From Art Fundamentals to Finding Your Own Style
Over the summer, you’ve often seen me teaching and painting at Mawgan Porth in Cornwall, particularly sharing the work of people experiencing their first lesson and beginning to understand some of the core mechanics behind creating art.
But what happens when those fundamentals become part of your understanding and you start applying them to your own artwork?
This is a wonderful example.
This gentleman lives in Falmouth and has worked with me for a number of years. Every few months he arrives with a portfolio of paintings he has been developing. We look through them together, discuss what is working, where something could be developed further and how he might approach the ideas and paintings he is planning next.
He paints a wonderfully varied range of subjects, very much in his own style, although he definitely has a passion for ships and Falmouth Harbour.
This latest painting, an acrylic on canvas, shows the Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel RFA Mounts Bay being manoeuvred into Falmouth Docks by tugs on a misty morning, with a pilot cutter standing by. It was painted from a photograph by David Rowe.
The observation and detail are extraordinary. At first glance, you could easily mistake the painting for a photograph. I’m so proud of his incredible progress and the standard his artwork has now reached.
Importantly, though, this is completely his artwork. His subject, his interpretation and his developing style.
Learning the mechanics, not learning to copy
For me, this is what understanding the fundamentals of art is really about. I don’t want students learning to copy the way I paint. The aim is to understand the mechanics well enough to make informed decisions for yourself and gradually develop your own technique.
Those fundamentals can then be applied to whatever interests you, whether that is ships, landscapes, portraits, wildlife, seascapes or something completely different, and across different styles and media.
Art lessons in Cornwall and online
Although you’ll often see me teaching and painting at Mawgan Porth, Cornwall, that is only one part of my teaching. I also work from my home, particularly with local artists, and teach online via Zoom to students across the UK and around the world.
Some people come for their first experience of understanding the fundamentals. Others, like this gentleman, continue working with me over a number of years as their confidence, knowledge and individual artwork develop.
The fundamentals are the starting point. Where you take them afterwards is entirely your own.
