John Kingsley PAI, RSW
impressions · expression
4 – 25 November 2017
With the imagination and skill to work successfully across a range of styles and subjects, Scottish
painter John Kingsley is more than happy that his new show at Doubtfire Gallery in Edinburgh reflects
all aspects of his output.
John is just as comfortable in the creation of free-flowing abstraction as he is with a delicate still life or
a lush landscape in the south of France.
In essence, he applies an exciting sweep of colour, texture and verve to all his work. That body of
work has won him great acclaim and a series of prestigious awards, the latest being the May Marshall
Brown award for his Elemental Landscape triptych, shown at this year’s RSW exhibition in Edinburgh.
Added to this, John was awarded the role of tournament artist, commissioned to paint the courses
hosting the annual British Women’s Open Golf Championship 2017.
Born in Glasgow, where he still lives and works, John Kingsley studied drawing and painting at
Glasgow School of Art under Dr. David Donaldson, James D. Robertson and Geoffrey Squire. He has
exhibited with the Royal Scottish Academy, the Royal Glasgow Institute and the Royal Scottish
Society for Painters in Watercolour, where he was elected a member in 2015.
He has shown widely throughout the UK and his work features in collections of HRH the Duke of
Edinburgh, Tommy Hilfiger and Paisley Museum and Art Gallery among many others at home and
abroad.
Like many Scottish artists before him, he has been much inspired by the landscape of France. John
says, ‘I’ve had a long love affair with the landscape of Provence, he said, ‘the light, the earth, the rich
greenery of the vines, the villages and shadows.’
John’s latest exhibition reflects impressions of a recent visit to the rugged Mediterranean island of
Corsica. And he hopes to add more Scottish landscapes to those already earmarked for the show.
His more abstract work often grows out of his connection with landscape. As he explained: ‘The
abstracts are a mixture of sizes but are largely landscape inspired. I like the free-flowing nature of this
approach, which always surprises me with the element of experimentation with form and colour.
I often start with a sketch as a basis for these works but more often than not the sketch becomes
redundant as the painting takes off in its own direction.’
He is also greatly drawn towards the challenges of still life, proving the format still has tremendous
potential and vitality, even as artists have been interpreting its themes for centuries.
‘In the still lives, I enjoy playing around with the perspective and narrowing the picture plane, thereby
emphasizing the surface qualities and paint textures,’ he said. ‘They are also an opportunity to create
a dynamic balance of shape and colour.’
Whatever the subject matter, John’s expression of colour is instinctive, harnessing it as the principal
means of expressing form, light, texture and, above all, creating harmony in the composition.
When this exhibition, his first at Doubtfire, opens on 4 November, he joins an eclectic roster of artists
who have shown there from all corners of the UK – and beyond – encompassing the full gamut of
painting and drawing genres.
Doubtfire Gallery can provide further digital images of John’s work.
For more information, please contact: Jane Muir: art@doubtfiregallery.com
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