As he approaches his 50th Birthday on 14 August 2023, Neil Pittaway NEAC RWS RE LFA reflects on his artistic career and artwork . . .
"I've been thinking about things that continue to inspire me, my different working methods, ideas and processes – from complex etched works and detailed drawings through to colourful paintings. My work may be inspired by my many travels at home and abroad, researched historical themes and subjects as well as from my imagination.
'Palazzo di Italia' (2000) oil on canvas, 198 x 198 cm
Starting Young
My artistic journey started when I was a child in the early 1970s when I remember wanting to be an artist – picking up a pen and drawing the world around me as well as ideas from my imagination. Subjects from these very early days included castles, people, flowers, and architecture including the Humber Bridge, which I remember drawing when I was about six. These subjects have continued to inspire me into adulthood.
The Humber Bridge at Night (wax crayon on 1970s computer paper) by Neil Pittaway, aged 5
Certain subjects have remained with me from childhood, particularly maritime, historical, and architectural subjects which I have, and continue to develop through both observed reality and from my subconscious mind. It is this ability to combine both observed reality with visual imagination that gives my work a deeper sense of purpose and visual language. This is reflected particularly in my drawing and printmaking works which reflect multifaceted ideas and techniques around visual culture, society, politics, and universal issues that are facing humanity such as wars, conflicts, and climate change.
My work on climate change and architectural landmarks in the 2022 NEAC Annual Exhibition
Inspiration
I like using traditional materials to create works that reinvent, reinterpret, and represent our world through different prisms of time and space, following in a tradition in European figurative art that seeks individual personal identity and self-expression. I admire many artists including Henri Cartier-Bresson, Giovanni Battista Piranesi, James Gillray and Marc Chagall. Others I admire were very closely linked to our NEAC family including Gwen John, David Bomberg, Stanley Spencer, and Paul Nash – all of whom had their own individuality and strong personal vision and way of interpreting and seeing the world around them.
I also have a keen interest in other cultures and legacies from different parts of the world particularly remote areas such as the Himalayan communities of Nepal and India. I particularly like the colours of Asia and its vibrant artistic traditions, from the detailed Buddhist Tanka paintings to the rich tapestries of ancient Mughal Art and architecture. I use combinations of these ideas and works in my imaginative paintings which combine Eastern traditions and approaches with Western style, influence, and imagery.
The experience of travel has always played a key role in helping shape my visual appreciation and helps me shape how I see, create, and process images. I may create work from direct observation whilst also taking images from primary and secondary source materials from history and culture.
'Spanish City' (1996) oil on canvas, 198 x 198 cm
PRINTMAKING
An important part of my art practice is printmaking, where I specialise in etching. When developing a new etching, I start with planning and research, reviewing existing ideas as well as exploring other concepts. These are often based on things that have caught my interest or are topical now or were in the past. The ideas used are then extensively researched.
Following research, another key element of my working day is producing sketches of ideas, and then developing more refined dip pen and ink drawings of my final idea. These drawings often form a multipurpose function. Whilst being a finished piece of work, they are then used and translated into etching.
'Britannia Square' (1998) etching, 60cm x 80.7 cm, in the V&C Collection
When the drawn idea for etching is complete, I then get the drawing mirror copied to enable me to see and draw the image in reverse on the prepared copper. I do not use any photographic processes to have the image transferred onto the prepared copper plate. I always draw the reversed image again on the etching plate as I find I get a better feel for the qualities of the drawn line on the plate.
Once my final idea is drawn onto a copper plate, my printmaking day involves the biting of the copper plate using Ferric Chloride and or Dutch Mordant. I take a proof print, then work on modifying the print, re-biting the plate and then continuing to refine the print – often doing several stages until I am satisfied with the final print. The whole process from the initial idea to the finished etching often takes many weeks.
'The Glory of Victory' (1998) hand-coloured etching, 57 x 76 cm, from the Ashmolean Museum collection
TRAVELS AND TREKKING
My ideas and inspiration in print, and in my other drawn and painted works, always continue through a constant development and review process inspired by my actual practice, visual culture, research, and my extensive travels abroad. I have travelled to more than 30 countries, more recently trekking and sketching, enabling me to get closer to the landscape. I tend to travel solo on these trips, but I join organised groups in more adventurous locations, e.g. the Himalayas. I not only use photographs and sketches I have collected from these trips but also the imaginative experiences they have given me.
ONLINE SOLO EXHIBITION
As part of my 50th birthday year, I have designed and created my own virtual online solo exhibition 'The Art of Making' that showcases the complete range of my work. Click the link below to view (opens in Google Photos).
VIEW THE EXHIBITION ONLINE
As well as my online exhibition, I have planned some special trips abroad this year. In April, I travelled to paint in Jordan trekking the country’s ancient spice trails in Wadi Rum, Petra as well as visiting the Dead Sea, Mount Nebo, Madaba and the ruined Roman city of Jerash. Last month, I painted on the Island of Santorini. And later in August, I will be travelling on one of my biggest painting adventures yet, trekking the Markha Valley in Ladakh, India, to a maximum altitude of 5,200 meters, with an average altitude of 3,900 meters whilst wild camping.
Painting in front of the Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, August 2022
I will then use these trips to continue to explore and develop my own work further alongside my other more imaginative work based on visual cultures and histories. I am also producing a comprehensive book on my work for my 50th Birthday."
Fina out more about Neil Pittaway on his NEAC artist profile page where you will find a further selection of his paintings and drawings, many of which are available to buy online. You can also visit the Neil Pittaway website, and do take a look at Neil's virtual online solo exhibition 'The Art of Making'.
'Overture' (2008), watercolour with body-colour on paper, 59 x 84 cm
