Alex Rennie
BA Honours Degree in Fine Art

Born 1977, England.

Alex Rennie graduated from Cheltenham & Gloucester College of Art with a B.A. Hon's. Degree in Fine Art July 2000.

Alex was first recognised by the McNeill Fine Art Gallery in 1997 whilst studying for his foundation course at Harrow School of Art. He has since continued to exhibit with the McNeill Fine Art Gallery which has carried him through for four years whilst still at Cheltenham & Gloucester Art Collage.

His finals were concerned with large figurative pieces dealing with form and field.

Artist Statement

My work is extremely diverse and always changing. This is because nothing is more important to me than my development as an artist.

Within each body of work I experiment with new techniques to further the progression of my paintings. I specially enjoy the manipulation of light, with warmth, fluidity and high realism. I use such manipulations to create a deep atmosphere and stark illusion on a two dimensional surface.

My painting moves between two poles of static high realism (where the subject is dynamic) and an abstract constructed of drawing and loose application of paint (where the medium becomes the dynamic element in my work.) My influences are broad, they include traditional artists such as Tiepolo, Rembrandt, Caravaggio and Louis Corinth and more contemporary artists such as Jenny Saville, Lucien Freud and Peter Doig.

Recognition Listing: The Dictionary of British Artists 2006 - 2012

Major Exhibitions: BP Portrait Awards National Portrait Gallery England  2005/2006
BP Portrait Awards National Portrait Gallery Scotland 2006
Lauderdale House London 2006    /   Resident Artist McNeill Gallery, England

Collectors: Major London/ Indian Institutions as well as Private Collectors

Lawrie Williamson
N.D.D., F.R.S.A.,
R.B.S.A., A.R.O.I.

Born 1932, Scotland.

Winner of both the Stanley Grimm and Cornellisen Prizes at the Annual Exhibition of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, and the Canson prize at The Royal Birmingham Society of Artists. He paints predominantly in oils but sometimes in water-colour.

Lawrie's style of painting is unique, British Impressionism at its best.

Lawrie Williamson's work is sought after by major institutions and private collectors world wide.

“Few if any, handle the medium of oil painting as well as Lawrie Williamson.” Brian Sewell- Art Critic for TV and Newspapers

Medium – Oil & Water-colour

Hashim Akib

Born 1967 England                                                                                                                                                                            Self

Working as an illustrator for over 15 years has provided valuable experience in developing a backbone of drawing, conceptual ideas and painting techniques.

My client list varies from The Times newspapers, Daily Express, Daily Mail, Time magazine, ad campaign for Smirnoff, a stamp for Royal Mail and concepts for a product range for W.H.Smith.

 Over the last few years I have been keen to explore my own ideas and evoke a greater emotional response in my paintings.

 Contrasting flecks of colour, heavy textural paint and expressive brush strokes combine to bring greater depth and mood to each painting.

 I am inspired by everyday images around me. Recently I painted a series of paintings in various cities as well as in and around the Notting Hill Carnival.

 Awards;

1987 Highly Commended, Cadbury's Young Artist of the Year
2000 Braintree Summer Open, Hannay Award
2001 Braintree Summer Open, Braintree District Council Award                                
2005 International Artist Publication, 'Favourite Subjects'
2005 Winner SAA Professional Artist 05
2006 The Artist, Patchings 06 Competition
2006 Winner SAA Best Animal/ Wildlife category
2006 Sucessful entry into The Royal Society of Marine Artists exhibition, Mall Galleries
2006 Sucessful entry into The Royal Institute of Oil Painters, Mall Galleries
2007 Highly Commended SAA Townscape catergory
2007 Winner SAA Seascape catergory
2007 Winner SAA Professional Artist 07
2007 Third Prize, Artist & Illustrators Self Portrait Competition

Exhibits -  McNeill Gallery Radlett England

Brian Shepherd

Oscar Whicheloe BA

 Born 1977 –England      Retro Portraits

In 2003 Oscar Whicheloe graduated from The Surrey Institute where he gained his degree in Fine Art. During this time Oscar developed a passion for the human form and has subsequently been exploring this interest for a number of years.

Observation of people has been the main focus for Oscar in his recent works. Whether sitting on a bench in busy Trafalgar Square or strolling along the more relaxed Southbank, Oscar finds himself constantly being drawn towards people. Using a snapshot, Oscar captures brief moments of peoples’ activities and then translates into two different mediums Etchings and Oil Paintings.

