An Artist Date
"I cannot paint for monetary gain I would rather starve than sell one piece of my work - but when I depart this world people will stop and wonder at the beauty and truth I have endeavoured to portray."
Percy Kelly in a Letter to Chris Wadsworth
When I had to miss the preview evening for the Percy Kelly Exhibition at The Beacon due to covid I was disappointed. Today I managed to get there on the final day as I took myself of for an Artist's Date. This is what Julia Cameron from The Artist's Way describes as an opportunity for an artist to feed the soul. Sunday morning and I parked on Lowther Street as it is free street parking all day and walked down to the harbour. I was met on the harbourside by a policeman who turned me back. Luckily the Beacon was open but I had to walk down Strand Street and through Quay Street as the quayside was closed off with police at every point of access.
I bought my ticket and wandered up to the Gallery for a quick look round before Tony Calvin's talk in the Beacon Portal.The exhibition features some of Percy Kelly's best large charcoals of Copeland, small watercolours and some of the Factory pieces commissioned by Sir Nicholas Sekers of the Sekers Silk Mill.
The talk about Percy Kelly's life, which is an interesting tale, was expertly delivered by Tony Calvin in the Beacon Portal before we set off to walk around the harbour and town to the various sites where Percy Kelly painted.
Out onto the North Pier first, the fishermen were busy casting their lines as we crowded round Tony by the lighthouse to look at his prints of Kelly's work to compare his paintings with the landscape.
Tony and Sal were full of stories as we wandered around the harbour looking at the landscape and examples of Kelly's paintings. It was really well executed, Tony answering questions as we walked.
We had to take a slight detour due to the police presence but luckily did not affect our enjoyment of the tour.
Back at The Beacon there was time for a longer, closer, look at the paintings to marvel at Kelly's bold confident charcoal lines.
An excellent way to spend my Sunday.
To find out more about Percy Kelly and his work look on percykelly.co.uk
Looking back towards Whitehaven from the lighthouse on the North Pier
Comparing the paintings with the landscape
Whitehaven Harbour by Percy Kelly
About the author
Comments
By accepting you will be accessing a service provided by a third-party external to https://www.natalieburns.co.uk/