International Artist Magazine
Feature Article - Aug-Sept '02: "Commissions in the Landscape"

Since the day I began painting some 20 years ago, I have been moved to paint by seemingly random inspiration. The Muses work in a mysterious and unpredictable way, and I have to pay attention. Without their inspiration, painting is a very difficult thing to do.

Originally, the countryside around my home provided material for my work, though I have never been an artist to focus on just one subject. I took to traveling and exhibiting across Canada and the US, and I simply painted the things I saw along the way. On those road trips alone, from the Atlantic to the Pacific and from the lakes of Northern Ontario to the deserts of Central Mexico, I found material and inspiration enough for ten lifetimes. However, as I assumed the role of full-time practitioner of this capricious yet fulfilling discipline, commissioned works have become a permanent part of the landscape. Commission, often viewed as incompatible with the pursuit of "True Art", have been an essential part of my career. They were especially helpful during those early, perhaps not- quite-so starving artist years. Although commissions are maligned by some artists as an essential evil, I have found that as long as work does not consist exclusively of commissions (which, one year, almost was the case), they can be a welcome anchor in otherwise unpredictable waters. Additionally, because painting is a decidedly solitary pastime, commissions are an opportunity to interact with those people most appreciative of one’s work. Since art is an essential form of communicating, I see commissions as just another aspect of the painting process.

'Hinterlands' - Acrylic on Canvas - 12" x 33½"

Generally, a commission will come about in one of two ways: as a request for something similar to a piece already spoken for, or more interestingly, as the result of a rambling conversation during which individual fascinations and shared experiences emerge. This process is quite intriguing to me because a work then becomes something of a collaborative effort, itself a shared experience. Because collectors often recognize that I have a greater passion for specific subjects, I have more recently been asked to present ideas for images that I have wanted to tackle. Invariably, as the images are viewed (usually just slides of my travels to begin with). we will stumble on one or two specific images that appeal to both parties. The resulting stories and recollections then lead to new ideas or perhaps interpretations of these images and the process evolves.

Making the commission work

Once a couple of images are chosen, the next stage is to work up 6" x 10" (15 x 25cm) colour sketches. The finished piece may vary a great deal from these initial concepts, but much of the colour and composition is worked out at this point so the client can get a general feeling for the commissioned work. This generally prevents large scale reworking of the actual painting when it’s finished.

The process of creating a painting, though is very much an open-ended one. Acrylics allow areas to he repainted numerous times without having to worry so much about overworking. Only highlights and large gradated areas have to be treated with special care. My chosen medium’s flexibility allows ideas to spring to mind as the piece progresses. In addition, a painting often seems to have a mind of it’s own, and I can respond accordingly. I feel there is no fixed methodology on composition and even the most fundamental rules can on occasion, be broken. The latitude to pursue this inspiration when it occurs is important, even in a commissioned work.

Part of the emotion of painting is sharing one’s art with other people: art, after all, is communication and self-expression. It has also been my way of experiencing the world around me, and I feel as though I do not really know a place until I have pointed it, recreated its forms, shapes and textures on the surface of a canvas. This for me, is a way of connecting with the world and. perhaps, an attempt to find my place in it. Being able to share this journey with other artists and with the people who enjoy my work is increasingly important to me. The commissioned work, in certain forms, can be a natural extension of this in a way in which painter and patron can, in a sense, create a true work of art together.

Deciding on the subject

After meeting and chatting with the couple who commissioned the work, two things were decided upon quite quickly: first, that this painting would be a landscape, and second, that it would be four by six feet in size. This was an opportunity for me to work in an entirely new, large format, something I had wanted to do for some time. Because of the time involved in a painting this size, however, it would require a commission to make it feasible.

We had talked, in part, about ancestry and history, and in particular, English history. I had suggested a number of locations as possible subject matter. Hadrian’s Wall, an especially intriguing place built by the Romans in the first century, was among them. From an artistic point of view, the potential of this appealed to the couple generality, but to one of them in particular there was a special interest: the Eastern Terminus of Hadrian’s wall was in his childhood home, a little town near Newcastle, perhaps not surprisingly named Wallsend. This was to be the painting.

After setting out the basic composition of the piece, I thought the lighting would be of particular importance. I eventually chose to use the same back-lit effect as a piece they had both enjoyed and yet missed purchasing when it had sold quickly at one of my shows some months before.

As it happens most years I travel home to see my family in Yorkshire. This time I planned a side trip North to the border between England and Scotland to collect some reference material, specifically flora appropriate to the time of year. A great many of my paintings are composite images:

Characteristic of a place rather than a literal transition. For historical subject matter, though, I prefer to be reasonably faithful to the location. Lighting, foliage and other incidentais such as, in this case, a pheasant, butterfly and flooded fields provide ample freedom to play with the character of a piece.