The Big Frieze
Artists & Illustrators|January 2020
RACHAEL FUNNELL looks at the work of three artists who have travelled to the ends of the earth to document frozen landscapes and raise awareness of the climate crisis
Rachael Funnell
The Big Frieze
In the wake of growing concerns surrounding the very real threats of climate change, it’s perhaps unsurprising that there are artists making some of the globes most remote, unhospitable and under-threat environments the subject of their work. What is more surprising, perhaps, is how these works can be used, with paintings proving useful for scientific researchers keen to show the rapidly changing faces of these frozen landscapes as both temperatures and sea levels continue to rise.

This quest to capture these transitioning environments connects three highly influential artists operating on opposite sides of the Atlantic who have all worked in some of the most remote and fragile places on earth. A new exhibition at The McManus in Dundee, Among the Polar Ice, brings together works by a number of artists including Frances Walker and James Morrison, both of whom have experienced life on the ice. Meanwhile, New York-based pastel painter Zaria Forman has undertaken expeditions with likes of National Geographic and NASA to capture the dramatic and changing landscapes of the North Pole and Greenland. But with average temperatures dropping to minus 40 degrees, what challenges do these artists face under such extreme conditions?

Born in the quiet outskirts of Kirkcaldy in 1930, Frances Walker graduated from Edinburgh College of Art and spent several years on travelling scholarships, exploring the likes of Iceland, Yugoslavia and Greece, before taking up a teaching position in the Outer Hebrides. Electricity hadn’t arrived in this far-flung corner of Scotland and, with no conventional means of transportation, Frances would spend her days travelling about on horses, tractors and boats in search of unique and spectacular locations.

Denne historien er fra January 2020-utgaven av Artists & Illustrators.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra January 2020-utgaven av Artists & Illustrators.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA ARTISTS & ILLUSTRATORSSe alt
Still life IN 3 HOURS
Artists & Illustrators

Still life IN 3 HOURS

Former BP Portrait Award runner-up FELICIA FORTE guides you through a simple, structured approach to painting alla prima that tackles dark, average and light colours in turn

time-read
5 mins  |
March 2022
Movement in composition
Artists & Illustrators

Movement in composition

Through an analysis of three masterworks, landscape painter and noted author MITCHELL ALBALA shows how you can animate landscape composition with movement

time-read
6 mins  |
March 2022
Shane Berkery
Artists & Illustrators

Shane Berkery

The Irish-Japanese artist talks to REBECCA BRADBURY about the innovative concepts and original colour combinations he brings to his figurative oil paintings from his Dublin garden studio

time-read
7 mins  |
March 2022
The Working Artist
Artists & Illustrators

The Working Artist

Something old, something new... Our columnist LAURA BOSWELL has expert advice for balancing fresh ideas with completing half-finished work

time-read
2 mins  |
March 2022
Washes AND GLAZES
Artists & Illustrators

Washes AND GLAZES

Art Academy’s ROB PEPPER introduces an in-depth guide to incorporating various techniques into your next masterpiece. Artwork by STAN MILLER, CHRIS ROBINSON and MICHELE ILLING

time-read
7 mins  |
March 2022
Hands
Artists & Illustrators

Hands

LAURA SMITH continues her new four-part series, which encourages you to draw elements of old master paintings, and this month’s focus is on capturing hands

time-read
7 mins  |
March 2022
Vincent van Gogh
Artists & Illustrators

Vincent van Gogh

To celebrate The Courtauld’s forthcoming landmark display of the troubled Dutch master’s self-portraits, STEVE PILL looks at the stories behind 10 of the most dramatic works on display

time-read
6 mins  |
March 2022
BRING THE drama
Artists & Illustrators

BRING THE drama

Join international watercolour maestro ALVARO CASTAGNET in London’s West End to paint a dramatic street scene

time-read
7 mins  |
March 2022
Serena Rowe
Artists & Illustrators

Serena Rowe

The Scottish painter tells STEVE PILL why time is precious, why emotional responses to colour are useful, and how she finds focus every day with the help of her studio wall

time-read
8 mins  |
March 2022
Bill Jacklin
Artists & Illustrators

Bill Jacklin

Chatting over Zoom as he recovers from appendicitis, the Royal Academician tells STEVE PILL about classic scrapes in New York and his recent experiments with illustration

time-read
8 mins  |
March 2022