John Yardley - A Watercolour Master

John Yardley has been one of the very best British watercolour artists for many years. He is now in his mid eighties, as is Trevor Chamberlain a contemporary. He also paints in oils but is best known for his watercolours. I don't know how active he currently is.

I met him once at the Alexander Gallery in Clifton, Bristol. He was one of the resident artists and they were holding his b-annual exhibition. Apart from the gallery owner the only people there at the time I visited were him and his wife, so I introduced myself and had a short conversation. He is a  shy man but was very pleasant. The late Ron Ranson had previously told me that Yardley had become involved with the Alexander following the death of Edward Wesson, who was one of their major artists. They were looking to find someone similar and - at the time - according to Ron John painted in a very similar way, in fact Ron said you couldn't tell them apart. He did drastically change his style sometime after this which I will relate later.

APV films of Chipping Norton have produced at least two (at least four) videos of which I have one 'Sunlight in Watercolour'. They are all still available.  He is also the subject of several books, by Ron Ranson, Susan Haines and more recently Steve Hall . They are all good but my pick is 'John Yardley A Personal View' in the Atelier series by David and Charles. This isn't' a 'How to'  book but as the title implies - a personal view. I rate it highly as I do the similar book by Trevor Chamberlain in the same series. The Atelier series were discontinued after only a few titles were  published but should be available second-hand if you search for them, possibly at a price!

Apart from the books and videos he has until recently tutored annually at Dedham Hall in East Anglia. He is not a natural teacher and obviously finds it difficult. Looking at his videos you can see this.  I know or knew several of those who were regular attendees  at Dedham and all became friends, some painting with him on other occasions. His approach was to do a wonderful demonstration, with those present desperately trying to see how he was doing it as he didn't say much if anything. He would then disappear for a cup of tea and a sticky bun with the baffled students scratching their heads. Ron Ranson attended one such course when he was writing his book on Yardley and after he disappeared several asked him  to explain how he did it, leaving Ron somewhat embarrassed.  The Susan Haines book touches on this. All I can say is he is held in very high regard by his students, some of whom are professional artists, many becoming firm friends.

Watching his videos I was struck by the fact the only real tip imprinted on my mind was his suggestion of keeping the water container full to the brim so you can measure the correct amount of water in the brush. I can't really think of much other advice. The brush he was using was the very expensive Winsor & Newton Series 7 size 10 at over £100. Ron Ranson said in his book that there were discarded brushes all over his studio which John said had lost their point (after about 6 months). When you see him paint on the video you can see why. He scrubs them into the palette when mixing paint and uses dry brush a lot. In more recent years he joined the Escoda band waggon with a three brush set being offered with his name on the handle. Mentioning his studio he had a purpose built one  in his garden but preferred to paint in the kitchen!

In his Atelier book he relates how a visit to Venice brought about him becoming his own man in leaving Wesson behind. His palette choices are conventional although he cautions against the over use of Cadmiums. Paper is or was Arches, Lanaquarelle and Canson tinted. He originally painted on Bockingford like Wesson. Sizes are from 15' x 22' down to 10" x 14". His palette was originally a folding Roberson which he was able to replace by the similar hand made palette from Craig Young, another regular attendee at Dedham who became a close friend. On the video he is using one of these palettes, the one with the six wells, probably made specially for him.

Subject matter is quite extensive. While he paints a lot outdoors he also loves interiors. Horses and trains also feature with flowers another favourite. Figures in his paintings are prominent. On the video he actually demonstrates how to paint them. He is a very bold painter who doesn't waste a stroke. As is clearly shown painting the light is a priority.

  He is a wonderful artist and with the  books and videos available you can find out much more. There are lots more of his paintings to study if you 'google' his name. Without doubt he has few peers amongst watercolour artists, although I recognise the huge number of fabulous artists throughout the World.

This and That

I went to the AVA session last week but forgot my camera! I actually set out the previous evening to sort myself out and get better organized. I thought I had but when I got there realised I'd left my camera. The pleasures of advancing age!

The subject was Figures or Portraits but this was affected by the proposed model being unable to attend. Basically we then did our own interpretation of the subject. This was the one item (apart from the camera) that I hadn't finalised and I was at a loss  what to do. First of all I raked out an old Amerindian study but in the end attempted a photograph of eldest grandson Harvey taken about a year ago. Quite often at home, with no time or any other pressures, I'll carefully measure and calculate the distances between eyes, nose, mouth etc - if the old masters could use all sorts of mechanical aids why not - and produce a  careful drawing. In this instance I did it the hard way and drew the outline of the head, then put in the features using rough measurements. It worked out roughly right although I didn't quite catch his expression and made him look about fifteen when he is not quite ten.

Harvey 16" x 12" Fabriano Artistico Extra White 140lb (300gsm) not

Not great is it - actually rather poor, eyes too big, face wrong shape etc etc - although the hair isn't bad. Still another step on my return to painting. 

