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Biography

Stuart Parnell, Artist, sketching in the countryside    

Stuart Parnell, Landscape Artist 

My Art Background

I was born in Bebington on the Wirral, U.K. in 1951 and studied fine art at Wirral Metropolitan College becoming a full time artist in 1987.  I have taught art in adult education in the past and I now live and work in mid Wales.  I have exhibited throughout the United Kingdom and my work can also be found in Europe, Australia and the U.S.A. 

I have been lucky enough to have my work accepted by the Royal Academy and my work has been included in the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours at the Mall Gallery in London,  the British Society of Painters in Yorkshire, the Royal International Pavilion at Llangollen and at MoMA, The Museum of Modern Art in Wales. 

The Grosvenor Museum in Chester own a piece of my work which is on permanent display in the lecture theatre. 

The main source of inspiration for my work is drawn from the natural environment capturing the ever changing British climate and it’s effect on the landscape.

Working from my riverside studio in the heart of the beautiful Tanat Valley, wildlife and natural landscape subjects are immediately at hand to be depicted in my paintings.  I paint with Acrylics on canvas and board now, although in the past I have used Oils, Watercolour and Pastel.

If I had to describe my work I would say that I attempt much more than objective representation.  It is very much a personal interpretation and is intended to delight the eye and lift the spirit. 

 

A Few Notes about me

 

I am married, have two grown up sons and I'm a granddad, a role I really enjoy encouraging them to draw and paint. 

As a child I grew up in a town surrounded by farmland and woodland which is where my love of the countryside began.  In my youth I was a member of an organisation that took us on camping trips into Wales and the Lake District. 

As a teenager I developed an interest in walking and climbing around the U.K. all of which added to my love of the British landscape. 

After getting married and raising two sons, we found ourselves with time on our hands and bought a V.W. campervan, spending all our free time touring Great Britain and Ireland, where my interest in capturing the landscape through the medium of painting was enhanced. 

During the mid eighties I decided on a career change and went to college to study fine art becoming a full time artist in 1987. 

I have been a member of several art groups and societies over the years and exhibited  my work in solo, group and touring exhibitions throughout the U.K.  

During the mid nineties we bought a static caravan in the Tanat Valley in Mid Wales where we spent our weekends and holidays, surrounded by wonderful countryside.  This in turn led  us to make a permanent move to live in the area in 2000.  I am now fortunate enough to be able to live and work in a rural setting  surrounded by breathtaking landscapes.  The images below are examples of the ever changing British landscape.

  Spring lambs, River Tanat                                  Lone pheasant, River Tanat

Two views from  my studio window, the first showing spring lambs

and the second showing a lone pheasant in winter.

More recently I have become a member of Valley Arts and Crafts, an organisation set up to promote the work of artists and craftspeople living and working in mid Wales.  More information about this can be found on the links page above. 

When I have some free time I enjoy a round of golf,  a game of snooker, reading, photography and exploring the countryside.