When we stumbled across Dawn's website a couple of months ago, we were instantly taken by her stunning seascapes. The way she captures light against the water is fantastic, and after she'd joined us we decided to take the opportunity to find out a little more about her processes when creating her atmosperic paintings:
You’ve been a professional artist for a long time now. What is the best piece of advice you’ve received during your career?
The best piece of advice given me as a professional artist is to only take criticism from a few people whose honest opinion I respect... it seems like a lot of people like to advise a painter in what they should or shouldn't do. If I listened to everyone I'd be chasing my tail and turning mad circles. My trusted critics will tell me what is good and what is not so good, they're honest, not sycophantic, just true.
You mention on your profile that as a young girl you trained to become a gymnast. How do you think your life would have been different had circumstances allowed you to pursue gymnastics rather than art as a career? Have you found any parallels between the two things?
If I'd have been able to pursue my dream of gymnastics, I'd have remained very short! When I stopped the training, I grew over a foot in a year going from one of the shortest in the school to one of the tallest. I think I would have always wanted to go to art school and dream of living my life as I pretty much do now as a painter - my first love is painting, I just happened to be able to turn summersaults too!
However, it does enable me to swing from scaffolding and navigate ladders quite nimbly when I have to paint the murals and specialist paint finishes, and it certainly gave me the stamina and endurance to do this continuously throughout a day, a week or a month.
The End of the Day, 60x140x4cm, £3,700
Could you take us through your process? Do you work from photographs, or do you prefer to travel to the location?
A painting for me is not just the application of paint to canvas. It starts with the wanderlust, the search for something to paint and inspire. It may be a fleeting moment in a day, or it may start with a journey (usually to the sea!). I sit on the beach looking out to sea for hours, drawing, painting, sketching, making colour notes and photographing. I jot down my thoughts and on my return to my studio, it sits with me for months and then it explodes from within me and onto a canvas. I paint really fast, but because I layer glazes one over the other, I have a long time to wait watching paint dry. I usually work on 4 or 5 paintings at a time as watching paint dry can be a bit dull. Unless working to commission, I feel my work is best having been through this process.
Ancient Gateway, 90 x 130 x 4 cm, £3,900
You recently went to the Arctic, could you tell us about your experience in such a mysterious and remote part of the world?
Living in London, we don't get much snow that actually stays on the ground for more than 10 minutes before it turns into sludge. One year there was a snow drift outside my door and I was really taken with the silence that snow brings and the way the light reflects off it. In my rather dramatic way I decided to go somewhere there was proper ice and snow - so thought of the Arctic, especially with it's frozen seas.
I found the Arctic to be majestic, bleak, beautiful, strong but fragile. I was so inspired by the light of the far North, the silence, the wildlife, the barrenness and the whole strangeness of it. The trip had inspired many paintings. I was so captivated by the Artic that I ended up also visiting Iceland and Antarctica afterwards and have found each of these places truly magnificent and inspirational.
Homeward Bound, 90 x 130 x 3 cm, £4,200
In your statement you say that you have been painting the sea for as long as you can remember. What does the sea signify to you?
I've come to realise that in my journeying to all the different seas and oceans that what captivates me most in my travels for wonderful waves is the quality of light. I love to paint the way water reflects and refracts the light. I love to paint the way the light shines through the waves and the way it shows the depth and mystery of the water. There are no moments by the sea that are exactly the same. Each wave and the way the light interacts with the water is unique. I love to paint just that. It's a spiritual thing.
To see more of Dawn's portfolio click here. If you are interested in arranging a viewing, or would like to commission a piece by Dawn, please contact Isobel on isobel@degreeart.com.
