Linda Clayton-Giddings: Summertime (Ring to view)
24th May to 24th June
p/view 26th May 7-9pm
In the art I have created for this exhibition, I wanted to capture the essence of summertime; the experience, the memories, the sights. Paintings can take you back to a summer’s day, with the warmth on your face, the scent from the plants, orchards, and the sea.
Summer is the season of the senses, arising out of the short dull days of Winter. Through my paintings the warmth of the sun, the coolness of the shade, the freedom of childhood and the luxury of long days spent in idleness can be captured. The vulnerability of the sailing boat ensnared in the net of a summer storm prevents the exhibition from slipping into idealism, allowing for a representation of a true British Summer.
Biography:
Born in Greenwich, my love of painting was instigated by two nautical pictures, that hung on my aunt’s wall , which were painted by my uncle who had died some years earlier.
Having an interest in art at school was not enough to enable my parents to send me to college so my working life started in accounts.
Marriage and a family kept me busy, but I did find time to occasionally draw and paint, with information the library provided, I dabbled in oil, but never tried watercolour.
Much later the opportunity came for a day class in watercolour. Also a life class in pastel. Oil was my real love and retiring in 2006, gave me the time to explore.
Painting my children, grandchildren, other people’s children , other people’s pets, was a joy, the more I painted the more I loved it.
The exhibition ‘Summertime’ is a complete turnaround for me. It has made me think about my painting, about composition, and it has stretched me, so I have much to thank ‘Ripley Art Centre’ for, in giving me the opportunity to create for an exhibition. Linda Clayton-Giddings