CLIFFS AT WEST BAY

John Brunsdon was born in Cheltenham in 1933, the son of a cobbler and a silent film pianist, and studied at Cheltenham College of Art and the Royal College of Art.  He was a highly skilled printmaker, who worked from his studio in Suffolk where he hand etched, inked and coloured his prints, he took great pride in the process of printmaking and is known for his meticulous craftsmanship.  His work is in many private and public institutions including the Tate Gallery, Scottish Museum of Modern Art and the Museum of Modern Art, New York.  He was also a founder member of the Printmakers Council, established in 1965, and head of printmaking at St Albans College of Art for sixteen years.

Landscape has always been Brunsdon’s main interest, even when his images were still abstract and influenced by American abstract expressionists such as Kline and Motherwell.  Then he enjoyed using etched marks, shapes and textures in order to express the ‘feel’ of a particular place, later he used broad areas of colour and sweeping shape to record places that he knew.

His prints demonstrate his bold use of colour, line and design and are immediately recognisable.  He was particularly interested in the influence of mankind on the landscape, and the marks that are left behind, for example in farming, the patchwork patterns of fields and ploughed lines.  He also excelled in the depiction of water and coastal landscapes, particularly the dramatic cliffs and beaches of Dorset and the Welsh coast.

Medium: Etching and aquatint

Signed: Signed, titled and numbered 18/100

Size: 77 x 55cm