McCrae’s words resonate strongly
in England, where the poppy has been a powerful symbol of
gratitude to our fallen soldiers since World War I. Sadly,
because of chemical control in modern farming over the past
few years, the poppy is not as widespread in our country farms
and fields as it used to be.
The drawing titled “Seven Poppies”
groups the oval and round shapes of the mass of flower heads
at the top of the paper, complimented by the linear, slender
stems in the more spacious area below. The background has
purposely been kept light in tone and to a bare minimum to
eliminate competition with the detail rendered in the flower
heads. Within the group there is one lone unopened bud placed
in an appropriate place to create a small “centre of interest”
for the eye to rest on. This particular piece was originally
meant to be a working drawing for a painting I planned to
do, but as I worked on it I felt compelled to continue to
a more finished drawing. Although I have a number of poppy
paintings in stock, I am about to begin a series of new poppy
sketches, drawings and paintings for another book I have in
mind and for possible licensing to print publishers.
The other one, “Two White Anemones,”
I like very much because of the strong contrast of pale flowers
against a dark blue background. Because the two flowers are
fairly simple in detail, I added some soft texture in the
blue background to add interest. The stem to the right of
the flowers was added to help balance the composition. Not
only that, having a flowerless stem that touches the top edge
of the picture creates a small element of interest. The other
element of interest is the way the dark blue fades from top
to bottom, where its dark tone contrasts with the pale flowers,
and the pale blue lower down contrasts with the dark stems,
thereby fulfilling the often used dark against light technique.
Meridian Magazine:
We knew we loved these works.
Now we understand why. Tell us a little bit about your journey
of mastery. Did you have to spend a few years doing intensive
figure studies?
Ron Larter:
In my early days I felt pretty
incompetent at drawing, which is why I pursued the abstract
road to compensate for my lack of drawing skills. Picasso
became a great influence in my work, but when my drawing skills
began to improve, I slowly slipped away from abstracts and
started to draw in a more realistic style, which is what I
always wanted to do.
To answer your question, yes
I did have to do a lot of intensive figure studies and nature
studies too, both in and out of college, to develop that all
important eye to hand co-ordination and for pencil control.
It didn’t come easy. It was pure hard work with moments of
anguish, disappointments and bouts of almost giving up; but
I persisted and I thank my Heavenly Father for my ability
to persist. This seems to be my one gift: the ability to persevere
when trying to reach a goal.
Meridian Magazine:
You began appearing in articles
about art, and exhibiting in prestigious galleries, in 1975.
Now, more than 30 years later, you have this unique and coveted
opportunity to contribute to the cause of conservation, via
the skill and gift you have cultivated over a lifetime. Your
example of persistence is inspirational.
How long would you say your formal
training lasted?
Ron Larter:
If you are talking about art
college, then it was two years. But it doesn’t really begin
or stop there. I didn’t started formal training at art college
until I was in my mid-thirties, sometime in the early 1980s.
That’s when I decided I wanted to work professionally as an
artist. Before that time however, I was a self-taught artist
who worked long hours getting every moment of practice I could
at drawing with a pencil, charcoal, pen & ink, etc. I
had sheets and sheets of paper and a good number of sketchpads
filled with studies of eyes, noses, mouths, ears, faces, head
and shoulders, and the full figure. But as time passed by
I moved more and more toward nature subjects and my sketchpads
were showing fewer figure studies. I hardly ever draw the
figure these days. Nature has become my greatest love of all.
If we include my period of informal training and college training
I guess it would amount to about twenty years, and I am still
learning and improving even now. It never really stops, so
it’s a lifetime pursuit.
Meridian Magazine:
If I were 16 years old and knew
(for sure!) that I wanted to become a professional artist,
what course would you recommend?
Ron Larter:
1.
College tutors are always drumming into students’ minds the
importance of constant daily drawing — even if it’s only just
for a few minutes a day drawing whatever is front of you.
Your subject could be the electric plug on your living room
wall, a chair, window, plant pot or a member of the family.
So that would be my first piece of advice — draw, draw, draw.
2.
Secondly, the type of course you take will depend on what
you want to do as an artist. Obviously I can’t give specific
advice on this, but generally, as I see it, there are three
routes that could be considered.
