FOUR REAL I
The Art of the Real is a new collective, comprised of four members of the UK’s leading watercolour societies. As they embark on a series of exhibitions spanning three continents, the group reveal how they picked up tips from touring rock bands
f you’ve ever dreamt of forming a band and touring the world, you will know how tempting it is to imagine a glamorous lifestyle away from humdrum daily routines; a world in which your talents are recognised by a global audience. Art of the Real is a new collective borne of similar
ABOVE David Poxon RI, 12111 Zetor Crystal, watercolour on paper, 46x66cm
18 Artists & Illustrators
thinking – the difference being that rather than picking up guitars and fantasising of stadium tours, this group of four artists are plotting global domination via a series of exhibitions. More surprising still, this isn’t a quartet of disaffected teenagers, but four established painters who are each members of the UK’s leading watercolour societies. So the question is, what drove them to do it?
The origins of Art of the Real began in 2010, when
Shropshire-based watercolourist David Poxon chanced upon the work of Angus McEwan. The Scottish artist’s textured urban scenes bore a distinct resemblance to David’s own paintings of old industrial subject matter. “I thought, I wonder if he’s copying me?” says David, only half-jokingly. “I’ll track him down and interrogate him.” In the end, he settled for sending an admiring email and the pair immediately hit it off. “We struck up a friendship of like-minded admiration. Each of us had got to a certain plateau in our art careers where we’re in the two best societies for watercolour painting in the UK, but thought where do we go next?”
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