Island Life Magazine Ltd December 2010/January 2011 | Page 81
advertisement
Island Life - December 2010
Island Fine Arts
Claire Wiltsher
Claire Wiltsher was born in Wales. She studied at
Lancashire University as a mature student (1986-89),
training as a lecturer of Art. While teaching in Durham
she completed her MA at Northumbria University in Fine
Art.
After a period of travelling, Claire has settled on the
south coast, setting up her studio in the New Forest. She
is a keen walker and spends much of her time drawing
and recording the landscape around her and then adds
her personal response back in the studio. She paints in
an expressive untraditional manner, but her work is based
on a strong observation of nature.
The majority of her canvases are square, which she feels
is important in creating a balance and harmony in her
paintings. The work has ambiguous elements, however
the work shows strong structural compositions. She feels
that "total recognition inhibits the imagination."
Painting in oil and mixed media, many of her works
combine layers of paint with fragments of collage. She
scratches through sections of the painting to allow
colours from underneath to emerge. "I want to create
evocative paintings of land and sea that show a sense of
place, different weather conditions are key elements."
Claire uses brushes and different size palette knives to
build up layers and create depth.
She has shown with many well-known galleries
throughout the UK and her work makes up part of many
private collections.
Claire Wiltsher
Structural layers
mixed media, 35.5x35.5 inches
Jo Bemis
Jo Bemis
Wave Spindrift
Oil, 19.5x39.5
Jo was born on the Isle of Wight in 1969 and
studied at Portsmouth College of Art and
Design and Leeds Metropolitan University.
She travelled widely during the 1990’s being
commissioned to produce work for a number of
organizations. This culminated in television and
radio exposure. A move to the United States in
1996 allowed her to continue her development
and exhibit with galleries in Michigan.
As a landscape and seascape painter, Jo’s
paintings capture the energy of nature. The
inspiration of Whistler, and Constable’s oil
sketches are evident in her interpretation of
the coastline around the UK. Working in oil
she paints at a brisk pace with a palette knife,
refining the detail with a fine brush.
Since returning to the Island in 2000, Jo has
built a following for her work and now has
galleries representing her in both Cornwall
and London. Her work hangs in many private
collections worldwide.
53 High Street Bembridge Isle of Wight PO35 5SE
email: [email protected] - www.islandfinearts.com
Tel: 01983 875133
Visit our new website - www.visitislandlife.com
81