Wonderland in Wales, 2001

The light clouds are blown away, 2002

Philip Sutton RA

His 21st Century Colours

3rd December 2020 (dated changed) — 28th January 2021

Philip Sutton RA, the 92-year-old artist who amazes with his paintbrush and colours, is currently living and working in Dorset, having returned to the county he was born in. He has been unable to leave his cottage within a residential home for the last 7 months, where he lives within metres of the sea in the harbour town of West Bay. Before lockdown he would go for a walk twice a day on the seafront, chatting to family and friends along the way and enjoying the views of the sea and sky, observing passing seabirds and remarking on them. Now instead of his strolls along the sea he walks around his garden looking at the flowers. He continues to work a full week painting and drawing and is enthused with his work. The solitude of not being able to meet up with his family and friends or show them his latest work for a long time is particularly difficult but he remains upbeat about his day to day working life. When he was allowed to have visitors, while observing social distancing, he found a way forward. He brought paintings onto the lawn which could be looked at from a distance by those close to him, his canvases of brightly painted birds livening up the garden.

With all forthcoming exhibitions cancelled, Philip decided to set up The Philip Sutton Gallery at St. Michael’s Art and Craft Quarter in nearby Bridport, a culturally interesting part of the town known for its diversity of artists and craftspeople. In his inaugural exhibition, Philip Sutton RA His 21st Century Colours, he is showing a selection of his paintings from 2000 up to the present day. He is particularly excited to be able to show his latest works, including vibrant paintings of his home in West Bay, flowers humming with colour and joyous birds. His latest exhibition will also be a chance to see works from Pembrokeshire, Wales where he spent many years painting his experiences of looking at the world. The delight of fields, feathery and bright, by his home in Manorbier, brilliant hues of the sun in the trees. The sea is suddenly lit up or we see pink-blue clouds that move across the sky, black crows. There are wistful glimpses of Crete, an island he and his wife Heather visited several times, the landscapes he saw there giving fresh feeling to his painting. His curiosity is also reflected in portraits, his hand moves lightly as he looks.

With all other avenues to exhibit his art closed off at present, at 92 he has embarked, with the assistance of his daughter and granddaughter, on making a space to hang his work, with viewings by appointment in a private gallery. The news that the Royal Academy has sold 5 out of 6 of his works on show at the delayed Summer Exhibition within the first 2 days of opening has given him encouragement as he continues to live and work as a painter. His joy at putting brush to canvas is a wonder to experience.

A Moment, 2020

To view the catalogue click here

For further information contact: info@philipsuttonra.com

The Philip Sutton Gallery
6a St. Michael’s Trading Estate
Foundry Lane
Bridport
Dorset  DT6 3RR