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I did a post recently on the demise of PY153 the pigment mostly used in the popular Indian Yellow and Gamboge paints. This was a bit of a blow as the replacements are mixed pigment paints or not identical in colour. However one of the art shops in Bath, F J, Harris in Green Street, has been selling Rowney watercolours at very keen prices for  months. They didn't have the complete range but Indian Yellow was included. When the news broke I  visited the shop, as we live quite close to Bath, but they were out of stock of that colour. On a subsequent visit the same thing occurred so I thought that was it. Last week I called in again and lo and behold the Rowney had been re-stocked and I bought the  two 15ml tubes they had. It says `PY153' on the tubes so I assume this is correct, although some companies have been known to change the pigment without correcting the labels. Price was £5.63p which is almost  £1 cheaper than mail order from Jacksons. This should last a year or more. I wonder how Rowney are fixed with pigment supplies? Added 17/12/13: I called on F.J Harris in Bath at the weekend to buy some art materials for my granddaughter Evie. Checking the Daler Rowney watercolours I spied more Indian Yellow PY153 so purchased another tube ( 15ml at £5.63p). I now have three so that should last a while.

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The Spanish company Escoda make a very good range of brushes including Kolinsky sables. From what I have heard they are very nice people to deal with. They are also very good at marketing and have been getting an increasing number of artists to promote their products. The Dutch artist Gerard Hendriks was recently sent an assortment - I gather gratis - and has been testing them. I must admit to being very cynical about the huge, ever growing range, of art products, paints, papers, brushes, you name it, with artists names attached. 

In the case of Escoda, specifically their top of the range Kolinsky series 1212, and retractable series 1214, they have at least two sets, one with Charles Reid's name,  and most recently John Yardley. Up until 2012 Charles Reid always recommended Da Vinci Maestro and indeed this was so on the 2013 workshops, although Escoda retractables were also mentioned and on some demos he used them. He also had a series 1212 Size 14 Escoda, possibly others, and  I subsequently bought one after examining it.  

 On one of his Catalonia workshops Charles was given the royal treatment with a visit to the Escoda factory.  We now have a three brush set of Charles Reid Reserva Series 1214 travel brushes in sizes 6, 8 and 10. Jacksons price is £57.80p but the standard Escoda series 1214 in the same sizes work out at £54.80p.

 I mentioned John Yardley. Escoda have also introduced a John Yardley set of three Reserva 1212 Series, sizes 6/10/12. The price is £49.90p while the same sizes in series 1212 in the basic Escoda name are £60.70! This is really weird, an apparent premium with Charles Reid's name on the brush and a discount if it is John Yardley. I have just checked these prices (Jacksons)  again to make sure I have it right but it is certainly correct as of today. Bromleys appear to be similar although they are only selling some of these special sets and not the standard series. As for John Yardley now recommending Escoda he previously swore by Winsor & Newton Series 7 and used a Size 10, costing over £100, exclusively. In his book about him Ron Ranson commented on the number of series 7 brushes lying about John Yardleys painting room that had been discarded because they had `lost their point'. There is one odd thing. Bromley refer to the Kolinsky sable travel brushes as the `Optimo' range and the 6.8 and 10 come to £45.49p. Is this a different cheaper alternative to the Reserva series? Somewhat bewildering and reinforces the belief that you should take nothing for granted and very carefully check things out before parting with your hard earned money.

If you read the blurb, and the website comments, that refer to these brushes then claims are made that I find difficult to believe. They involve what sizes these artists are said to use and claims that they think they are the `best in the World or best they have ever used'. Well they may be and Escoda do make excellent brushes as I have several, both 1212 and 1214's.  On sizing though they are up to two sizes smaller than Da Vinci and also Raphael, possibly one in some others.  The prices are still very good even taking that into account. Best in the World? I think Rosemary, Da Vinci, Raphael, Isabey and others might dispute that. My current mix of brushes are Isabey and Da Vinci  plus Escoda and Rosemary Travel brushes. I like them all. 

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One final item. While playing with my new ipad I came across a website called `urim.co'- apparently American. It claimed to `assess' blogs and the following figures were quoted for mine.

World Ranking- 14,335,201 USA 1,970,225

Number of visitors per month: 386

Daily Figure: 0 -17

Average Number of page Reads; 1

If these figures are correct I don't know why I bother. It would be like shouting to oneself in a sound proofed room. According to Blogger stats, this month will hit around 14,000 page reads, which is the highest ever. What should I read into this and which set are correct?

The Craig Young Experience

Craig Young has become famous in the World of Watercolour as the maker of very special hand-made paintboxes. How did this come about? Craig was always interested in making models of various sorts, micromodels and also aircraft. He graduated from University and studied Metallurgy, initially being employed in the research department of the motor giant Ford. Later he worked for ICI, where he was involved with metal, plastics and paints.

 In about the early 90's he became interested in watercolour painting and decided to enrol on a course with the famous British watercolourist, the late James Fletcher-Watson. When on the course he noticed JFW's paintbox, a venerable antique, which had been repaired many times and went back fifty years! James told him he had asked both Winsor and Newton and Daler Rowney to make some of these old style paintboxes but both refused. I should add that at one time there were several distinctive old designs, made by, amongst others, Winsor & Newton, but they have been unavailable for many years. When they occasionally turn up at antique sales they command high prices.

