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Chris Geall, Landscape Artist Based in Ruswarp near Whitby, North Yorkshire, I am a landscape painter specialising in large panoramic oil paintings on canvas blocks using a palette knife. I have recently taken over a gallery on Church Street in Whitby which we are calling Trattles and Geall. I will be keeping my current paintings on the gallery website and Blog. Hopefully I will never have enough time to keep this website up to date, slick and professional. Well I could always pay someone I suppose, but I've been living in Yorkshire too long for that.
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Whitby & The North Yorkshire Moors This is a truly unique and beautiful part of England, with its large open spaces of the moorland and dramatic rugged coastline, it's well worth a visit. I'm yet to find another part of Britain that for me is so readily paintable without spending an inordinate amount of time in the car. After 8 years here I've now reached the point where I'm no longer spending large amounts of time searching for views but am able concentrate on my favourite spots and try to capture them in differing seasons, light and weather. It still tickles me that an important part of my job is to get up early and take the dog (Charlie) for a walk. |
The Palette Knife When I first tried painting with oils I struggled and struggled with brushes just producing mud. On picking up the palette knife I was up and out of the blocks. I think it comes down to what I want from a painting which seems to be a complex and enjoyable interaction of colour. The knife stops me concentrating on detail and allows me to mix and blend to my hearts content. The beauty of the British landscape for me comes from the soft and subtle greying of colour that our damp atmosphere gives us. For some reason my work is particularly difficult to frame without trapping it, so I paint on canvas blocks that sit like big windows on the wall. I stretch the canvases myself which is the one job I hate, but I think I do pretty well otherwise. The painting itself is normally a fairly frenzied affair, working from crude sketches and photo's. It's been very enlightening seeing myself on video, I hadn't appreciated how I work before. I start working from the light source and work out. Normally skyward first and then downwards. I particularly love pictures which bounce between warm and cold colours. I'm also forever being drawn to the big views so I spend alot of time trying bring the eye forward using composition and gradually increasing colour strength. Commissions A large proportion of my income comes from commissions. I really enjoy the whole process of getting to know clients and establishing what they want and can expect. It is a very personal experience and nothing can beat the thrill of the big moment as I reveal the finished work. I haven't had one go wrong yet, touch wood, but always give the reassurance that if not satisfied the painting will be whisked away and sold through a gallery. |
Spring tends tofind me rummaging in the woods around Grosmont before the leaves grow too much and shut out the light or dodging the showers on the moors above Egton Bridge and Goathland. As summer arrives the sun starts setting further North lighting up the Esk valley or producing beautiful reflections on Whitby Beach or accross Runswick Bay from Kettleness. As the summer wanes the heather erupts into spectacular pinks for a brief few weeks, the area around Danby and Fryup Dale being particularly good. Normally At this point I switch to dawns as they start coming forward to a reasonable hour. Saltwick Bay and Robin Hood's Bay face nicely to catch the early colours. Once the weather turns I seem to ease off and catch up on the summer pictures I failed to squeeze in. The Hole of Horcum comes into its own in late autumn once the bracken turns. Winter normally sees me waiting for snow and plotting world domination, however this year I'll be busy painting Scotland for Poppy and Dughall's Wedding list.