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Kunstlerhaus | Scottish Landscape Art - Scottish Landscape Paintings

Posts Tagged ‘Kunstlerhaus’

A look back at Speyer

Autumn colours south of Speyer

Autumn colours south of Speyer

Well then, I’ve just returned from two weeks in Speyer, Germany.  As most of you will know, I was invited back there this year to hold a short exhibition of my Scottish landscape paintings at the Künstlerhaus.  The exhibition opened on the evening of Friday 21st October and my partner Anita and I travelled out on Wednesday 19th.  I had sent the work out a week or so earlier and several members of the Küstlerbund had kindly agreed to unwrap and hang the work prior to our arrival.

Suffice to say, the trip out went well without a hitch and we arrived at the Künstlerhaus in Speyer to find Holger Grimm (president of the Künstlerbund Speyer e.V) and several other members waiting to welcome us …and a table laid with wine and food!  It was a great reception and a wonderful way to start the trip.  They had done a fantastic job of hanging the work and it all looked good.

Speyer exhition preview - Photo by Ulrich Harer

Speyer exhibition preview - Photo by Ulrich Harer

We did have a little work still to do on Thursday and Friday before the preview though……on the way across, around a half of the packages containing the paintings, had been damaged …..and although the paintings had survived intact …a number of the frames had knocks and scrapes.  Thankfully these were wooden painted frames and Anita had bought with her, some filler and paint for just such an event.  After a day and a half of careful, filling, sanding and painting, always fixed and looking good again ….but what can you say about a company who manage to damage half of the packages they handle?!  All part of being an artist I guess …though I may have to look for another courier company …one who handles your gear with care.

Speyer exhibition preview - Photo by Ulrich Harer

Speyer exhibition preview - Photo by Ulrich Harer

It seemed quite strange being back at the Künstlerhaus where I’d lived and worked for four months last summer …and it really didn’t seem like a whole year had gone by since I was last there …amazing.    The preview went very well, Mike Lauter and Andrea Niessen had arrived early to set up the bar …as the evenings were getting cold, they’d decided to serve hot spiced wine and by the time people were starting to arrive, all was ready.   It was a good turn out and the first lady through the door bought one of my paintings …so a great start.  Indeed, some friends had actually turned up on Thursday evening …for a ‘pre preview’ …as they wanted to buy a painting …so there was already one red dot before we even opened the doors on Friday evening!

In the exhibition

In the exhibition

After a few words from Holger, Michael Lauter then made a speech …but with my lack of German, I’m not sure what he said …but it seemed to go down well …and so, if you’re reading this Mike, a big thanks for all your work and help.

It was a very good evening that ended with about a dozen people sat talking, drinking wine and eating pizza until around midnight!  Mike and Fred helped Nita and I clear up and so it must have been about half past one in the morning before I eventually turned the lights out in the gallery and headed upstairs to bed.

This trip though wasn’t all about work ….we’d hoped that it would be a bit of a holiday too ….and that is exactly how it turned out.  During the middle week we had many kind offers to visit people for meals or to go out and visit places with them …as a few people said, we had a busy programme!

View from the castle, Heidelberg

View from the castle, Heidelberg

We had a wonderful day with Stewart, Evelyn and Markus, walking one of the trails through the vineyards and hills to the south of Speyer.  The autumn colours were beautiful and just got brighter as days went by.  On Wednesday, under clear blue skies, we drove with Mike Lauter to Heidelberg, the beautiful university city nestling under the hills on either side of the Neckar.  We wandered along the side of the river to the old bridge and then across it to the old town for lunch.  High on the side of the hill overlooking the city is the wonderful old castle and like all tourists (and there were a lot of us) we just had to visit it and enjoy the stunning views from its battlements.

Visits to the studios of Künstlerbund members, Andrea Niessen and Martin Eckrich made for a fascinating day on Friday.  To get a flavour of what they each do …visit: www.andrea-niessen.de  and www.martin-eckrich.de .

The exhibition ended on Sunday 30th at 6pm and we  had a good turn out each weekend.  I seemed to get a good response to the work which was very pleasing and hopefully did a little to aid the Scottish tourist industry ….a lot of folk said they’d have to visit Scotland after seeing the paintings!  In the end, six of the paintings sold which was very pleasing and certainly made the whole trip more than viable.

