Linda Rees Exhibition Catalogue 'Harvest' at Bletherston Church - September 2019

HARVEST PAINTINGS BY LINDA REES BLETHERSTON CHURCH Thursday 26th to Saturday 28th September 2019

HARVEST PAINTINGS BY LINDA REES BLETHERSTON CHURCH Thursday 26th to Saturday 28th September 2019

Catalogue of Paintings

First published in Great Britain in 2019 by Linda Rees Artist Archive 24 Merlins Avenue Haverfordwest Pembrokeshire SA61 1JS

Text Narrative: Copyright Š Linda Rees / Linda Rees Artist Archive The rights of Linda Rees and the Linda Rees Artist Archive to be identified as the Authors of this Work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of the text may be repoduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the Publisher in writing.

The Linda Rees Artist Archive is the repository for the archive of Linda Rees’ artistic output. The ongoing objective of the Archive is to record the work of Linda Rees.

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Contents

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HARVEST – an introduction

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Painting Process

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Exhibition Poster

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Catalogue of Exhibited Works

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Catalogue of Reserve Works

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Work in Progress

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Pictures at an Exhibition

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HARVEST Like many people learning to paint, I took what was around me – not landscapes, but fruit and vegetables from the kitchen, with the odd jug or bowl thrown in. I was looking for subjects which had form, so that I could try to convey the weight of things, but I am particularly interested in the shapes and shadows between objects. I want the viewer to feel that they could put their hands in, and feel the shapes.

All my paintings are done in traditional oil paint, on linen canvas. I start with a sketch on paper, just putting in the shadows to make sure that there is a sense of balance. I then transfer the sketch, choosing a canvas which only just contains the image. My emphasis is completely on the subject. It takes several sessions, over at least two or three weeks to build up thin layers of colour, each having to dry enough before more paint can be applied. This is particularly noticeable in the coloured garlic paintings, where I’ve tried to convey the ‘bruised’ appearance of the garlic cloves.

Other ‘subjects’ are given a hard, shiny skin, or as with pears, softer highlights – these all suggest how the light lands on different surfaces.

It takes six months for a finished painting to dry enough before it can be varnished.

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Where paintings have no colour at all, just white with many shades of grey/brown, these are known as ‘grisaille’ (pronounced as in Versailles) works.

Often seen in early Netherland church works, on the outside of folding alter screens, it was felt that the lack of colour conveyed a more sober, serious approach to church art, especially during Lent, and provided a vivid contrast with the highly coloured works inside the altarpieces, which would be displayed open, in all their glory, at Easter.

My theoretical knowledge of grisaille works came, however, after I started producing them, and it is how I start all my paintings, as it is important to me that the balance of form is there right from the beginning.

All of my paintings have a strong directional light. I paint in a north-facing studio, with Classic FM in the background!

Linda Rees September 2019

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Painting Process My ‘subject’ is on a stand, at about eye level. The first stage is to draw the shapes, quite freely, without too much detail. Then, with a brush apply some raw umber paint (because it’s a colour that will be dry by the next day). The light in my studio is from the right, so the darks are on the left. Each object has its own shape, and there also cast shadows, where one shape casts a shadow on another. Using a turps substitute and a cloth, I ‘sweep’ to get more fluid shapes, and to graduate the shadows. I usually mark in where the highlights go. This is a form of visual ‘note taking’, important when the ‘subject’ could well collapse into a soggy pile in a week or so!

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The next day, using tracing paper, I transfer the outline to a canvas. I like my subjects to fill the canvas, or might just select a part of the initial drawing, so the work appears ‘cropped’. Then I put in the shadows using raw umber again, but much more carefully. Carrying on with this, and using white for highlights leads to a grisailles stage.

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On day three I can start the colour. I work in very thin layers, often with tiny amounts of paint, adjusting shadows and highlights as I go along.

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Exhibition Poster

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Catalogue of Exhibited Works

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Apples in a Wooden Dish – Grisaille 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

Apples in a Wooden Dish 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

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Apples and Leaves on a Branch – Grisaille 40 x 40 cm Oil on Linen

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Pears, Apples and Pomegranates in Wooden Bowl – Grisaille 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

Pears, Apples and Pomegranates in Wooden Bowl 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

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Four Pears 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

Three Pears - Long Stalks 46 x 38 cm Oil on Linen 21

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Four Pears Three Bowls 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Five Satsumas and Three Bowls 30 x 26 cm Oil on Linen

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Four Pomegranates 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Two Physalis 30 x 26 cm Oil on Linen

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Physalis in a Wooden Dish 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

Peppers, Onions, Apples, Satsumas and Garlic in Wooden Dish 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

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Grisaille Tomatoes – Framed 20 x 20 cm (unframed) Oil on Linen

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Beef Tomato 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Three Beef Tomatoes on a Board 46 x 38 cm Oil on Linen

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Tomatoes on a Stem - Framed 20 x 20 cm (unframed) Oil on Linen

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Four Green Peppers and Bowl 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Four Red Peppers and Bowl 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Inside Red Peppers 40 x 40 cm Oil on Linen

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Three Red Peppers – Square 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Three Red Peppers 46 x 38 cm Oil on Linen

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Green, Yellow and Orange Peppers in a Wooden Dish 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

Courgettes in a Wooden Bowl 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

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Pumpkin, Dried Sweetcorn and Lotus Heads 20 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

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Pumpkin, Dried Sweetcorn and Lotus Heads in Wooden Dish 50 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

Pumpkins and Dried Lotus Heads 50 x 20 cms Oil on Linen

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Four Squash 40 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Three Squash - Framed 30 x 24 cm (unframed) Oil on Linen

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Two Pumpkins No. 1 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Two Pumpkins No. 2 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Bunch of Four Garlic and String 46 x 38 cm Oil on Linen

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Three Garlic – Grisaille 40 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Six Red Onions 40 x 40 cm Oil on Linen

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Seven Red Onions 40 x 40 cm Oil on Linen

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Six Brown Onions – Framed 40 x 30 cm (unframed) Oil on Linen

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Five Brown Onions 40 x 40 cm Oil on Linen

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Falling Brown Onions - Framed 14 x 18 cm (unframed) Oil on Linen

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Four Onion Line-up 50 x 20 cms Oil on Linen

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Three Cobs of Corn 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Two Cobs of Corn 46 x 38 cm Oil on Linen

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Catalogue of Reserve Works

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Apples on a Stem – Grisaille 20 x 20 cm Oil on Linen

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Garlic Bulbs and Cloves - Grisaille No. 1 40 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Garlic Bulbs and Cloves - Grisaille No. 2 46 x 38 cm Oil on Linen

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Bowl of Red Onions 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Three Red Onions and Bowl 30 x 30 cm Oil on Linen

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Six Brown Onions 46 x 38cm Oil on Linen

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Falling Egg Shells No. 1 - Framed 20 x 20 cm (unframed) Oil on Linen

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Falling Egg Shells No. 2 - Framed 19 x 24 cm Oil on Linen

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Monkey Nuts and Shells 30 x 30 Oil on Linen

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Work In Progress

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Pictures at an Exhibition

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The following photographs were taken of the art works, in situ, within Bletherston Church.

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