Artwork

The paintings of Peter Evans reveal a continual process of exploration and discovery. His work is always intense and exciting, and throughout his long and highly successful career, an aspect that has greatly contributed to the appeal and impact of his paintings has been the ongoing refinement in the methods and techniques he has used to express ideas.

Peter's early work was predominantly concerned with abstraction and it included constructions as well as paintings. However, in 1978 he abandoned the abstract themes in favour of developing a more realist style. These paintings, which were inspired by shop facades, cafes, sun-dappled doorways, boxes of fruit, old barns, Venice and similar specific close-focus subjects sought out on his travels, placed an emphasis on detail and contrasting surface textures and were the result of exacting observation and note taking. He travelled to France, Venice and Morocco to find suitable ideas, which invariably were part of derelict or neglected buildings caught in a particular light to dramatise their play of form, colour and texture.

The location work for these paintings would involve sketches, drawings and photographs to record the necessary information. Occasionally he would paint directly from a subject on location but usually the final paintings would be made in the studio, working from the reference material. Painted in acrylic on prepared boards, these technically brilliant, imaginative compositions have a warmth that communicates Peter's obvious love and fascination for colour and texture within a bold image.

The past few years have seen further changes in Peter's work, for he is now involved in two new series of pictures : the Collage series , the Harbour series and the Collection series.

The harbour series began in 1998. "I had completely run out of steam making my traditional paintings", Peter explains, "and instead I veered off the straight and narrow and into my harbour series. I am now working with great enthusiasm again and travelling joyfully in the search for these 'extra close focus' studies. I am currently working on Harbour Series No.99. Life is difficult, for the obvious reason that bits of old boats don't sell as well as sun-dappled Dordogne subjects. But there is no going back. I am making the paintings I want to make and am working in a beautiful part of France surrounded by friends and family. I have no complaints."

In this fascinating new series of paintings Peter is concerned with really close up images that have caught his attention - perhaps the side of a boat or a rusty piece of ironwork or other metal surface that has suffered the ravages of sun, tide and time. Often the selected area is quite small, perhaps only 12" square, and the initial impression is that one is looking into an abstract painting. But a closer examination reveals the remarkable rendition of detail, colour and texture. In deed, these images stride the boundaries of abstraction and realism. They are impressive and exciting in this respect, just as they are in their breath-taking craftsmanship.

The creative process for the Harbour paintings is similar to the earlier works. It involves, as Peter has said, the joy of travel to find ideas, and these are subsequently recorded in an extensive sequence of photographs. Additionally, the photographs play and important part in the analysis of the subject. Later, back in the studio, each idea is painstakingly interpreted in paint, using acrylic colour that is applied with brushes or sponges to a prepared board or paper support. The paintings on board are extremely permanent, while those on paper are framed under glass, in the same manner as a watercolour. The 'Harbour Series' has now been completed.

Subsequently Peter worked on his 'collection series' of paintings. Studies of small or larger groups of objects from a collection of pebbles or old paintbrushes to a larger collection of beach combings gathered over the years. The Collection Series reflects the artists bonding with 'found' objects, and the acquiring of such things in a collection form. For example accumumlating 24 'stolen' disposable lighters is second nature to him! Pebbles, Conkers, Old Paint Brushes, Beach Combings, Old Signs, Rusty Tins, Snails Shells are just some of the things which have the same fascination to Peter.

In the last 12 months Peter has mainly concentrated on a series of Venice paintings. These include studies of Palaces on the Grand Canal and ripped posters in hidden corners of Venice. Other subjects include Fish and Vegetable markets, murky green water and a collection of close up studies of Chains, Rust and Hinges.

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