The plan had been to repack the unsold work and arrange for its collection on Wednesday.  This would mean my being at the gallery to oversee the collection.  But, as they say ….the best made plans….’…..the courier company failed to collect despite my sitting waiting from8 am until11 pm!  Ahhhhhh!  We had to leave Speyer at 8.30 am the next morning and so it wasn’t until we reached Frankfurt airport that I had a chance to call and find out what was happening.  They’re now claiming I wasn’t there when their driver called ….but this is just *****!  The problem is that the work is now still in Germany and I have to ask someone in the Künstlerbund to wait for a newly arranged collection.  The courier company say that they can’t give a definite time and don’t seem to get the point that it’s their mess and they need to make an exception.  All is on hold now until next week …so hopefully I’ll have good news re this in my blog next week.  Anyway, this little hitch apart,  it proved a very enjoyable and successful trip and my thanks go out to everyone in the Künstlerbund Speyer e.V and everyone else who made us so welcome throughout our stay in Speyer.

Right then, that’s about it for this week.  I can’t wait to get down my studio again …it’s been a few weeks now since I did any serious painting and I’m getting withdrawal symptoms!

Photographs by Anita Groves and Ulrick Harer.  Many thanks both.

Away!

'Approaching snow shower, above Braemar'

Work in Speyer exhibition: 'Approaching snow shower, above Braemar'

Wow, after many weeks of painting, wrapping and organising …that’s everything away.  The 13 large boxes containing the 19 paintings for the Speyer exhibition were collected last Friday afternoon and I had an anxious wait until receiving an email saying that they’d arrived safely on Tuesday, phew!   Mike Lauter of the Künstlerbund (the man driving the tandem last August) emailed to say that they were planning to open the boxes and get everything hung on the walls either Thursday or Friday evening this week. So with a bit of luck it’s all in place …or nearly so.  I’m quite looking forward to seeing it all up ….the two galleries at the Künstlerhaus are great for showing work.  The exhibition comprises 8 paintings 80 x 80 cm, 2 paintings 30 x 60 cm, 4 paintings 76 x 23 cm and 5 paintings 30 x 30 cm.  The exhibition preview is at 7pm on Friday 21st October and the Künstlerhaus is open Saturday 22nd, Sunday 23rd, and Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th October.  For more details: www.kuenstlerbund-speyer.de .

Once the work was away to Speyer it was a mad rush to get the other pieces wrapped and ready for delivery to The Strathearn Gallery in Crieff and Queens Gallery in Dundee.  I got up at about half past six in the morning to find the rain pouring down  …not a great day to be loading and unloading paintings ….but the forecast did reckon it’d improve as the morning went on.  We picked the van up at about half past eight, spent a good few minutes trying to discover quite how the fuel cap opened …but eventually filled up and had the 23 paintings packed into the Transit van by about half past ten …luckily the rain had stopped by the time we started loading.

Work in Speyer exhibition.  'Towards Blackmount, winter'

Work in Speyer exhibition: 'Towards Blackmount, winter'

First stop, The Strathearn Gallery.  We were delivering six paintings here..these are going down to London for the Battersea Affordable Art Fair.  This runs from Thursday 20th – Sunday 23rd.  Open Thursday11am – 5.30 pm, Friday, Saturday & Sunday11 am – 6pm.  The Strathearn Gallery will be showing their work at Stand 114.  If you live in London then why not go along.  As well as my own six paintings, you’ll see a great selection of work by other Scottish and Scotland based artists at The Strathearn Gallery stand 114.

Work in Speyer exhibition: 'Towards Beinn Toaig, winter'

Work in Speyer exhibition: 'Towards Beinn Toaig, winter'

After a quick bite to eat, it was on to Dundee to deliver the 17 paintings for my exhibition at the Queens Gallery.  It’s always a little worrying when arriving at galleries with a van …where to park while unloading?  This time we were remarkably lucky …we found a spare space right opposite the gallery and so it was an easy job moving the paintings.  This exhibition opens on Saturday 22nd October and runs until November 5th.  At the same time there will also be an exhibition of work by other gallery artists.  For more details:  http://www.queensgallery.co.uk/exhibitions.html .  A late change of date for this exhibition means that I’ll be away in Germany and will therefore be unable to attend the preview.  If you’re living within driving distance of the gallery then do go along and see the show, it contains a good number of new paintings including three of the new 80 x 80 cm pieces.  I’ll be posting images of some of these paintings in next week’s blog.

So then, everything is away …..…and I’ll be away too, as from Wednesday.  With any luck I should be getting ready for the preview of the Speyer exhibition in exactly one weeks time.  It’s a long way to travel so I’m not expecting too many of you to get over to see it …but with work in both London and Dundee over the next few weeks, hopefully a few of you will get to see some of my new paintings.

