Paul Bennett
LandE scape
CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW however, don’ t come into it unless it’ s arrived with the viewer. Unless the viewer is moved by the narrative that they have created. That, to me, is when the painting has been successful.
The effective combination between both delicate and thoughtful nuances of tones sums up the mixture of thoughts and emotions. How much does your own psychological make-up determine the nuances of tones you decide to use in a piece and in particular, how do you develop a painting’ s texture? Moreover, any comments on your choice of " palette " and how it has changed over time?
Personally, I’ m not sure that the mood I’ m in dictates the palette I would use on a certain day. People around might argue this. There are only five colours that I use and three or four other colours that I use occasionally. It’ s the mixing of these colours that can lead you down many different paths and in some respects, dictate the mood and general... of the painting.
Over these years you have exhibited your works in several occasions and one of the hallmarks of your work is the capability to create a direct involvement with the viewers, who are urged to evolve from a condition of mere spectatorship. So before leaving this conversation we would like to pose a question about the nature of the relationship of your art with your audience. Do you consider the issue of audience reception as being a crucial component of your decisionmaking process, in terms of what type of language is used in a particular context?
As I said throughout, the viewer is the the one that completes the work. However, what they think has no role in what will be made in the future. Unless someone commissions a painting, so then my starting position changes, but that’ s fine. It brings an extra challenge and maybe takes you down a road that you may not of travelled down if left to my own.
Thanks a lot for your time and for sharing your thoughts, Paul. Finally, would you like to tell us readers something about your future projects? How do you see your work evolving?
Thank you for having me featured in LandEscape. I have a series of eight portraits that I will be creating for the Cloud Gallery. It’ s been nearly a year since I worked on portraits, so I’ m looking forward to the change. It’ s great to be able to work on a completely different theme and style. Time away from creating landscape / seascapes means I will come back to it with fresh ideas and new directions. Until then, I have no idea how they will evolve.
An interview by Katherine Williams, curator and Josh Ryder, curator landescape @ europe. com
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