The small-scale of the pieces draws the viewer in for closer inspection – much as we’d like to do when passing someone on the street, thinking in the back of our mind: Who are these people? What are they doing? Where are they going? What are they about?

Within this body of work Oscar has been influenced by artists such as Gerhard Richter, Stephen Conroy, Francis Bacon (Painting), Rembrandt and Lucian Freud (Etching).

Recent Biography

2008                         Glasgow Art Fair

2007                         Karen Taylor Contemporary Art, Middlesex.

2007                         The Gallery, Dulwich, London.

2007                         Royal Academy Summer Show, London.

2008                        McNeill Fine Art Gallery

2008                         Dublin Art Fair

Commissions Taken, please enquire with the McNeill Gallery

Henderson Cisz

A seasoned traveller, Henderson has spent time in Europe, Australia and of course his native South America. While he loves the ocean and has always found it a source of inspiration and joy, he is also a true city-dweller, and many of his most inspirational works feature scenes from the world’s most beautiful cities. Painting in acrylic, oil or watercolour on canvas, Henderson’s trademark palette utilises cool, soft tones to convey the atmosphere of his subject. His works are regularly displayed in London galleries and at international art fairs.

“I love the effect that weather has on the urban landscape and must confess to a particular fondness for the rain! Not only does it cast interesting shadows and reflections on the slick sidewalks, but it also dictates the stance of the figures. Their slightly defensive postures and hunched shoulders lend a very specific, and to my mind curiously engaging, mood to the overall scene.”

Permanent Exhibit - McNeill Gallery England

Sally Trueman

Inge Clayton FRSA

Elizabeth Chalmers

Born 1939, Belfast

Elizabeth began her career as an illustrator on the Belfast Telegraph and teaching art and history. In 1964 she moved to Cornwall where she developed a natural talent for pen and ink drawings of traditional buildings, and a love of the countryside. The family later moved to Berkshire where she concentrated on watercolour paintings of buildings and landscapes.

Elizabeth now lives in the Cotswolds and has taken opportunities to paint in France, Greece, Italy and South Africa, as well as in her native Ireland.

Elizabeth's work has appeared on calendars, prints, greetings cards, table mats and book illustrations.

Georgie Cowan MA -

MaryAnn Clarke

1947, England

Mary-Ann Clarke spent her formative years in Hampstead, where her grandmother inspired her love of nature. She spent much of her time drawing and painting in the area.

She attended Barnet College, qualified at Reigate College of Art and became an art teacher.

After settling in Hertfordshire, Mary-Ann began to raise her three daughters and returned to art. Mary-Ann became a pupil of the well known pastel artist William Mason and his influence is clearly visible in her art. Mary-Ann has remained a pupil of William Mason for over twenty years and says that she is constantly learning.

When it comes to depicting scenes, Mary-Ann uses soft focus and amorphous impressions to create a harmonious balance of images which conjure up a distinct yet highly nostalgic atmosphere. Her style concentratew on quality of light and its effects on nature.

Medium: pastel and oil

Paula Couling
S.W.A.
N.A.P.A

Paula has painted in oil, gouache and pastel, and has exhibited with The Pastel Society. For the last fifteen years she has mainly painted in acrylic and has become a member of the National Acrylic Painters Association and has shown her work at their exhibition in Birmingham.

In 1993 Paula was elected to membership of the Society of Women Artists, London, and regularly exhibits at their annual exhibition at Westminster Gallery.

Her main love is landscape especially in and around her home county of Dorset, and she is always seeking to convey the atmosphere of the countryside in her work.

Malcolm Coward

Malcolm Coward is internationally recognised as one of England's leading equestrian artists, and the winner of numerous art awards. He has exhibited in many countries including America and Spain, as well as in Britain.

Malcolm's work is noted for its tremendous use of colour and light and his powerful, yet sensitive, brush strokes. Landscapes are one of his favourite subjects and he is a great lover of animals and the countryside.

Bill Bate -BA

Beryl Lansley Cook

Britain's Most
Popular Artist

In 1995 Queen Elizabeth awarded Beryl an OBE (Order of the British Empire) for "services to art" Her characters have been featured on Royal Mail stamps in the company of Rodin and Renoir as well as a major poster campaign against handbag theft which was used by the Metropolitan Police depicting "Staircase"

Beryl's paintings have been included in the Peter Moores exhibition at the Walker Gallery in Liverpool, where she was seen in the context of mainstream contemporary art, alongside Bridget Riley and Victor Passmore. Several touring exhibitions of her paintings have visited galleries and museums around the UK. The new Glasgow Museum of Modern Art has recently acquired some of her original work ensuring her place in the annals of British Art History.

