The Gallery

Gael

Here is a little boy who suffers from autism. The Artist spent time with him drawing and painting. Gael is a natural artist. His approach to painting is entirely spontaneous making his work wholly original. His ability is amazing. He can mentally record every detail of an image. Then he puts it down entirely from memory in its appropriate space on the page. His style is one envied by artists like Picasso, the unburdened honesty of a child.

Gael, self portrait executed in soft pastel at the age of six. The portrait was painted without the use of a mirror. It demonstrates the inherent ability of an African to stylize an image. He managed to put in all the essentials. Gael’s original choice of subject matter was the cartoon characters which interested him.

The Frame: An Italian cassette style was chosen. It comprises a flat panel with moulded decoration to the outer and inner edges. The inner, sight edge is carved with detail to draw attention to the picture. Gilding is limited to the moulded sections. It is executed using metal leaf to achieve this style of finish.

The image size is 26.5cm x 32cm and the framed size is 42.5cm x 48cm.

Maeve

The Artist’s great grand-daughter. Just a few months old she is already curious and explores insatiably. She shows signs of a sensitive nature and a need of love and reassurance.

The Frame: A softly, moulded section with simple carving limited to the corners. The finish is white gold over a red base coat. The outer and inner edges are burnished and distressed to reveal the red beneath. The center spoon has been ‘frosted’ to create contrast and continue the soft approach.

The image size is 27.5cm x 31.5cm and the framed size is 38cm x 42cm.

Baby Maeve Sleeping

Maeve is just three weeks old and doing what babies do, sleep. It is best to avoid strong contrasts when painting small children. Strong light and shade can make a child look old.

The Frame: This is a simple frame for a simple subject. Strong, carved decoration at the sight edge draws the eye in. It has been burnished to create emphasis. The outer, flat section is light pink beneath the gilding. The gilding in white gold has been distressed to reveal the substrate. The gold leaf has been laid in a particular technique. This causes wrinkling of the leaf adding to the decorative effect.

The image size is 23cm x26.5cm and the framed size is 34.2cm x 37.7cm

Annabelle

The artist’s younger daughter, Annabelle, is tender hearted and loves animals. When she was a child, she saw the drawing of the unfortunate magpie depicted here. She said: ‘You should have buried it.’ Although tender by nature Annabelle has a strong personality. This is seen in her direct gaze looking at us. She obtained a first class honours degree in bio-chemistry at UMIST, the Manchester University. She went on to do a post doc and now works for a major food producer as project manager.

The Artist saw the bird hung on barbed wire. Shepherds in the area believe magpies kill baby lambs. They see magpies consuming dead lambs. It is generally accepted they are carrion birds. They eat lambs already dead. They do not kill new-born lambs. They give a useful service and do not deserve to be killed for it. The Artist felt regret at the premature death of the bird. He returned with pencil and paper to make the drawing. He added colour notes with a view to making a painting. Later he created a water-colour of the image. It is entitled ‘You Should Have Buried It.’

The image size is 31.2cm x 41cm and the framed size is 44.5cm x 54.3cm

Self Portrait With Red Bow-Tie

A formal portrait showing the Artist in a relaxed, natural pose. The hand raised to the face is typical, a gesture of one with a sensitive sense of touch. It is indicative of the importance of hand gestures to the Artist. Note the negative spaces behind the hand. They add dimension to the painting. His smart, casual dress shows his respect for onlookers.

The Frame: Is a modern take on a traditional theme. It is a reverse section in that the frame slopes away from the painting, not into it. There is interplay between gilded and black, painted sections. This gives strength of colour to the frame. The inner slip is sand finished and painted yellow ochre. It is used to give contrast to an otherwise smooth frame.

The image size is 38.2cm x 52cm and the framed size is 53.2 x 67cm

Spanish Riding Boots

The boots were custom made for the Artist in his horse riding days by Senor Labres of Ciutadela. They have the slightly raised heel of a riding boot to prevent slipping through the stirrup. The Artist preferred riding western style. He found it kinder and more thoughtful to the horse. It is more relaxed for forays into wilderness or wild areas which the artist loved. It was appropriate to chose a western boot.

The Frame: Made with a lap jointed corner the frame construction is very solid. It is often seen in medieval frames. The section has been carved from solid wood. Gesso has been roughly applied and left bare to age over time. This natural, ‘gentle decay,’ is in keeping with the humble subject of the painting. The corner joints have been picked out to further an aged effect.

Sympathetic to the Image: It can be observed how a gilt frame would overpower the picture. Equally, a black frame would be too strong. The white frame relates to the white highlights on the boots and subconsciously draws the eye into them.

The image size is39.8cm x 50cm and the framed size is 57.8 x 68cm

Little African of Fourteen Years

The model is Jersey a young girl of African descent. She has the slim build and charisma of Marie Van Goeten who posed for Degas’ ‘Little Dancer of Fourteen Years.’ This makes Jersey the perfect, responsive model. The characteristic way she holds her hands indicates her sensitive nature. The drawings and subsequent portrait were done at age fourteen.

The Frame: A hand carved, reverse frame. It features a stylised, conch shell to the sight edge and pipe decoration to the outer edge. The conch shell features importantly in African life. The pipe motif is also common to Africa. Both are thus appropriate to the subject. The paper is float mounted showing the deckled edge against a brown backboard.

The Finish: The frame needed to be kept light to enhance the image. It has been coated with kaolin which is traditional to African, painted objects. A coating of ‘dirt and grime’ has been added for texture.

The image size is 54.5cm x 66.5cm and the framed size is 69.5cm x 81.5cm

African Girl with Beaded Hair

The model is Jersey. She is depicted in an African landscape. The beaded hair, so typically African, begged to be painted. She is holding a piece of fruit in her left hand. Jersey’s soft smile shows the confidence a young girl has when she is sure of the man looking at her. It is a wonderful thing to see in a young girl and depict in a painting.

The Frame: Hand carved with an incised, lozenge motif. This is a common African decoration. The wood has been stained dark brown and the tops rubbed down to a lighter finish resembling wear. The two tone effect reflects the beautiful colour of the girl’s skin. The whole is covered with a toning ‘grime’ to give age and texture to the frame. The inner slip is covered with coarse weave, neutral linen cloth to create a restful break between frame and image.

The image size is 45.5cm x 64.5cm and the framed size is 62.3cm x 81.3cm

Philip

The Artist’s younger son. Philip suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome. This causes anxiety and apprehension which is shown in his natural pose. The clasped hands are a typical self protecting gesture. Philip has a quiet, non violent disposition full of empathy and fellow feeling. Note the placement and colouration of the chair arm in the foreground. It gives balance to the hands and face as the third, strategically placed feature in the picture.

The Frame: The black of Philip’s hair and clothes is repeated in the frame. It is a reverse, cassette frame. The moulded sections to the outer and inner edges are gilded to give a touch of brightness. Otherwise the effect would be dull. The gilding is by the water leaf method and has been burnished.

The image size is 56.7cm x 67.6cm and the finished size is 72cm x 82.9cm