This got Craig thinking and he thought he would have a shot at making one. He decided to use brass instead of tin as it was easier to solder and did not corrode. For the first one he encountered all sorts of problems, tried different soldering tecniques and also paints, overcoming the difficulties by seeking specialist advice. The paint he uses is one from the garage trade which includes a hardener. This all took several months before success was achieved and that was with the first box! The initial boxes were all in black but other colours have since been introduced and proved more popular. At this time he was still working for ICI and made the boxes at weekends in his garage. First years production was 12 units.

Naturally James Fletcher-Watson was the first customer and the Fletcher-Watson palette was the first box. After several years, at 57, he was offered early retirement, and jumped at the chance although he afterwards did consultancy work for Manchester University.

With James Fletcher-Watson promoting his palette orders began to come in. One day he received a call from a lady wanting to order a box, purporting to represent the Duchess of York. He thought it was a hoax  but later received a call from JFW saying had he received any contact about this. It turned out she was having private painting lessons with JFW and he had recommended Craig.

The Fletcher-Watson

.Craig is a keen artist and he believes this has helped considerably as he understands and is interested in talking to other artists. Following his experience with Fletcher-Watson he heard about John Yardley and duly went on one of his annual courses. Once again he noticed that John was using an old battered paintbox of a distinctive design.This relic was an old famous box known as a Roberson. He decided to try and make a replica which proved much more difficult than his first, due mainly to the oval recessed wells of the old design. However this man is nothing if not persistent and after much trial and error the problems were overcome. Craig became friendly with John Yardley and has been attending his courses for 17 years. He says they are more of a social occasion these days with several other friends, like professional artists Judi Whitton, Steve Hall and Don Glynn, regular attendees.

Then came Charles Reid. Craig heard about Charles and booked one of his courses in America! During the course Charles came to look at his work and noticed his paintbox. He picked it up and proclaimed to the class he had been looking for something like this for years. Craig also became friendly with Charles and Judi Reid and for a few years organized his UK courses, although this has now been taken over by Jane Duke. Charles has four of these hand-made beauties!

Once again word of mouth recommendations, and other artists seeing the palettes, has led to repeat orders from all over the World, especially the USA which accounts for 50% of the total. Many famous people who paint have them including the singer Tony Bennett, the actor Gene Wilder, both friends of the Reid's, and some important corporate figures. Steven Spielbergs wife has one. Each box incidentally has an engraved plaque with name or initials on it. This is the only bit of the box that Craig doesn't make personally.

The Small Paintbox

The Large Paintbox 6 oval wells instead of 4, and 20 paint wells instead of sixteen

The Sketcher's Box Judi Whitton has a `special' with 20 paint wells.

My three treasured boxes, The Paintbox, Palette and  Sketcher's Box,

two in British Racing Green the other brass.

As above but open.

I contacted Craig this week and asked a number of questions which he kindly answered.  In making the palettes he uses a cold curing modified epoxy paint, together with a hardener. It is sprayed on and cures in around 30 mins at 60 Deg C. Despite being urged over the years to buy specialized equipment and get a small workshop, he has resisted this for various reasons. He still does all the work in his garage and uses minimal tools, vice, tin snips and hammer! He does have steel blocks to form boxes around, but dished wells are all hand shaped likewise hinges etc.

Craig produces around 15 boxes a month and prefers to mix the types, rather than do a long run of one particular sort. He has made over 2500 to date and the most popular is the Small Paintbox (Roberson type) with sales approaching 1000. He did make two very small boxes, the Pocket Box and the Sketcher's Box, but now only one, which takes either half pans or tube paint. The Palette Box is a replica of another old type called the Binning Munro. This was used by Trevor Chamberlain who now has the Palette box without the flap as  does David Curtis. When I was on a Charles Reid course in 2008 I noticed he was using a similar box to the Palette one but rather lighter. I'm not sure what the differences are but Craig tells me has sold a number, although not advertised it due to the large number of orders he has for the others. He is open to `special' orders but naturally at a price. I have met quite a few artists with his boxes, and not all are professionals by any means, many amateurs like me. One point that needs to be made is that these boxes are heavy duty, in other words quite heavy compared to the cheap metal ones on the market. This doesn't refer to those made by Holbein and Fome, and the Spanish Viera, which will be covered in another post. 

There has been a great deal of comment on Wetcanvas and also Painters-Online about Craig Young palettes. They do create much interest and some controversy. Those who have them treasure them, while others, for different reasons perhaps, question the need to spend such large sums of money on a painting palette. Other artists would dearly love one but feel unable to make such a large financial commitment. Unfortunately as I have shown niche products, hand-made not an inferior replica mass produced in  China, don't come cheap. Does possession make you a better artist? Of course not but those of us with them can still dream of becoming one.  Craig's website with full details of his product range, prices, delivery times etc is www.watercolorpaintboxcompany.com/