Beryl Cook has created a genre as immediately recognizable as Lowry's matchstick people or Donald McGill's saucy postcard characters, yet she is modest about her achievements. She insists she lead a very mundane life.

" Beryl is not only a kind of cheeky friend who shows us a mirror of our own familiar and flawed behavior with a benevolent twinkle in her eye, but also a voyeur whose eavesdropping is quite embarrassing if you recognize yourself or your loved ones in her paintings" - Dawn French -

"For Beryl Cook the world is a place full of amusing and ridiculous situations: her observations of the people around her are never cruel, never poking fun at weakness, but highlighting the fads, foibles and fancies of human behavior. - Morning Star -

" I suspect Beryl's paintings will be remembered and cherished long after most 20th Century art is forgotten." -Edward Lucie-Smith -

" In many ways Beryl Cook is the nicest thing to happen to British paintings for years" - Evening Standard -

Beverley McNeill, McNeill Gallery. "Beryl Cook is to image as Victoria Wood is to word"

Tim Dolby

Born 1958

This is a characteristically diverse collection of Tim's art which brings together landscape oil paintings and expansive filled water-colours, inspired by travels to European cities and upstate New York.

Tim's work reflects his continuing affection for the glorious Surrey countryside where he makes his home. Tim is a frequent exhibitor at The Royal Academy, The Royal Society of Marine Artists and the The Royal Society of British Artist's

Medium – Oil & Water-colour

Baz East

Born 1938, London

Baz entered his first studio as a trainee in 1954 and spent much of his early career in commercial art followed by a number of years in scientific and technical illustration. Extensively commissioned in free-lance book illustration, the Warne's series of Observer books alone contain over 500 of his illustrations.

Baz worked for the Open University, Department of Graphic Design, from which he took early retirement from his position of Senior Graphic Artist in 1988 with the aim of painting full-time.

Landscapes and outdoor themes predominate with watercolour and oil being the main media.

Penny Figgis
B.A Fine Art

Born 1939

Penny studied art at the Regent Street Polytechnic School of art and graduated in 1985 with a B.A. Degree in Fine Art at University of Hertfordshire.

She has since exhibited her works at the Mall Gallery London with the Royal Institute of oil Painters and The Royal Institute for Watercolours.

Penny often works in a series and is currently working on the theme Brittany which includes a more abstract approach to her landscapes, she does not aim for topographical likeness rather an impression.

David J. Folley

Born 1972, England.

David started his art studies at Plymouth College of Art and Design. He later moved onto Falmouth School of Art and Design and became a full time artist in 1994.

David’s landscapes are difficult to pin down. They are avant-garde, traditional figurative abstractions, the one absolute being their very individual style.

David is presently working on a number of private commissions as well as on a large canvass for the Theatre Royal in Devon.

David’s work is building an immense popularity with Institutions and Private Collectors.

Mixed Media - watercolour, oil, acrylic, egg and wax

Sharon Gee

1961 - 2005 

Unique talented British Artist Ms Sharon Gee has drawn attention and accolade through her representational and abstract style of painting. Ms Gee in her first year as a professional artist had one of her works entitled “White Lace” accepted into the Private Royal Collection of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother at Clarence House. Another painting entitled “The Rose” is owned by the English Rugby Football Union where it hangs at Twickenham Stadium.

Sharon has a natural ability to create designs in their simplest form using light and colour as the main emphasis of her paintings.

“The simple, direct vision of this artist should surprise and delight both the general public and collectors alike”
S. Sinsley -Art Historian, Critic and Professor of Modern Contemporary Art at The Art Institute of Chicago. March 2000

Exhibitions:

• McNeill Fine Art Gallery - Radlett Hertfordshire
• Collins Fine Art Gallery - Chicago U.S.A.
• (AAF) - London

Medium: Water-colour – Oil - Acrylic

John Holmes

Born 1935, England

Surrealist Painter

Medium: Oil & Acrylic

John Holt

Born 1949, Manchester.

