Tuesday 4 February 2014

Kurt Jackson: The Thames Revisited


A Dusting of Snow. Cliveden Reach. November 2010 © Kurt Jackson

A Dusting of Snow. Cliveden Reach. 
November 2010 © Kurt Jackson

I’m trying hard not to miss out on opportunities to see the work of artists that I admire, and a couple of weekends I had rather a treat going up to London to catch a couple of exhibitions that were on my ‘must see’ list. 

Four Mallard Four Mallard Tumbling Into the Source of the Thames at Dusk 2013 © Kurt Jackson

Four Mallard Tumbling Into the Source of the Thames at Dusk 
2013 © Kurt Jackson


It’s only in the last six month that I have found the work of Kurt Jackson, the highly talented and well respected landscape painter. Since then I have bought a couple of books of his work and become a big admirer of his paintings. His pictures bristle with life; whether they are of crashing seascapes or tranquil river views. This vitality comes from paint that is brushed, poured, flicked & scraped on surfaces ranging from small squares of paper to giant wall-sized canvasses. Jackson is neither a photo-realist nor a dauber, but his pictures accurately capture the gestalt of a place better than most can manage. His latest exhibition was Kurt Jackson: TheThames Revisited which was on display at the Redfern Gallery in Cork Street. The exhibition followed the river from source to sea, and includes a wide range of imagery that spans from rural idylls to motorway underpasses, impressive views of the capital and on out to the reaches of the estuary. The paintings were marvellous, every bit as exciting as I had hoped. It is wonderful the way in which his gestural, energetic mark making seems to result in believable details.


Thames Meander, Dry Nettles and Willows. February 2009 © Kurt Jackson

Thames Meander, Dry Nettles and Willows. 
February 2009 © Kurt Jackson

If I were working in London I would have found ways to go back and see the pictures again. Instead, the exhibition comes to me in the form of a really nice catalogue that I bought as the third book in my Jackson library. I just know that there will be more future purchases for that book shelf. 


Hawthorn and Willow. Oxford, Cherwell. Chiffchaff Calls. May 2010 © Kurt Jackson

Hawthorn and Willow. Oxford, Cherwell. Chiffchaff Calls. 
May 2010 © Kurt Jackson