http://www.painters-online.co.uk artistApril 2016 19
B
y exploring the changing aspects of micro/
macrocosms, Roger St Barbe shows an integral
connection between flowers and their natural
environment. Intrigue is created by heightening
tonal or colour relationships: ‘I try to make every tiny
landscape a sort of parallel world with its own wholeness,’ he
says. He experimented with all kinds of printmaking but
etching was always his favourite because it fused his passion
between drawing and nature.Influences
Influenced by 20th-century painters from the Slade and
Camberwell schools, Roger adopted their philosophy of
looking at reality objectively. He admires the restless energy
of Dick Lee’s paintings and Francis Hoyland. ‘Patrick Symons
was, on the face of it, an extremely objective measurer but
his work is actually full of passion for both art and the
external world. One vital thing he said to me was that when
you draw a tree you're not copying a tree but creating a new
one out of ink and paper.’
Roger began etching seriously in 1982; his small etchings of
preferred spots have become the forerunners of his work inDevon, Dorset and Cornwall today. Over the last decade
Roger has developed a passion for butterflies. ‘I nearly
always draw from life but I do refer to my own photographs
when drawing a butterfly or processing a plate.’ He uses
sketchbooks, for written notes as much as pencil drawings. ‘I
enjoy the process of drawing on the plate best, so
sometimes a plate will wait two years before I etch it with
acid. I become involved in the wild flower microcosms and
have to remind myself to include enough sky.’The plates
Zinc and copper plates are used for the etching process, the
former bites more easily but the latter produces a cleaner
line. ‘Jet plate with its acid-resistant back makes the best
zinc plates, although zinc sheets bought online are much
cheaper.’ The plate is coated with a special black wax ground,
through which the image is drawn back-to-front using a
needle. ‘I used Rhinds hard ground for years but I was bad
at applying it. I have now switched to Charbonnel Lamour
black liquid etching ground, which can be applied with a flat
soft brush and is especially suitable for fine and precise
work.IN CO N V E R S ATION
Caroline Saunders talks to a printmaker who combines
traditional etching processes with aquatint and watercolour to
produce images with a unique pastoral appeal
Roger St Barbe
Silver-Washed Fritillary, etching, aquatint and watercolour, 8^1 ⁄ 4 8in (21 20cm).
The butterfly is getting a bit old and faded, hence the translucent near wing