Many of the foundation courses,
especially in the UK, overlap each other where students have
opportunities to have a go at graphics, crafts and fine art
before they decide to specialise, which I think is an excellent
way to find out your niche.
As an example, Sarah, my 17-year-old
daughter, had plans of becoming a graphic artist, but when
she entered art college, she found out in the first year that
it wasn’t for her, except for the photography, which she enjoyed.
So for her second year, which has now come to an end, she
tried a year on the arts and crafts course and found it more
satisfying. Her drawing abilities have improved tremendously
and her interest in photography has strengthened. She has
now been accepted for a third year at art college on a course
that will allow her to specialize in her chosen topic, which
will be photography as an art form.
Basically, if you are young person
an introductory course or foundation course that offers a
mixture of various disciplines is an excellent route to begin
with. But if, like me, you are a mature student with some
experience as a self-taught artist, and have a reasonably
good idea what you want to achieve, then perhaps you can bypass
the foundation course. An adult can get straight into a more
advance course, which is basically what I was able to do.
Because my drawing had reached
a reasonably competent stage by the time I applied for an
art course, I simply sailed through with no problems at all.
In fact, the interviewer was quite excited with my work and
accepted me as a mature student with no hesitation.
Meridian Magazine:
As you get closer to 60 than
50, is your vision still keen enough to do the kind of work
you did in your 30s? Is there a trade-off between maturity
(experience) and youth (and dexterity and peak performance
of most of our faculties)?
Ron Larter:
My mind is always active with
new ideas for paintings. In fact I think it’s more active
than it was 20 years ago, simply because I have found my niche
in life and know exactly what I want to do with my art. When
I was in my 20s and 30s I had a pretty good idea of what I
wanted to do as an artist, but because I didn’t feel competent
or mature enough to create good nature art, I ended up creating
abstract paintings as a second best.
But now, 20 years on and as an
accomplished artist who can create nature art with a good
degree of competence, I now feel more settled in my mind with
the path I follow. My maturity in terms of age and experience
has its benefits, I guess. I am now producing art that not
only comes from the mind, but from the heart too; and it’s
available for a good cause. Ideas for new paintings come reasonably
easy.
I guess it’s a bit like a writer
who, over the course of many years, has developed a particular
style. Because of that style coupled with a larger store of
words and grammar use within his or her mind than the average
writer might have, maturity would naturally give an experienced
writer the ability to write more fluently with an improved
degree of ease compared to the unpracticed writer. I feel,
as a maturing artist, this is the stage I have now reached
with my art. My mind is filled with many images, color schemes,
shapes, and compositions. Being well co-ordinated with the
eye and hand and with my own particular style that has developed
over a number of years, I now have the ability to create with
a degree of fluency. I don’t suffer from artist’s block like
I used to.
Meridian Magazine:
Do you assume you will still
be painting and maturing as an artist for another few decades?
Ron Larter:
As long as I can still hold a
pencil and brush I can still see myself painting for as long
as I live. What a wonderful way to leave mortality!
Meridian Magazine:
Do you have other artistic interests?
Or is painting "your thing" and your only thing?
Ron Larter:
Yes, I do. Although painting
is my main interest, I also enjoy other creative interests.
I enjoy writing poetry, some of which has been published in
magazines as well as in books containing anthologies by various
poets. I also self-published a book of poetry a few years
ago but tend to ignore it these days because of its contents.
Although some of the works in that booklet contain topics
of a light nature, and even humour, there are however a few
topics of a personal depressive nature.
I have conceived the idea of
producing a second book of poetry titled My Poetry Workbook.
This book would feature a selection of my poetic works from
my earliest days to recent times showing the growth of my
writing as a poet and the progress of various poems from their
rough drafts to a polished work. But as I said, that’s just
an idea at the moment.
I also started writing children’s
stories in the 1980s, then in the late 1990s I decided to
undertake a two year course called “Writing for Children”
with the Academy of Children’s Writers, for which I received
a diploma of competence. I would like to have some of my stories
published in book form, but I haven’t really pushed myself
on that side of it. Perhaps one day I will.
Another connection I enjoy with
books is book making and book restoration. I used to buy old,
worn books from auction rooms for pennies per box, which had
books in fairly bad to reasonable condition dating from the
1700s to 1900s. Although some were really beyond repair, others
however were repairable. I have a nice English Dictionary
dated 1836 that was in tatters, but is now finely restored.
