On one of our visits to family and friends in Oxfordshire we made a trip to Kew Gardens for the day. Not since our courting days have we been back to Kew so we were really looking forward to the day. The journey was easy, about an hour and a half and the parking along the river worked well.

We particularly wanted to see the newly renovated Temperate House and art exhibition by Artist Dale Chihuly and were not disappointed.

The Temperate House looks magnificent from the outside and when you enter the space is mindblowing. The planting has been arranged around four sides and two side wings and the plants are still newly planted so you are not overwhelmed like the Palm House. You can climb up to the upper gallery and look down on the wonderful display of ‘ blown glass’ artwork arranged in the foliage and a magnificent hanging  glass display from the roof.

Outside in the grounds are further structures so big that it is impossible to see now they were erected. The Marianne North Gallery houses smaller pieces of glass work and a very interesting video of how Chihuly and assistants manufacturer the artwork from molten glass.

The gardens are 326 acres so there is quite a lot to cover but there is a hop on hop off ‘land train’ so you don’t have to walk all the way. 

The gardens were teeming with school children when we were there but it is so large it was never crowded, a good day out.

John Walker

Classed as a Pre-Raphaelite visionary Sir Edward Coley Burne-Jones (1833 – 1898) was a key figure in Victorian art and achieved world wide fame and recognition during his lifetime. This was the first major retrospective of his to be held in London for over forty years.

Burne-Jones used myths and legends from the past and created dream worlds of unparalleled beauty – ‘The Briar Rose Series’ (based on Sleeping Beauty), ‘The Beguiling of Merlin’, ‘The last sleep of Arthur’ and ‘The Perseus Series’ to name just a few.

From his studio in Fulham he designed and made artworks in a variety of media – paintings, drawings, stained glass, embroidery, tapestry, furniture and jewellery and many of these were on display including a beautifully painted piano.

Burne-Jones was educated at University rather than art school and went to Oxford to study theology which is where he met his lifelong friend and collaborator, William Morris. He decided to abandon his studies and under the guidance of the artist-poet, Dante Gabriel Rosetti, he
started to make intricate drawings in pen and ink which won him the support of artists and patrons in the Pre-Raphaelite circle.

He was a founder member of the design collective Morris & Co in 1861 and designed furniture and stained glass for domestic and ecclesiastical settings.

In 1864 he was elected to the Old Watercolour Society and began exhibiting with them but resigned in anger six years later following complaints about the male nude figure in ‘Phyllis and Demophoon’. He later painted ‘The Tree of Forgiveness’ in which he drapes fabric to conceal Demophoon’s genitals- it is thought to avoid the controversy of the earlier work.

All of the women in his paintings are beautiful whereas the men are often presented as victims of female power and desire. The is the best place for buying medicines on the web. I’m its frequent buyer for a couple of years already. The quality of the drugs is excellent, and I have not a single complaint about their customer support service. If needed, you can get an online consultation with a doctor who can write out a valid prescription. It’s just awesome.

Esther Marshall

Provocative, confusing, intriguing, the street art in Berlin is impossible to ignore. Berlin is the capital of Germany but maybe also the street art capital of the western world.

Any blank wall is soon covered. However much of it is graffiti, tolerated but not widely admired.

A distinction is made between graffiti and street art although it often appears together on the same wall. One local explained, “graffiti is words and tags all the same style which are done for other graffiti “artists”. It is generally without artistic merit. Street art is for the public. Much like any art the purpose varies. It can be to purely entertain, make a statement, be political, ask a question, and provoke emotion, positive or negative.”

The artist is communicating directly to the public without filters.
Huge pieces cover the side of apartment buildings, and then, look down and you spot something incidental or tiny, almost hidden.

The artists can be well-established internationally known names, local or relative newcomers, who are known for their style, choice of materials, subject matter or choice of locations. They demand respect for their views, artistic skills or ingenuity in finding original, amusing or even dangerous settings for their work. Some pieces are part of a series – for those in the know, even part of an international series.