John followed his artistic talent and entered Salford College of Art where he achieved a Licentiate of the Society of Industrial Artists. This led to a Bursary Award by the highly acclaimed Royal Society of Arts.

After college John embarked upon a career in graphic design and advertising, culminating in 1985 when he set up his own design agency in Leeds. He currently splits his time between his first love - painting and his design and advertising agency.

Regular group and one man exhibitions mainly in the North of England has furnished him with an enviable reputation for his dazzling Provence landscapes, café and market scenes. Whilst the colours are exuberant the subject matter is nothing if not laid back. Bright orange, yellow and luminous green vie with bluish mauves and tinged with purples in his pastel work.

His still life studies continue in the same vein with the same bold use of colour portraying his superb free-flowing style.

Medium - Pastel

Keith Johnson

Born 1942, England.

Keith was born in Stafford and studied art at Stafford College. His father, however had a very different view as to what a proper job should be, so Keith became a shoe designer and spent much of his working life in that industry.

In his latter years he felt enough was enough, and with the enthusiastic support from his wife, he took up full time painting.

His watercolour landscapes show a deep understanding and appreciation of the subject, which ranges from the Scottish Highlands to Cornish coast and the Lake District.

Keith has been widely published and his work has proved to be best sellers.

Medium - Watercolour.

Tamor Kriwaczek

Born 1972, England.

When Picasso first dissected art into its component parts in 1907 it triggered a thread of creative discovery that continued throughout this century, leading from cubism all the way to conceptual art.

Tamor Kriwaczek has risen to the challenge combining these ideas and styles in his work. The power of paint, composition, colours and styles all combines to create a fresh view. The result is powerful art everyone can understand, producing paintings of people using the paint to describe their chareacter.

Exhibitions:

• McNeill Fine Art Gallery
• Centaur Gallery London
• Affordable Art Fair- London

Medium - Oil

James Leggat

Born 1959

The 20th Century Romance Collection

James was bought up in Scotland and his artistic talents flourished early- His unique style is memorable for its distinctive abstract style.

He was then accepted to join The Glasgow School of Art and in his final year was one of the most sought after students of that year.

James has had regular exhibitions in London and is presently working on a series of images from life. His work is now sought by major collectors around the world.

Medium: Oil

John Luce Lockett

Born 1952, England.

The 20th Century Romance Collection

John Luce Lockett trained at the Northampton School of Art and the Byam Shaw School of Drawing in Kensington. He has exhibited in London's Cork Street Fine Art, Hurlingham Gallery and Roy Miles Albermarle Gallery. John has also exhibited world wide with London Contemporary Art.

This unique collection of oil paintings celebrates an era which no other generation will ever experience. The nuances of a century not captured in news of war and violence, but in the human desire, which holds us all together, Love, Romance and Passion. Some of the “Romance Collection” are now available in Limited Edition Silk-screen Prints.

John has exhibited with the Royal Society of Portrait Painters and has enjoyed many one man exhibitions. His work can be found in stately homes and private collections all over the world.

Medium- Oil & Acrylic

Peter Midgley R.A.

1921-1991

Painter, constructor of abstract reliefs, printmaker, draughtsman and teacher, born in Berlin, Germany, as Fleischmann, adopting the surname Midgley after the family who took him in in Manchester. Midgley, had a tough childhood in Germany in an orphanage, attending the Berlin Art School before arriving in England for a period of Internment in the Isle of Man. He was released into the care of two painters who found him a place at Beckenham School of Art, 1947-51, attended the Royal College of Art, 1951-53, winning a travelling scholarship to Rome, 1953-4. In 1955 Midgley began teaching at Beckenham School of Art, becoming a tutor at Ravensbourne College of Design & Communication, 1966-86. He was elected to the society of Mural Painters in 1956, joining the Chartered Society of Designers in 1958. He showed with the Royal Academy, Victoria & Albert Museum, Camden Art Centre, Royal Festival Hall gallery, and Greenwich Theatre gallery. In 1978 he gained a retrospective show in Berlin, Woodlands Art Gallery giving him a memorial exhibition in 1992. Was a member of printmakers' Council. He had work in public and private collections in Britain and abroad.