Besides book restoration, I have
also made a couple of books that come under the creative heading
of “book art.” I would like to make more — time permitting.
It’s quite a relaxing and interesting skill.
As you can see, as well as painting,
I have a passion for books too in all forms.
I have, over the past four months,
been working on an art book that I hope to have ready for
publication by the end of this year. It will contain a collection
of paintings from my flower series, supported by a number
of sketches, drawings and text. It’s planned to be published
in hardback at around $35-$40, but it might be available in
paperback too at a lower cost.
 |
 |
Bellflower
Commonly called
‘Canterbury Bells’.
Gouache on 140lb paper.
11”x 7”
|
Pink
Carnation ‘Doris’
Gouache on 140lb paper
10 ½”x 7 ½”
|
Small Tortoiseshell
Gouache and acrylic on 140lb paper.
6” x 6”
Blue Tit Feeding on Milk
Gouache & acrylic on 140lb paper.
10” x 7”
Meridian
Magazine:
Another area of mastery, which
you have not claimed, must be time management! Tell us about
a typical day in the life of a professional artist. How do
you work? How do you support your family?
Ron Larter:
My day as an artist doesn’t begin
until late in the morning. Each day begins by helping to get
our two youngest children, Joseph and Ben, ready for school,
seeing to house chores, taking my wife shopping when required,
and so on.
It’s usually about 11 a.m.
to 11:30 a.m. when my time as an artist starts.
I could be out in the field with my digital camera taking
photos or with a sketchpad and pencil making quick sketches
and notes of specific subjects. On other days I could be the
studio because I need to make time to store and file my photos
on my computer, or sort out magazine cuttings of various subjects
and objects relating to nature. I might find I need to spend
an hour or so cataloguing a small backlog of drawings, sketches
or paintings, which can so easily get out of hand with pictures
lying about haphazardly.
Meridian Magazine: There, you
see? We knew you were an exceptional manager.
Ron Larter:
All these studio chores need
to be seen to. Once all the photos, field sketches, drawings,
magazine cuttings, and other things are sorted they become
a very valuable library of reference material that can become
useful information for sparking off new ideas or for helping
to get the details right for any given subject.
And then of course there is the
actual painting itself, which usually starts in early afternoon
until it’s time to pick up Joe and Ben from school in late
afternoon.
After our evening meal, and a
bit of homework or discussing a scriptural topic with the
children I usually get back into the studio for a couple of
hours painting or preparing some promotional material for
my art.
Once in a while I try to visit
one of the many nearby galleries to see what’s on. My daughter
Sarah, who is currently an art student, often comes along
with me if it’s one of her days off from college.
Looking at my typical day as
an artist I feel I have a reasonably good balance of time
management that is shared between my family and my art. The
fact that I have my studio at home is a great advantage where
I can get straight into my art or stop and relax with the
family within a minute. But it does have a few small drawbacks,
especially when my dear wife strolls in; slips her arms around
my neck and whisper into my ear that she would like a short
drive into town. She often wins the call.
Meridian Magazine:
It’s a good thing our readers
understand that envy is not a productive emotion. You are
“living the dream” of many of our readers and a writers.
Tell us about your first glimmer of interest in art as a child.
Ron Larter:
As a child I was always captivated
by how two different colors could, as if by magic, create
a completely new color. All I wanted to do was to emulate
that magical phenomenon and often felt quite content as a
child just to sit and mix paints. I loved playing around
with paints and color, so I imagine my fascination and first
interest in art began at that very early age in infant school.
Even though I now understand why we get green from yellow
and blue, the act of color mixing still excites me.
Beach Pebbles
Gouache & acrylic on 140lb paper.
8” x 10”
Pebbled Beach
Acrylic, sand and gravel on canvas.
14” x 18”
Landscape Colour Study
Gouache & acrylic on 140lb paper.
Three Pears
Acrylic on 140lb paper
8” x 7”
Meridian
Magazine:
Moms and grandmas: Skip the expensive
craft kits and just let the kids play with plain old paint.
Thanks for giving us some useful guidance on an activity for
young children. Do you think most kids love to express themselves
with paint, and it gets drilled out of them as they grow?
Or is excellence in graphic arts like any other talent: If
you're willing to work hard enough, you can master it?