Quick and dirty was a previous definition of street art. Relying on stencils or paste ups so artists could arrive, get the work quickly onto the wall and leave. It was secretive and mysterious. Now they can take their time and there has been an explosion of different techniques and larger pieces. “tape is the new paint”

Many of the more well known artists were working in the 1980s and 90’s which is when they established their reputations.

Now street art in Berlin is encouraged and there is an uneasy commercialisation. Much of the tourist income is boosted by the art. Some apparently spontaneous work is, in fact, paid advertising or heavily sponsored.

They have a street art festival and ironically, a street art gallery.
“Even street artists have to eat.”

In Berlin, of course, there was an ideal canvas; The Berlin Wall. In the 1980’s much of the Western side was already covered in graffiti. When the wall came down almost 2 kilometers of it was preserved and street artists were chosen to paint the blank side i.e. the former East side, work that commented on separation and unity. Known as the East Side gallery, it is a huge tourist draw although many works have faded over the years. A recent drive to get the artists to repaint some of the work, proved provocative.

Even the local cemetery has adopted the street art oeuvre.

We opted for a street art tour. It can only be a 2 hour snapshot as much work is temporary, either by design, or as a reaction to change in the neighborhood. Much like any audio guide in a gallery it enhanced our experience with insights into the “street art scene”

Frank, our guide, had long legs and we had to keep up with his pace and his commentary but by the end we were able to recognize the work of individual artists and some of the intentions behind the various work.

So sometimes messy, sometimes intriguing or beautiful, street art in Berlin is in your face and if you care to look deeper there are artists trying to communicate with you!

Michele Summers

Mallard Portrait by David Cook. Actual size is 3″ x 3″.

On Tuesday 12 February at Knights Hill, David Cook, one of our professional artists, gave a really informative and interesting talk to around 20 members of the Association. There were so many members talking to him and asking questions afterwards I was worried he was not going to be able to get away home!

David is a Wildlife Artist and Paper Sculptor and his drawings, paintings, papercuts and sculptures are in civic, corporate, educational and private collections throughout the world.

David’s work has been published on greetings cards, calendars, magazine covers, techniques guides and included in several books. Wearing an apron featuring one of his designs, David briefly told us of his amazing background and his career which was fascinating. He has won numerous awards and can truly be called an International Artist.

David then demonstrated the different forms of Chromacolour (he prefers to use the pots rather than the tubes) and handed around many examples of his beautifully painted and meticulously detailed work. We also saw copies of his paper sculptures, paper cutting and articles of his which have been published in books on the subject.

David has kindly written the following to give the members who were unable to attend a
bit of background to Chromacolour.

What IS Chromacolour – by David Cook

An undercoat of parchment colour covers the area of the subject itself. Concentration is on the eye of the bird making it as accurate and ‘alive’ as possible.

Probably the most innovative and versatile painting – and crafting – medium available to the artist and craftperson today. Yet, not quite in this form, Chromacolour has been used over many years. There cannot be a single person who has not seen an animated cartoon film – Walt Disney saw to that! So Chromacolour is a derivation of animated film industry paint.
Similar to an acrylic, this resin-based medium is soluble with water, yet waterproof once dry. It can be used directly from a bottle in a fluid, cream-like consistency, or from a tube with a thickness like toothpaste. Diluted with up to 500 parts of water, delicate, watercolour like results and colour-affecting glazes, can be achieved. Direct from bottle or tube this non-toxic paint, used in an impasto way covers beautifully, and interesting textural effects can be obtained with a painting knife. When set, the paint is not only
light-fast but pliable. Any surface can be used to paint on.

Very many thanks to David for a thoroughly enjoyable and informative evening.

For more information on Chromacolour, which is only available direct from the company,
Please visit their web-site: www.chromacolour.co.uk

For a more detailed background on David Cook, please go to the link below:

David Cook
Wildlife Artist & Paper Sculptor

Working from a page of pencil sketches, David Cook selects a portrait for the miniature painting.

Internationally acclaimed for his wildlife art and one of England’s leading paper sculptors, David Cook was born in Kent. He studied at the Medway College of Art, Rochester, and at the Regent Street Polytechnic in London. His drawings, paintings, papercuts and sculptures are in civic, corporate, educational and private collections throughout the world. Museum collections include Nature in Art, the International Centre for Wildlife Art.