‘Winter afternoon, Rannoch Moor’

'Winter afternoon, Rannoch Moor', Acrylic & Pastel, 2011, 76 x 23 cm

‘Winter afternoon, Rannoch Moor’, Acrylic & Pastel, 2011, 76 x 23 cm

Here is another of my recent Rannoch Moor paintings.  This painting is now hanging in the Künstlerhaus in Speyer as part of my exhibition of Scottish Landscape paintings.  I shipped all 19 paintings last Friday and they arrived safely in Speyer on Tuesday.  I understand that members of the Künstlerbund Speyer e.V were planning to hang the work yesterday evening in readiness for a press evening and preview next week.  The preview is at 7 pm on Friday 21st October.  My partner Anita and I will be travelling to Speyer on Wednesday and so if you live in the region, it would be great to meet you at the preview.  For further details:  www.kuenstlerbund-speyer.de .  I’ll be showing images of several other paintings in the exhibition with my blog this week.

Big is not always best-but it may be the right way to go


'Approaching snow shower, above Braemar'

'Approaching snow shower, above Braemar'

Many years ago, many many years ago as it now seems…when I was in my teens and still working towards my ‘O’ level art at Welshpool High School,  I was told by my art teacher (a Mr Roberts) that when painting it was vitally important to consider every inch of the paper or canvas with equal importance.  This bit of advice has always stuck with me and now that I’m working more regularly on larger pieces, it is something that I am constantly reminding myself of.  It may seem obvious but with constraints of time and cost of materials it can be easy to forget.

The reason for thinking along these lines is that I’ve been considering my own work recently, especially the size of the work I do.  Many of my paintings have been quite small and this has I have to admit, been part due to the need to sell.  That’s certainly not the only reason but it is often one of the deciding factors.  Quite simply, it’s easier to sell smaller works if for no other reason than that most people don’t have the room or the finances for large work.

'The saltings, Irvine harbour side'

'The saltings, Irvine harbour side'

Painting on a small scale is though I think, just as challenging for the painter as working on a large or even grand scale.  It certainly concentrates the mind and focuses ones attention on the composition but I am starting to feel a little trapped when working on this scale now.  I’ve always done the odd larger piece but never really spent a period of time creating larger paintings…..until last year that is.  When I went to Speyer I realised that this would be a chance to do exactly this.  During my stay at the Kunstlerhaus in Speyer I completed 17 pieces of work, all but 2 of them being 80 x 80 cm or larger.  This was very enjoyable at the time and I really didn’t have too many thoughts about selling these larger works…..this was a scholarship and all my accommodation and living expenses were being paid.  At the end of the scholarship though, much of the work sold …even the large 400 x 150 cm drawing.

'The artist with 'Late December afternoon, above Wanlockhead'

'The artist with 'Late December afternoon, above Wanlockhead'

I’ve now been self employed as an artist for just on two years and over that time I’ve developed my work and my art practice quite well.  I’ve increased my sales over this period but have started to come to the realisation that it may be difficult to earn a living through the smaller work.  With my sight as it is, there is a limit to the number of pieces I can do in any one year …I really work quite slowly, and as such, there is a limit to the amount I can reasonably expect to earn.  I have then been starting to think that it would make a lot more sense both financially as well as artistically, to concentrate on larger pieces.  My main aim as an artist has always been to try to do good work …not just to sell and I certainly think that working on a larger scale is where my best work lies.

I am certainly not going to abandon the small pieces entirely …I enjoy doing them and they quite often themselves lead to larger paintings.  I am though, going to put a much greater emphasis on the bigger paintings and as I have the opportunity in October of returning to the Kunstlerhaus in Speyer with an exhibition of my Scottish landscapes I’m doing large pieces for this.

So then, it’ll be interesting to see quite how this gradual change in emphasis works out.  I’ll have to target slightly different outlets and probably look to generate commissions but I’m sure it’ll do me good artistically and in the longer run, financially too. Winning the Jolomo Award in 2009 will allow me to take this ‘gamble’ secure in the knowledge that I can afford to lose some sales of smaller works in order to generate better and potentially more cost effective larger paintings.  I must of course remember the words of Mr Roberts and think about every square inch of the painting surface with equal consideration.  So often when I look around galleries I notice that as the paintings get bigger, the paint quality diminishes and the colours become thin and flat.  I must not fall into this trap.

