Penguin Books publication of Lessons for Young Artists, a small format book by the artist David Gentleman has been a welcome addition to his catalogue of books and a reminder that the great man, now in his nineties is still going strong. Regular visitors to this site will be well aware of my affection for his work and this new book by him is a blessing.
This is not a ‘how to’ book by any means, Gentleman is a reluctant teacher and this is a book based on what he has learned in over seventy years as a professional artist and for it to come now, at his age feels like a passing of the baton.
This book is a deliberate attempt to show the reader that not all art has to be painstakingly done, sometimes a simple outline sketch can say it all. Not everything requires an embellishment and Gentleman gives us fine examples of the two. Alongside truly stunning pieces of watercolour art sits simplistic quick sketches of pen and ink.
Well known for his preference to paint ‘on site’, he shows how a quick outline sketch might be all he can manage before light, people and/or time pushes him to complete the drawing in his studio. With his main home being in London, few of his paintings are and cannot realistically be without people and he is the master of showing how effective simple outlines of people in crowds can be. He has a keen eye for people of interest and I often wonder what he thinks as he paints people and places and the changes he has witnessed over some seventy years.
The book is full of invaluable advice for the artist, beginner to professional. He offers reassurance and inspiration in equal measure. This from an artist never afraid to go out and sketch and paint in public or to challenge ideas and stereotypes. He stood his ground against the establishment and took the hits and so the sage advice he offers demands to be listened to and adhered to by any young artist wanting to make their mark in a desperately difficult environment. Gentleman cautions against copying other artists and to develop one’s own style and for any one of any skill level to simply enjoy themselves. Life and art is too precious not to.
At his grand old age it is not unreasonable to think this will be his last book, and if it is, he signs off a remarkable career and life with a book both wonderfully executed and intended. David Gentleman had that unique style which captivated the art connoisseur and inspired the beginner in equal measure. Like Paul Hogarth and Edward Ardizzone slightly before him, his art appeared deceptively simple. Like them, he loved to add people to a scene to give his paintings a sense of life with a view. How wonderful it must be to have been captured by him and his brush.
Further reading
The Life and Bibliography of the artist David Gentleman
David Gentleman’s In the Country
Categories: David Gentleman
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