Medium: Oil & Mixed Media

Melanie Paice
BA (Hons) in Fine Art at De Montfort University, Leicester

Her first solo exhibition is showing in the chapter house at Wells Cathedral. It is a beautiful setting for a collection of work based on the Cathedral. Accuracy does not play an important role in these works, they are all about impact and impression. Melanie is fascinated by the architecture in particular the curved compositions created by the scissor arches. The way the light plays on the arches influenced the choice of colour. Melanie has both looked at whole views through the arches and taken small sections from her observations and abstracted them. The works range from small watercolours to large oils on canvas. These bold brightly coloured works ooze vitality. All works are available for sale through the Cathedral shop and there is a great selection with which to brighten your living room.

Artist Statement:

I tend to work from observation and then create abstract compositions from the forms. My inspirations are generally from nature or architecture.

There is a great deal of experimentation in my work. I enjoy exploring what the paint can do. Colour is very important to me and I feel a real energy is created by the vibrant yellows and oranges used in may of these paintings. I was fascinated by the compositions created by the scissor arches and felt they deserved to be portrayed in rich bright colour.

Accuracy was not of paramount importance to me, I was more concerned with creating an impression of the impact the architecture had made on me. I was interested in shape and curve.

My main choice of medium is oil paint but I enjoy working in a variety of media.

Teresa Pemberton
B.A. Hons Fine Art University of Hertfordshire

Teresa graduated in 1996 with 1st class BA Hons Degree in Fine Art from the University of Hertfordshire. She has since Exhibited at the Thompson Gallery London, McNeill Fine Art Gallery Hertfordshire .

Soon after her graduation, Teresa Exhibited her work at the McNeill Fine Art Gallery, who continue to support graduate art students by holding an Annual Open Exhibition.

Teresa expresses herself in her paintings through her experience's using colour and landscape with a poetic vent. The painter Patrick Heron and Peter Lanyon have influenced Teresa's art through the colourist theory.

Medium: Oil

Rather than including recognizable objects in her work, Pat uses the elements of painting itself – colour, line, shape, brush strokes, texture and light. Pat could be said to be working under the umbrella of abstract expressionism. Although not wanting to give her work such a specific label, her paintings bare a great similarity with the aims and style of such work.

“Painting is a wonderful medium for emotion; I see my art as the creation of feeling and energy - bright, passionate and thought provoking”.

Pat's pictures are unique and can go through many transformations – a painting which may have started using one colour or specific painting technique, may be completely different to the finished work – this is what Pat refers to as her ‘organic' process.

Her paintings are upbeat and colourful which she hopes exude both passion and vibrancy, yet having the ability to grab attention and compel the viewer.

Inese Silina

Born 1978, Latvia.

Inese graduated with honours “Bachelor of Fine Art” from the Art Academy of Latvia in 1999.

She has exhibited at a number of established galleries and museums in Latvia, and won first prize for “The Congressional Art Competition” held at the Congress Building Washington DC. U.S.A. This is her first exhibition here in the UK at the McNeill Fine Art Gallery.

Inese has produced a varied portfolio of her recent work including, landscape, still life and figurative works in the style of the Contemporary Impressionist's.

Medium: Oil

Mary Stork

1953 - 2007

Mary has become an internationally acclaimed artist since she returned to painting 1989. Her work now hangs on the walls of homes and corporate buildings around the world. She is currently in demand by top galleries in and around London's Cork St.

As the top student of her year at Bristol, Mary was then encouraged to further her training at the Slade School of Fine Art in London. She spent another three years at Slade until 1961 and studied under William Coldstream, Frank Auberbach and Keith Vaughan among others. At the Slade, she was constantly exposed to work and interpretation of work by internationally renowned artists.

“A good picture continues to breathe and vibrate with energy” - Mary Stork

Medium- Pastel

Julia Walling

Born 1958

Julia is a self-taught artist and was inspired to paint by her experiences in South West Cornwall as a child. The St Ives Artists such as Patrick Heron and Ben Nicholson as well as initially influenced by the British Avant- Garde and Bauhaus movements. Julia's work is eclectic combining the use of bold colours form and texture.

Julia studied for a degree in philosophy and later went onto to study Psychology. She is a behavioral psychotherapist and uses her insight and understanding of mind and spirit to inspire her work. Her series of paintings “Frames of Mind “ were exhibited at The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2000 with encouraging results and hopes to repeat this success in 2001. Julia is presently involved with the Eden Project in Cornwall, where she will be exhibiting in the new gallery.

Exhibitions

• McNeill Fine Art Gallery Radlett Hertfordshire
• The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition – London

Medium- Acrylic