A Darker Light is a new collection from Lawrence Coulson inspired by the Romantic painters of the 19th century.
L A W R E N C E C O U L S O N
L A W R E N C E C O U L S O N
This collection was born from a period of reflection; an unconscious traversing of the elements accumulated over the last thirty years that I have spent honing my skill as an artist. These elements, namely light, space and atmosphere, are seemingly now my calling card; traits for which my work has become known. Whilst revisiting the cornerstones of my self-taught journey of learning, I have also injected more warmth and power to the colour palette used, to breathe new life into classic techniques and compositions for A Darker Light . The inestimable quest to evolve and refine technique through experimentation, and on occasion an alchemy of accident and good luck, is the overarching goal of any artist. Sometimes a new idea works, sometimes it doesn't, but it then might lead to a stage or process that does. For me, any practice that enables me to capture a beautiful subject and do justice to the bounteous natural landscapes we are fortunate enough to have all around us in Great Britain is a route worth travelling. I have taken great joy and inspiration from attending art fairs this year. The wealth of styles and techniques opened my mind and prompted a period of experimentation with a variety of surfaces, different mediums and new techniques. I awoke each morning with a head full of ideas and inspiration, enthused and eager to push my previously established boundaries and put my new ideas to the test. I have been particularly delighted with the effect I have developed using pastels, ground to a fine dust which I add to panels to create silhouettes of buildings, before then building up colour with impressionistic style and light.
my collection while I was waiting for my new paintings to dry on the racks in the studio. Given my focus on light within these pieces, it immediately resonated with me and I felt it would represent the work well. The natural light that appears as dawn breaks or dusk falls is my favourite light to capture. At these times everything is in a state of flux, shadows travel and perspective shifts, and there is a finite period of time in which to commit the scene to memory. I begin with a simple pencil line to denote the horizon, before I map out the rest of the composition in my head and begin applying colour in oil across the panel, after which I blend it all with fingers and then again with a fine brush. I repeat this process until I achieve the desired effect, and the work in front of me does justice to the landscape I see vividly in my mind’s eye. I still take immense enjoyment from gathering my own reference shots, and I have been known to hare off with my camera at a moment’s notice if I spot a particularly striking sunset from my studio window. I often visit my cottage on the north Norfolk coast for a change of scenery and, as part of my continued experimentation, I would like to create industrial, gritty pieces; I have in mind the towering gantry cranes at the Felixstowe Docks. After dark, the little lights on the cranes come on and reflect back from the water below, and I can envisage already how I would like to paint them. Casting my gaze further afield, the only other country that appeals to my aesthetic in terms of having scenery I would love to visit and paint is rural France. It has a sense of space and remoteness that greatly attracts me, and the light quality is beautiful. Although my heart still beats for the incomparable landscapes of Britain and resolutely belongs here, in our fair and pleasant land…
Being a self-confessed Gary Numan fan, I am happy to admit that the title A Darker Light came from a live EP of his that I noticed in
LAWRENCE COULSON, 2017
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM Stormy Breeze
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 91.5CM X 91.5CM SPARKLE BAY
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 30.5CM Moonlight Drifter (LEFT) Midnight Sails (RIGHT) ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 35.5CM X 25.5CM
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 30.5CM Battersea Sundown
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM SUMMER GLORY
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 91CM X 91CM ARRIVAL
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 101.5CM AMoment Lasts Forever l l
Technique Throughout his prestigious career to date, we see Coulson diversify in subject matter whilst retaining the technique and flair that has earned him critical acclaim and an ever growing audience of collectors. We can be assured that this progression is consciously geared towards an absolute avoidance of his own personal comfort zone, and a conviction to continue evolving, improving and challenging perceptions of him as an artist. Here we see a looser technique, a more fluid approach, which comes with Coulson’s acquired skill and confidence with his subject matter. Coulson first applies the paint with a big brush, before using his fingertips to blend and push colour into the canvas. This physical interaction with his work has only been part of his method in recent years, incorporated only once he felt he could be sure of the lightness of his touch and the delicacy of his finish. A keen photographer, Coulson will take reference shots to support his work back in the studio once a vista has sown the seed of an idea in his head, but this is as far a concession as he will make to modern technique. In his words, he likes to work ‘off the grid’ and enjoys the relative isolation that comes from a studio where there is no mobile phone reception, much less WiFi and other technological intrusions.
