Work of Adrian Swales
Sat/Sun 3rd May to 29th Jun 11am-5pm. Open during the week by appointment.
Adrian Swales – Artist Statement:
I was born in Hull in 1945, completed a foundation year at Hull Art School and studied for my degree at Brighton Art College in 1964-67. I moved to Newcastle in 1973 and have been an oil painting restorer for 40 years, whilst still pursuing my painting career.
In my work, I am interested in the tension between realism and abstraction. The landscapes, which are developments from my sketchbooks, develop the composition to heighten the dramatic effect and its abstract qualities.
In the figure paintings I am still trying to develop dynamic compositions but also explore the relationships between individuals as one might find in a Piero della Francesco. So, I’m not trying to render a faithful representation of the subject but turning the original inspiration into a painting that is valid as an object in itself. Being an oil painting restorer I am aware of the surfaces of paintings, which influences my own work.
A review of Adrian’s work by John Cobb, Theatre sans Frontieres
Adrian is the magician of landscape as architecture. He entices us with well thought out compositions including form, pattern and figures set out like an intriguing chess problem. With a fine eye for Post impressionist colour and strong bold sense of design, Adrian has built himself a place as one of the most adept interpreters of landscape, atmosphere and the complex choreography of place. His choice of vibrant colour is always surprising, bringing a fresh sometimes startling view to familiar curves in the landscape. Solitary figures are often well placed to enliven a sense of movement in scenes that may remind us of Cezanne’s flat painterly surfaces. One could say that Adrian’s choice of point of view and fine sense of composition often make for a strong picture, before any handling of paint and colour are brought into play. His wild and tempestuous skyscapes, with delicious sunsets are a further string to his bow in isolating cloud, atmosphere and evening light as choices for subject matter worthy of Constables sketches.
