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At school art was always one of Carl’s favourite subjects and after passing GSCE first grade in Art, he went on to do a two year Graphics Course at Ashton-Under-Lyne College of Art, obtaining a North West Regional Diploma in Graphic Art and Design. He has spent most of his working career in art for the advertising and publicity business producing designs and finished artwork for everything from newspaper and magazine ads to brochures, logo design and point of sale display material, working in studios in and around the Manchester area.

 

Eventually Carl went freelance and began successfully running his own design and advertising studio over ten years ago.  Carl took early retirement to devote a lot more time to painting.  For six years he was programme secretary of Bury Art Society which gave me a great deal of worthwhile involvement, satisfaction and inspiration. He loves to experiment with different techniques and ideas to produce a wide range of stunning effects.

 

Much of Carl’s work now is done using acrylic paints as he described them as being the most versatile.  He stated that “They can be used as a thin wash, much the same as watercolours, or thickly in a similar way to oils and the other bonus is a fast drying time which enables me to work spontaneously, without waiting too long for the paint to dry.”

 

“I would say that when I begin a piece of work, my aim is not one of total realism, but more of an individual, slightly abstracted feel, which I achieve by fragmenting the image into shapes that echo certain elements in the image and then the painting, in a way takes over and dictates to me how it wants to progress.  I find this way of working really exciting and enjoyable.  My background of graphic art has a tendency, I think, to show through in the style my work. For the last few years I have been exhibiting in several galleries in the Manchester area and also down in Padstow, Cornwall, where my paintings have been receiving a substancial amount of interest. Cornish harbour scenes are indeed one of my favourite subjects.  I love to paint the quayside cottages and fishing boats, which feature in much of my work. Spending three weeks down in Cornwall each year walking the coastal paths, taking in the wonderful atmosphere and beautiful scenery.”

 

In the last couple of years Carl has been showcasing his work at the Bury Hospice Art Week at Bury Art Gallery and the Holmfirth Art Week in support of Macmillan Nurses.