Welcome

Rosemary Gurney Clark is a British watercolour artist and etcher. Her paintings explore the often forgotten corners of rural Sussex and Kent. The discarded machinery, hidden buildings and the debris of country life are set amongst the passing seasons and the invasive forces of nature. In her early years she was privileged to work as an artist at Ightham Mote, a National Trust Property in Kent, where she completed many paintings and several etchings. Some of these etchings are still available in their limited edition as seen in the Gallery "Etchings" Her commissioned work has also given her entry to many beautiful country houses and historic buildings.

For Rosemary the joy of painting is being with the subject, working on site the whole time, absorbing the shapes, smells and colours and observing the changing light and shade. Her work begins with a rough sketch in pencil then she picks up her pen and becomes engrossed in the subject and the lighting. The fineness of the lines allows her to scribble in great detail and at this stage the picture could stand alone in black and white as illustrated here. This process can take many hours and it is after this that she paints in watercolour. She uses a heavyweight, handmade, rough watercolour paper which gives the paint its movement and texture. Although she includes much detail in her paintings, it is freely expressed and not measured or photographic.

In 1993 Rosemary began working as an etcher. Please see The Etching Technique for an explanation of the process. Her subjects are similar to those used in her paintings, but simplified to suit the etching medium. It is in her studio and workshop that she produces the copper plates, bathing them in acid and printing the etchings on the press. A limited edition of 25 to 30 etchings from each plate is normally produced. She enjoys experimenting with colour in the etchings. However, this is always achieved by applying coloured ink to the plate before it goes into the press and is not painted on afterwards. For Rosemary the attraction of an etching is its simple beauty born from a long and complicated process.