DA23004 Emma Appels-Riley – Watercolour

I met Emma briefly at her stall selling her artwork on the Shaldon Village Green, near Teignmouth, on Wednesday 23rd August 2023 at an Arts and Crafts Fair. Without a doubt the best artwork representing  my favoured genre that I had seen whilst exploring the local art galleries of Dawlish, Shaldon and Teignmouth. Her work is displayed at Gallery 8, 43 Teign Street, Teignmouth, Devon TQ14 8EA.

She describes her own work below :-

“Vibrant water colours of local scenes. I love painting buildings and all their quirky details with a large measure of artistic licence. Boat scenes are a favourite of mine. Watercolour is a real passion of mine and trying to capture the light is always my aim.”

She explained she did her painting in a loft area within her home. She admitted she did not focus enough on her web presence like many artists preferring to be painting rather than being at a screen marketing her creations. Having looked at her website I was surprised to see it covered her artwork undertaken in South Africa and the style was identical to my favourite Urban Sketcher Pete Scully with my post below linking to his work and digital activities :- 

https://adigitalartist.blogspot.com/2023/03/da23001-pete-scully-urban-sketcher.html

 But Emma's site below showed none of her latest work in Devon so she certainly needs to update her web presence urgently.

https://emmacarl.wixsite.com/emmaappelsriley/about-emma

Now for my usual rant about the state of art in the UK. So once again I reiterate my own concern about the modern art movement and the way it is being funded through the Government bureaucrats incorrectly controlling the funding to large Galleries and Museums. This being undertaken with poor taste and thereby failing to appreciate the importance of artistic education, skills and dedication. Looking at many of the modern art galleries so called modern art requires so little talent or effort. Modern artists have replaced the craft and long hours of practice with an odd desire to often become focussed on shock value or minimalistic or cartoon or abstract like representations rather than true art. This fashion in modern art to place artists like Damien Hirst and Tracey Ermin as being iconic artists of our era on a pedestal whilst ignoring the dedication of the true artists spending hours enhancing their techniques. With efforts focussed upon trying to convince the public that if you cannot see the hidden meanings behind these so called works of art you are in some way intellectually inferior. Whilst this trash sells for millions whilst work created by the dedicated true artists not making hundreds. What has gone so wrong with the art market ? How have we educated through Government and sadly the Media the public to place value on items that fail to represent the artistic skills that we should be acknowledging in our fellow human beings. Modern Art has become a odd interpretation of fashion rather than than something with long lasting pedigree. Is it recoverable? It is only recoverable through education where the next generations are taught to appreciate human creativity, skill and persistence.

In my case I believe that if the artists with these skills could embrace more the use of digital technology they have an opportunity to recover the situation through direct contact with the public. In parallel to this the efforts being made by Local Councils to develop in tourist locations a renaissance of local artists leading to a rediscovery of classical art and culture provides a counter movement to Government failure to lead on any sort of arts initiative. Read my  https://adigitalartist.blogspot.com/2023/04/da23002-cork-ireland-visual-centre-of.html to appreciate what the Irish Arts Council achieved in 1995-1997. The Government of the United Kingdom should consider such an initiative.   

To me it remains a necessity to view artwork ideally in its original state very closely to see the detail brush or pencil strokes of the artist. Unfortunately whilst such work on pure landscapes has become less popular the movements in respect of the inclusion of trains, boats and planes for the enthusiasts of these modes of transport has become inclusive of excellent landscapes. These have become excellent specialist artwork marketplaces commanding their justly deserved high prices paid by enthusiasts. So the inclusion of steam trains in any Teignmouth or Dawlish artwork immediately creates access to a new marketplace. Whilst in the Teignmouth and Shaldon areas the inclusion of boats exploits another transport focussed element and its associated marketplace. Build in vintage cars, buses and lorries to further exploit the nostalgic dimension.

So as the post was about Emma’s watercolours  I have included the one I purchased as a Limited Edition below subject to her Copyright so you get see the style of her latest work although the visual intensity of the colours is lost in this digital copy.

 

                   The Ship Inn & Back Beach, Teignmouth . 162/250 . Copyright : Emma Appels-Riley