Chichester artist offers tribute exhibition to Alfred Wallis
Artist Max Wildman uses the same materials and techniques as used by Wallis himself and presented in a variety of vintage frames.
Max said: “Alfred Wallis moved to St Ives in Cornwall in 1890 when he was 35 years old, and there set up a business as a marine stores dealer which he ran for over 20 years, later becoming an odd job man in the town.
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Hide Ad“When his wife Susan died in 1922, he found himself alone and simply took up painting ‘for company.’
“His painting style was truly naive – totally untutored and uninhibited, with perspective being largely ignored, the size of an object varying according to the importance he placed upon it!
“He had no regard at all for ‘proper artists’ paints”, preferring to use ordinary household and ships paint and indeed anything else that came to hand, including pencil, crayon etc.
“He was also happy to paint on whatever scrap of material came his way, often using bits of old cardboard salvaged from the local grocer, which would be cut into wild irregular shapes to suit his whim. Today Wallis is hailed as the father of British Modernism.”
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Hide AdThe exhibition is at Chichester’s Oxmarket Gallery from March 26 to April 7.