects

of aerial perspective in the painting,

irrespective of whether we can

actually see them the suggestion

of depth is enhanced.

In my painting, I also greatly

reduced the tonal strength of the dark

lines of the railings and riverside

wall, as they created an unwelcome

division between the foregroundand

the further parts of the subject.

In place of this, I allowed

the bridge tower to blend

with the river and

ultimately down to the

foreground, creating one

large light area, further

simplified by not

attempting to indicate

the complex cobbles.

I also spotted a few odditieswhen

comparing my sketch to the original

scene: I clearly remember how

important the flagpole to theleftwas

to me, yet it is barely discerniblein

the photo. It was the same forthe

vehicles on the bridge – I noticed

them much more than the photo

would suggest.

BUILDING ON THE SKETCH

When I painted the subject inthe

studio, I tried to retain and even

emphasise the simplicity of the

sketch. In the sketch I had movedthe

left foreground railing and shrubarea

to allow it to link with the lefttree,

whereas in the painting I madea

more obvious connection between

Top tip

A initial sketch will

save much more time

than it takes as it

helps you focus on

your priorities

TOP LEFT Grahame’s

original sketch

made in situ

TOP RIGHT A photo

of the Tower Bridge

painting in progress

Theflagpoleand

trafficweremore

definedinmydrawing

Thedistantbuildings

weredrawnlarger

andmoredetailed

Nodetailrecorded

Thewallwasmovedto inthecobbles

connectwiththetree