In this new series of blogs, I will be taking a brief look at artists’ techniques, focusing on the style or subject matter for which they are most well known. I will be selecting artists whose paintings I have copied or who have inspired my own work. For more details go to my blog, "How to paint in the style of..."
J D Fergusson (1874-1961)
Fergusson was a much admired Scottish Colourist whose early contact with the French Post-Impressionists and Fauvists inspired him to produce some of the most dynamic British art of the early twentieth century.
Born in Glasgow and largely self-taught, he moved to France in 1907 where he embraced the bohemian Parisian cafe culture of critics, philosophers and artists. While his early work was influenced by the Glasgow Boys and Whistler, in Paris he adopted the bold, bright palette of Fauvism, the geometric forms of Cézanne and the work and colour theory of Matisse, whom he greatly admired.
Returning to Britain at the outbreak of the First World War, he became an active member of the Chelsea art scene before moving back to France. He lived out his last years in Glasgow where he founded the New Art Club and became the first president of the New Scottish Group.
An occasional sculptor, Fergusson mainly painted abstracted landscapes, highly stylised nudes, impressionistic still lifes of silverware, flowers, fruit and glass, and decorative portraits of women in extravagant hats. Figures bathing and resting was another of his favourite subjects. Among his most ambitious works is “Les Eus” which the art historian and critic, Duncan Macmillan, pronounced to be “without doubt one of the most original and ambitious British paintings of its time.”
Notable works include: “The Blue Hat, Closerie des Lilas”, 1909; “Jonquils and Silver”, 1905; “Les Eus”, c1911-13.
To paint in the style of Fergusson, aim to convey a boundless love of life in all its rich variety. Emphasise the geometry of figure and landscape. Choose pattern and loud colour over aerial perspective. Simplify landscapes into large blocks of pure, flat colour intensified by bold outlining and areas of rich dark blacks. Use repetition to create rhythm, considered by Fergusson to be an essential quality in a painting.
Be adventurous. Make rapid charcoal sketches of groups of people at the café or the market. Attempt to capture the excitement and movement of crowds everywhere.
For portraits Stun with fabulous colours and extravagant costumes. Start with a simple drawing, strong lines and modern palette. Look for areas of pattern in the clothes and the background.
Sketch the eyes and main features with irregular inky blue-black calligraphic marks using a round, springy brush. Smudge to model form, then rub back with a rag.
Paint in a flat, direct style with bright colours and lively brushwork. Place warm and cool colours side by side - blue, violet, yellow, pink and green all in tint, using lots of white, chalk and medium. Apply thickly with the blade of a flat brush keeping marks scruffy and loose. Take the eye around the painting with dashes of strong colour.
Self portrait by Jenny Potter in the style of J D Fergusson
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