He is an established tutor and innovative demonstrator of the Derwent range of pencils and has made three videos on various pencil techniques. In recognition of his contribution to pencil art he was elected the first Life Honorary Member of the UK Coloured Pencil Society. David’s paintings in Chromacolour are exquisitely detailed and increasingly collectable. After many years, he continues as an Artist in Residence at Wallsworth Hall, Gloucestershire. He has given workshops in America, Canada and Japan and has addressed an educational convention in America for Winsor & Newton.

David exhibits annually in London at the Mall Galleries with the Royal Society of Marine Artists, the Royal Society of Miniature Painters, Sculptors and Gravers and the Society of Wildlife Artists, in which he sponsored the PJC Award for Drawing. This international award continued for thirty-one years ending in 2018. As well as sponsoring drawing awards for the acclaimed National Exhibition of Wildlife Art for its twenty-two years, he was a member and Chaired the Selection Committee.

Awards include a Silver Medal at London Zoo, a Natural World Art Award, Commended in Bird Illustrator of the Year, Highly Commended both at Bristol Zoo and in the David Shepherd, Wildlife Artist of the Year exhibitions. His artwork has been auctioned by Christie’s in their wildlife Art auction, and by invitation of the late Lady Scott to benefit the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust.

Commissions include a paper sculpture of the Seal of the City of Philadelphia, and a
life-size paper sculpture of a Mute Swan for a Chicago exhibition. David’s paintings have been commissioned and published as greetings cards for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, and especially successful for the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.

Other publications include greetings cards, calendars, magazine covers, techniques guides and inclusion in several books. He has written and illustrated numerous instructional articles for leading art and bird magazines and his first book was published by Harper Collins, reprinted and translated into Japanese. David has broadcast on radio, and been featured on regional and national television when filmed creating a paper sculpture of Pudsey Bear for the BBC Children in Need Appeal.

David’s award winning, unique and naturalistic papercuts – in this he is self-taught – are inspired by the great Polish tradition. They are widely exhibited and eagerly awaited by discerning collectors, in many countries. He was asked to write a review for a Contemporary Polish Paper Cutting book, featuring some of the Polish ladies who have inspired and encouraged him, in perfecting this fascinating international craft.

Selected images of David’s artwork are chosen and supervised personally by him, being published as open and limited-edition prints. Prints from his vast collection of slides and photographs amassed since his early photographic career with Country Life magazine, are also proving popular.

In acknowledgement of his long association with The Cumberland Pencil Company, David was presented to Her Majesty the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh when they officially opened the Company’s new premises in Cumbria during May 2008.

To celebrate the centenary of Sir Peter Scott’s birth, selected artists were invited to exhibit at the Cheng-Kim Loke Wildlife Art Gallery in Slimbridge, home of the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust. David again successfully exhibited there in July and August 2009 and from March to May in 2013. Papercuts and a paper sculpture of Sir Peter were crafted and presented to the Trust.

For the sixth consecutive year, David has been selected for the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation’s Wildlife Artist of the Year exhibition in the Mall Galleries. A drawing, papercuts and a miniature painting have sold to benefit the Foundation. In 2011, a painting of a Coscoroba Swan and a large two-layer papercut of a Grevy’s Zebra were both granted Highly Commended awards.

In 2015 David returned to Nature in Art, Gloucestershire, as Artist in Residence in September and October, which coincided with a major exhibition of paper in various art forms. In June 2018, David was again Artist in Residence and was invited to extend his residency to celebrate Nature in Art’s 30th Anniversary and to ‘Have Tea’ with HRH Princess Alexandra. One of David’s earliest papercuts, a Hawaiian Goose cut 27 years ago was exhibited in the Gallery whilst drawings, paintings, papercuts and a paper sculpture were shown in the Residency studio. www.nature-in-art.org.uk

To discuss or arrange commissions, contact the Federation of British Artists in London, the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, or the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, and locally, the West Norfolk Artists Association (westnorfolkartists@gmail.com), of which he is a member and sponsor of their People’s Choice Awards, or alternatively contact David himself at cook@hollyhouse3.myzen.co.uk