 

Work in progress

"Work in progress"

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Well then, that just about wraps it up…

at-the-kunstlerhaus

At the Kunstlerhaus

I’m awake and up early this morning and after two or three days of heavy rain it looks like I might have one last sunny day here in Speyer before I fly back to Scotland. It’s quite amazing really to think my stay in Germany is almost over. I guess it’s a time of mixed emotions …. I’ve had a great time, met some amazing people, great artists and thoroughly enjoyed living in this beautiful and friendly little city …..but ….on the other hand I think I’m about ready now to get back to Irvine, albeit with its litter strewn streets. I’ve missed my walk along the harbour side to my studio each day, hearing the sound of the yachts clinking at their moorings, the raucous cries of the gulls and the beautiful song of the skylarks on the other side of the river….and perhaps it’s that very special Scottish thing …the quality of light, that I’ve missed the most. I always say to people who visit my studio in Irvine, that I just love the harbour side because it doesn’t matter what the weather is doing, whether it’s pouring with rain or bright sunshine, summer or winter …the light is always wonderful. It’s a very special place.

But before getting back to it there are a few final things to be done and said here. I am currently sat amidst the remnants of my exhibition. The show ended on Sunday evening and although it’d only been open for three days, I’m pleased to report that it was a real success. There was a real ‘buzz’ about the preview last Thursday and this followed through over the next few days, resulting in over half the available pieces being sold. Interestingly, the four ‘Scottish’ scenes I painted here (that were not for sale as they are for the forthcoming Jolomo Finalists exhibition in London next month) generated a lot of interest ….indeed I could have sold a couple of them several times over! So then, a good boost to my bank balance and my studio rent is secure for another year …great stuff.

You know the big drawing I’ve been going on about for the last month or so? Well, that is probably the most interesting tale from the whole exhibition. I did this drawing …well, just because I could. What I mean is, because I had a five metre long wall to work on. At home I can just about fit a 2 metre wide painting board on the wall so this was an opportunity not to miss. When we came to hang the exhibition it seemed right to include the drawing …it did, even though I say it myself, look good, but I never really thought, (it being 4 metres long and a metre and a half high) that anyone would want to buy it. As it turned out, I actually had four people interested, including the new Lord Mayor. In the end, a local businessman bought the piece for his popular city centre restaurant. He invited Anita and me down to the restaurant to see the wall where he was planning to hang the drawing …and it’s a great space in a great location. He already has two big pieces of artwork hanging in the restaurant and so my drawing will fit in well I think. There was of course the question of just how exactly the drawing would be hung, but after a visit from a local carpenter and much discussion, a solution has been arrived at. People here who’ve seen the drawing seem to be genuinely pleased that it will stay in Speyer …and in a place where they can get to see it …the restaurant where it is to hang has a reputation for high quality food and wine …so a good excuse to go and see the picture! Of course this now gives me a good excuse to visit Speyer again …as if I needed one!

Despite my worries about how I’d cope with little sight and not speaking the language, it’s been a wonderful time. Everyone has been so friendly and helpful and I’ll leave on Thursday with some great memories and some real friends. The arts are so well supported here, both by the city and its inhabitants …but then again, why not, the city has many fine artists living and working here. The Kunstlerbund is a group the city can be proud of and I’ve been delighted to have been their guest this summer. I am the 23rd guest artist to live and work in the Kunstlerhaus and I’m sure whoever the 24th lucky artist is, he or she will have an equally enjoyable and inspiring time as I.

Increasing scale

new-work-on-the-go

New Work On The Go

The studios here in Speyer are quite large and having so much space in which to work is a real luxury. I decided last week that it was about time to work on a larger scale and make the most of the situation.

Thinking about the practicalities of getting work back to Scotland I decided there would have to be limits to the size of the paintings however ….100 cm x 140 cm seemed ideal and Mike went out and got me two pieces of board this size. Being mdf, it weighs quite a lot but I should be able to get the finished pieces back reasonably cheaply with a bit of luck. I also have a large roll of thick white paper …this is 150 cm wide and the roll is several metres in length and so offers me chance to do some pretty big drawings. These will be easier to send home …I’ll just need to find a cardboard tube to protect them.

