Rembrandt, Self-Portrait,, 1659. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
“It is no easier, I’m convinced, to make a good painting than to find a diamond or a pearl; it requires effort, and you stake your life as an artist on it.” Vincent van Gogh, to his brother Theo, September 1888.
In this talk for ARTscapades, Martin Gayford discusses his riveting new book, How Painting Happens (and why it matters), deftly bringing together numerous artists voices, past and present, giving a wealth of insights into painters and painting. Here is Vincent van Gogh on Rembrandt, John Constable on Titian, Francis Bacon on Diego Velázquez and Gilbert & George on Samuel Palmer.
Drawing on his extraordinary interviews carried out over more than three decades with painters talking eloquently about painting, among whom are Frank Auerbach, Gillian Ayres, Georg Baselitz, Frank Bowling, Lucian Freud, David Hockney, Lee Ufan, Paula Rego, Bridget Riley, Jenny Saville, Hiroshi Sugimoto, Shirazeh Houshiary and Oscar Murillo. Discover how diverse artists talk about the way they work, the different routes by which they came to be painters, their contemporaries, and predecessors. Gayford also shares how, with painters’ insight, they discuss such previous exponents of the brush as Titian, El Greco, Edward Hopper, Suzanne Valadon, Petrus Christus, van Gogh, Edgar Degas, Paul Klee, and Eugène Delacroix.
How Painting Happens (and why it matters) by Martin Gayford is published by Thames & Hudson (26 September 2024). Ticket holders will receive a code to use for 25% off the £35 retail price via their website here. UK orders only.
Proceeds from ARTscapades ticket sales benefit museums, galleries and other arts-based organisations and projects.
This is an online event hosted on Zoom which can be watched live, or on-demand for one month afterwards. You will receive your link to access the event in your email confirmation and the on-demand link after the event ends.