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 25.5CM X 35.5CM Autumn In The Air
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM INTO THE EVENING
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 40.5CM X 40.5CM Unforgettable
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM Passing Thunder
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 30.5CM INTO THE SHADOWS
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 41CM X 51CM Into The Night
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 10CM X 40.5CM Dark Skies
“I LOVE THE FEELING OF LOOKING AT THE WORLD FROM THE WATER, ONE SEES THINGS VERY DIFFERENTLY.” LAWRENCE COULSON
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 41CM X 41CM A DREAM COME TRUE
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 91.5CM MakingMemories
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 101.5CM AForgotten Place
Just You AndMe ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 41CM X 51CM
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 30.5CM HOME
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 30.5CM Sunrise Silence
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30CM X 102CM Still Is The Night
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 40CM X 76CM Tender Is The Night
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20CM X 20CM MOONLIGHT GUIDE
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 76CM Moonlight Escape
"MY ARTISTIC INFLUENCES REMAIN THE ROMANTIC L ANDSCAPE PAINTERS OF THE 19TH CENTURY SUCH AS TURNER, BIERSTADT AND FREDERIC EDWIN CHURCH, AS WELL AS THE FRENCH IMPRESSIONISTS. LOOKING AT THESE ARTISTS AGAIN MORE CLOSELY HAS REAWAKENED MY LOVE OF COLOUR." LAWRENCE COULSON
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 91.5CM X 91.5CM SILENCE
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 92CM X 92CM Where Our Hearts Lie
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 10CM X 40.5CM Autumn Sunburst
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 31CM X 31CM EVENING AMBER
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM THIS IS OUR TIME
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 21CM X 51CM Close Of The Day
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 101.5CM Sunset Surfers
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 30.5CM AUTUMN FIRE
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 10CM X 40.5CM AWitness To Evening
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30CM X 76CM Through The FogMidsummer Common
“ THE NATURAL LIGHT THAT APPEARS AS DAWN BREAKS OR DUSK FALLS IS MY FAVOURITE LIGHT TO CAPTURE.” LAWRENCE COULSON
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 101.5CM SeaMist
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 31CM X 31CM ANewMorning
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM HEADING OUT
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM THE PATH TO SUMMER
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 20.5CM X 20.5CM The Colours Of Spring
MY WORK FOCUSES INCREASINGLY ON CONTRAST, JUXTAPOSING LIGHT AGAINST DARKER TONES, UPLIF TING AND MORE REFLECTIVE MOODS, AND MOMENTS OF HOPE AND OPTIMISM SHINING THROUGH A THREATENING ATMOSPHERE. I FEEL THAT A DARKER LIGHT CAPTURES THIS PERFECTLY. LAWRENCE COULSON
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 61CM X 61CM NIGHTFALL
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 102CM ADream Of Forever
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 101.5CM To The End Of Time
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 61CM X 61CM The Sound Of Birdsong
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 40.5CM X 40.5CM HERE COMES THE RAIN
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 41CM X 41CM RETURNING
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 41CM X 41CM Shoreline Symphony
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 40CM X 122CM The Colour of Love
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 30.5CM X 30.5CM SKY FIRE
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 46CM X 61CM Time On Our Side
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 46CM X 61CM Remember Those Days
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 91.5CM X 91.5CM To Warm The World
ORIGINAL OIL | IMAGE SIZE 76CM X 76CM AUTUMN GATHERING
Lawrence Coulson b. Cambridge, 1962
reputation, and demand for his work, began to grow and in 1996 he was given the opportunity of exhibition space, which attracted the attention of Washington Green Fine Art Group Ltd and led to Lawrence being offered a publishing contract. He has since grown in stature to become one of Britain’s leading contemporary landscape painters. Many of his originals have been produced as signed limited editions – the majority of which have sold out on release since becoming a professional artist in 1997. “LAWRENCE COULSON GENEROUSLY GIVES US WHAT WE LIKE AND NEED, THOSE FEELINGS OF SOLITUDE AND ESCAPE IN WIDE OPEN SPACES UNDER HEAVENS SO HIGH THEY MIGHT REACH TO THE EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE.” David Lee, Editor of The Jackdaw , 2013 This endorsement by writer and art critic David Lee, following a critique of Lawrence’s work in 2013, cemented his standing in the art world. Lawrence still refers to it as “one of the most important moments in my thirty years as a painter, and one of the most thrilling. He has captured the essence of my work completely and goes on to compare my work to the great masters such as Turner and Constable that have long had such an influence on me.”
Inspired by his local landscape, Lawrence Coulson's evocative paintings illustrate the power of nature. Living on the edge of the Cambridgeshire Fens, Lawrence has an abundance of landscapes from which to draw inspiration. Everywhere he looks is dominated by endless horizons, punctuated only by telegraph poles and church spires. Dramatic sunsets are reflected in the wetlands, while heavy storms rumble in the sky above. Having been surrounded by the art business for as long as Lawrence can remember, he grew up with oil paintings propped up to dry in various places around the house which he took for granted. His father, Gerald Coulson - one of the most important landscape and aviation painters of the twentieth century - worked in a spare bedroom and for a while as a young child he thought all dads did the same. Despite his love for art, he did not excel at the subject while at school, and his first career saw him step into the world of retail. At the age of 21, his father encouraged him to try oil painting, teaching him which colours to use and the importance of tonal values, and encouraging Lawrence to copy Victorian landscape paintings from old Sotheby’s auction catalogues. After successfully selling these first paintings locally, Lawrence was convinced that he wanted, and needed, to paint professionally. His
The images contained within this literature are an artistic representation of the collection. To best experience our art, we recommend you contact your local gallery to arrange a viewing. © Washington Green 2017. The content of this brochure is subject to copyright and no part can be reproduced without prior permission.
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