Of course, working on a large scale means using a lot more materials and although I brought with me a lot of paint, I only brought a fairly small number of oil pastels. But panic not …there happens to be a wonderful art supply company called ‘Boesner’. Their stores are great, the two I’ve been taken to, being situated in large factory units on industrial sites and stocking a HUGE variety of art materials. I’ve never seen anything like it. Mind you, they’re dangerous places …you can end up spending a fortune if you’re not careful! Anyway, I was there to buy pastels. I use “Neopastel” made by a Swiss company I think. They’re fantastic oil pastels, not the cheapest but they’re wonderful colours and are neither too hard or too soft ….perfect I’ve found for working (as I do) on board. “Neopastels” come in a huger range and I was relieved to find the Boesner not only had all of them but also had plenty of each ….this was a serious bit of pastel buying! In the end, I bought just over seventy pastels which should be enough to keep me going while I’m here in Speyer. It may sound a lot, but working with them on board as well as not top of paint, really eats them up, especially when doing large pieces. Anyway, if I don’t use them all here …I’ll have them for the work I’ll be doing on my return to Scotland. Mike Lauter was with me helping to find the colours I needed and he spotted a great little tool for holding the pastels. It’s a bit like an old fashioned cigarette holder and it allows you to use the pastels right down to the end ….should save me having that annoying bag of bits you always end up with! I’ve tried using it and it works well. It allows me to make a greater variety of marks too which is quite interesting.

new-drawing-the-cathedral-speyer-140-x-100-cm

'The Cathedral, Speyer'

So far I’ve used one of the big boards as a drawing board and have completed one drawing this size – a loose and vigorous impression of the one end of the cathedral. As with my hill based landscape work, this isn’t an accurate drawing of the structure, I don’t really see that. It does though try to put over something of the great bulk of the structure, especially when seem from the one end. I wasn’t too sure about the drawing when I completed it, but a few days on and I’m getting quite pleased with it.

I’ve started a painting on the other big board. As I’ve said in the past since I’ve been here, I really like the walls of the cathedral. There’s one section that has two semicircular indents that I really like …it reminds me of eyes. So then, very simply, this painting is about this section of the wall. I’m not quite sure how it’ll end up but it’s going to be interesting and great to work on this scale again.

I’m also working on two smaller pieces (80 x 80 cm), one of which is based on the other end of the cathedral and is a fairly abstract piece. The other is a reworking in paint of an earlier smaller Scottish painting. I’m hoping the two pieces will work well together. They’re both coming on well although there’s much work to be done but it does leave me with no new boards to start …..have to speak nicely to Mike and see if he’ll go get another four for me. Right then, typing finished …back to the paint….

Arrived!

speyer-river

View of Speyer across the river

Well, it’s not far short of two years since I first heard about the Speyer scholarship. I’d been working into the evening at the studio in September 2008 when I had a knock on the door and three visitors from Germany came in to see my work. One of them, a chap called Markus, was a member of the Speyer Kunstlerbund and before leaving, told me all about the annual scholarship ….and asked if it was something I’d be interested in…..and I said ‘yes’. The rest, as they say, is history, and two weeks ago I travelled out with my partner Anita. She’s joining me for the first couple of weeks to help me find my way around….and hopefully have a bit of a holiday too.

Being very unused to air travel and all the rigmarole of checking in, security and departure gates …we decided to give ourselves plenty of time. Our flight to Frankfurt left Edinburgh at 1.45pm and so, just to make absolutely sure you understand, we left Irvine at 8.30 am!

It was all a bit strange at the airport but even going at a snails pace we still had time for a leisurely pint, a leisurely look through the bookshop and a leisurely lunch ….and still had a fair wait at the departure gate ….so no rush! The flight was great and luckily Nita had a window seat and took her duties as guide to heart …giving me a full description of everything she could see below. This though lapsed as we came in to land at Frankfurt and my surprise as we touched down was only exceeded by Nita spotting a fox wandering across the grass at the side of the runway ….street wise or what?!

Two of the members from the Kunstlerbund had very kindly driven to the airport to meet us and so we had a great welcome and were driven in style to Speyer and the Kunstlerhaus where I am to live and work during my stay. As we approached Speyer the skies darkened, lightening flashed and the rain started to fall ….quite an arrival although sadly the grand view of the magnificent cathedral as you approach the city, was blotted out by the weather …but it was very dramatic all the same.

When we arrived at the Kunstlerhaus, several other members of the group were there to greet us and we celebrated the start of the scholarship with a glass of wine. The Kunstlerhaus itself is wonderful. It has its own small courtyard and two big light studio / gallery rooms. Upstairs I have a flat and all has been provided for a very comfortable stay over the summer. The fine hospitality didn’t stop there though and we were taken out to a local restaurant for beer and a very fine meal …wow!

By the time we got back we were both pretty tired. It had been a long but very enjoyable day …I lay awake in bed not quite believing I was actually in Germany and set up so well for a full summer of painting. All my gear arrived ok as did the materials I’d ordered …so I have no excuses now!

My studio in Speyer Sämergasse

My studio in Speyer Sämergasse

Watch this space!