My Life in Art - John Childs
February’s focus for ‘My Life in Art’ is The Heseltine Gallery’s founder and former Head of Art and Assistant Headteacher at Chenderit School, John Childs. John is currently Honorary Treasurer of the National Society for Education in Art, of which he was formerly president, and has been Assistant Principal Moderator for the Oxford and Cambridge examination group (OCR) since 1984. He is also an education consultant and artist. Thank you, John for sharing your life in art with us and the incredible work you have done for the gallery and art education.
Farms near Auvers by Vincent van Gogh (1890)
Vincent van Gogh, Farms near Auvers, 1890, oil on canvas, 50.2 x 100.3 cm (Tate, London - on loan to The National Gallery, London)
John: I grew up in North London where the Piccadilly line allowed quick and easy access into London and the National Gallery. As a teenager I would often hop on the underground and spend time exploring this wonderful national collection. I would always end up in the rooms showing the Impressionist and Post-Impressionists works. I could spend ages in front of works like Monet’s The Thames below Westminster, Cezanne’s Hillside in Provence, although Van Gogh’s Farms near Auvers was undoubtedly my favourite. It has great vitality, with its narrow band of sky, patchwork of fields, powerful swirling lines and strong colours. I still visit the National Gallery when in London, focusing in on one ten-minute session on a single painting before a quick stop at my favourite room.
Three trees, L’Estaque by André Derain (1906)
André Derain, Three Trees, L’Estaque, 1906, oil on canvas, 100.3 x 79.9 cm (Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto - on permanent loan to The Israel Museum, Jerusalem)
John: Following A levels and foundation at Hornsey College, I decided I wished to teach and went to Bognor Regis to do a four-year Bachelor of Education. This course allowed me to pursue many craft activities, as well as painting and drawing. I was introduced to a great range of crafts and skills: pottery, screen printing, batik, weaving, calligraphy, bookbinding and painting. In second year, my colour range became very narrow, centred on reds and purples, so much that my tutor introduced me to the work of the Fauves, with their vivid use of colour and outlining. I was set a series of still life along with land and seascapes - at least two a week. I was most interested in the landscapes and seascapes of Derain and Vlaminck.
Tree II by Piet Mondrian (1912)
Piet Mondrian, Tree II, 1912
John: Returning to North London to teach, many hours were spent walking in Northaw Great Wood where many paths led through ancient woodlands. Inspired by these ancient forms, I began a series of A1 drawings in pencil or ink, with added watercolour, like these trees. I have always been interested in the drawings and sketchpads of artists, so visiting Amsterdam and seeing Mondrian’s tree drawings and paintings (Evening; The Red Tree) and Van Gogh’s pen and ink drawings (Tree roots in a sandy ground) at the brilliant Kroller-Muller Museum was always a treat. I have returned to doing A1 studies of trees in graphite during the lockdown.
Stylized Tulips by Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Charles Rennie Mackintosh, Stylized Tulips, watercolour on tracing paper, 21.9 x 14.7 cm (The British Museum, London)
John: At my first teaching post, I discovered I had to teach textiles, which I continued at Chenderit at both GCSE and A Level, with the focus on screen printing, which I had learned at college. Many past students now earn their living designing textiles. Artists such as Mackintosh, Dufy, Voysey and William Morris featured in my teaching, their rhythmic shapes of flat colour allowing the students to grasp the concepts of the design process. In the early 1990s, I did a master’s degree at Warwick University. Half practical and half theory, the discovery of an unused printing table allowed me to return to making my own textile pieces using the new skills and influences I had acquired in 20 years of teaching it. Later, I completed a commission to produce an altarpiece for the chapel dedicated to Thomas Becket in King’s Sutton parish church.
Path Through a Wheat Field, July 2005 by David Hockney (2005)
David Hockney, Path Through a Wheat Field, July 2005, 2005
John: I paint in oils, working from sketches done on site, usually working from the memory of the colours, assisted by notes and sometimes photographs (although usually I have neither a camera nor phone with me). I paint coastal views and landscapes with a palette knife or brush, with fairly strong colours. I was delighted to visit the Royal Academy David Hockney exhibition, A Bigger Picture, in January 2012. I knew he had returned to his Yorkshire roots and spent the last decade painting in the open air. I was enthralled by the exhibition and returned a second time, inspired by the watercolours and oils from observation.
Equestrian Figures (700-800 AD)
Tang dynasty, Equestrian Figures, 700-800 AD, pottery, 49 cm, Compton Verney, Warwickshire)
John: I have always enjoyed working in clay and continued my ceramics training at the John Cass School of Art in Whitechapel, when first teaching in London. I learnt to throw with a teacher who would not allow you to keep anything until you could centre and throw five small flowerpots blindfold. I have always visited the British Museum and the V&A, looking at ceramics - the horses from the Tang dynasty always took my attention. The challenge of producing a mounted horse was irresistible and I have produced a few Don Quixote figures as well as, recently, a camel and rider. Compton Verney has a set of twelve equestrian figures that always receive a little of my time when I visit.
Why do you #LOVEArt?
John: It is challenging to take a blank sheet and create something new, something that is part of me, something that can be appreciated by someone else. Art enriches the quality of life; it improves physical and mental health and empowers me with a sense of purpose, especially when helping others.
‘If you could say it in words there would be no reason to paint’ - Edward Hopper