Artist Carole Russell takes inspiration from what she sees. KATHERINE TAYLOR reports
KEEPING IT REAL
C
ATS, the Island of Capri and Nottingham Forest Football Club – what do they all have in common?
Apart from each favouring leisure time, they’re all subjects to have been given close attention by Nottingham artist Carole Russell. “I like to paint what I see, not what I feel”,
says Carole, “I create realism. “When I’m looking for inspiration, something’s got to strike me. I haven’t a clue what it might be, but I know as soon as I see it. Some days it’s just not happening, then others, it’s there all of a sudden.” Carole, 55, is based in West Bridgford. “I paint in my front room, setting up my easel and a trestle table with everything I need on it: a disposable palette, paints and two pots of water. I lay a towel from charity shop on the floor. I’ll go and have a cup of tea, then it’s pinny on, knowing everything’s ready when I am. “My materials are nothing fancy, just Daler-Rowney Cryla acrylic paints and synthetic brushes. I’m forever leaving brushes in water. I’m a bit slapdash. “When it comes to canvases, for me, it’s
always a case of the bigger the better. It has to be the right shape too. There’s nothing more frustrating if it’s too small or too short. Th e r e ’s nothing better than a big, white canvas sat on my easel, paints at the ready, waiting for me to dive in.” Carole, who has no formal artistic training, is proving she can turn her hand to a myriad of subjects. Anything and everything comes under her close scrutiny. “Being an artist makes you look at the world differently. I’m usually inspired by the shape of something. When I’m drawn to something, I’m hooked and have to paint it.”
Looking around her painting room, I see a wide range of different subject matter. Carole’s creations are unpredictable and colourful. “Capri was my first inspiration because it’s
such a beautiful place. I go there every year and take a lot of photos. My trio of pictures – the Marina Grand triptych – is exactly as you see it in real life. I’ve created the canvas as a long picture with a 360 degree view. I really enjoyed painting it.”
Above: Magnolia Blossoms – ‘I‘m drawn by the translucency of their petals’.
Left: Carole at home in West Bridgford with some of her diverse wo r k .
Below: With her Marina Grand triptych – painted exactly as you see it in real life.
NOTTINGHAMSHIRE TODAY 57
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