Ron Larter:
I guess making marks is one of
the most natural things we humans tend to do that reaches
way back to the beginning of time. It’s certainly one of the
most natural pastimes with children — bedroom walls are evidence
of that fact. (Chuckle).
Perhaps as they grow older they
find other subjects at school more interesting, such as music,
science, or sports, which in my opinion would naturally cause
them to ignore art and concentrate on their preferred subject.
I think to be an artist you need
more than a natural desire to express yourself with paint.
It has to be a part of you. It has to be in your heart, not
just your mind, which means you need to have a “feeling” for
the subject.
Excellence in any form of art
has to be earned. I feel certain of that. Yes, it can come
easier to some than it does to others, but it still has to
be earned. It’s only a gift to a privileged few, but even
the gifted still must learn the basics of art. What I will
say however is, an artist can have a natural desire and a
natural love for colors and shapes from a very early age,
but the skills and talents needed to turn those colors and
shapes into a piece of art have to be learned. The secret
is, never, never give up, even if you feel discouraged — which
I have many, many times.
Meridian Magazine:
Who were your teachers or mentors?
Ron Larter:
At school when I was about 13
years old, an art teacher, Mr. Kemp, offered the class an
opportunity to undertake some after-school drawing projects.
In a class of about 30 pupils I was the only one who accepted.
We developed a good teacher/pupil relationship and he was
always encouraging me to draw as much as I can.
The projects he set me to do
were to draw trees. He taught me how to “look” at subjects,
and not just “see” them, which helped me develop a keener
eye for texture, colors, tonal values, and so on. Although
I couldn’t draw very well, it opened my eyes to the beauty
and marvels of nature.
Even as a young child, I loved
playing in the undergrowth of the garden where I could find
insects to play with and leaves and plants to smell. I have
a photo of myself somewhere in my files when I was about 5
or 6 years old, holding and looking at a leaf. The expression
on my face was one of curiosity about that leaf. So I guess
I had a natural love for nature and it’s probably why I enjoyed
the project of drawing trees.
Those projects helped me see
nature through the eye of an artist, which opened up a new
dimension for me. It deepened my fascination for nature, and
the union of art and nature appears to have led to wedding
bells in my heart. But because of my lack of drawing skills,
that marriage wasn’t sealed until later in my life.
Meridian Magazine:
At what point did you realise
you could become a "real" artist as an adult?
Ron Larter:
When I was about 18 years old,
I had visions of becoming a gag cartoonist, selling joke drawings
to newspapers and magazines. Although I couldn’t draw realism
very well, I could draw cartoons, so I gave it a try. After
about a year of trying, all I received were rejection slips
after rejection slips, so I eventually gave up. Feeling despondent
I almost gave up the idea of being an artist, but thankfully
I didn’t. I turned my mind to abstract art, which led to my
first sale.
I must have been about 19 or
20 years old after experimenting with abstract art. I sold
a picture created from colored thread and nails on board.
A local store that sold products for the homeowner took one
of my pictures on a trial basis. Within a few days it was
sold, and he called for more to display in his store. It was
at that moment when I felt I became a real artist who had
received payment for the creation of a piece of original art.
It was a terrific buzz that spurred me on.
Field
of Yellow Rape Seed
Acrylic on canvas
24” x 24”
(This
painting has more of a contemporary feel, which I occasionally
do as a break from my regular style. I still enjoy dabbling
with abstract painting to some degree).
Meridian Magazine:
Bless that visionary shop owner!
That “spur” is still in effect. We are pleased and excited
for you, and we thank you, again, for sharing your personal
story with our readers. And now we understand you would like
us to do a bit of market research for you.
We’d be happy to!
Readers,
Brother Larter is trying to get a feel for the preferences
of American art buyers. Those of you who might consider yourselves
part of that category, do you prefer limited edition prints,
signed and numbered by the artist, or are you more attracted
to open edition prints, signed but not numbered, and therefore
less expensive?
Please
send a blank email to Ron Larter (art.rlarter@btinternet.com)with
the word “limited” or “open” in the
subject line to cast your vote. This is NOT an ad or an opportunity
to buy at this time. It’s purely research.
To view Ron Larter’s web
page, go to www.natureartists.com/ron_larter.asp
For fun, refresh the
site. Each new visit will display a new work of art.
