The Art of Being Mike Fryer

Published by Applications
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First published in 2011. Published by: Applications, 3 The Thrift, Bean, Dartford, Kent DA2 8BL (T: 01474 704961 E: mike@mikefryer.co.uk) Copyright Michael J Fryer 2011 Design and typesetting by Mike Fryer (W: www.mikefryer.co.uk) The moral rights of the authors have been asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy recording or any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. All photos by Mike Fryer apart from pages 6, 8 and 9 by Ian Goodrick and pages 18, 19 and 20 by Tanya Uroda. Set in 12pt AT Rotis Semi Sans.

Contents

Introduction Landscape Painting London Welcomes the World Abstract Painting Other Painting Subjects Digital Prints Rsum Contact Details

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Introduction
What strikes you about Mike is the diversity of his work. He is a painter, printmaker, designer and scientist with many years of experience. He has a proven track record of exhibitions, publications and a reputation for high quality and innovative work. He rejects the boundaries drawn around subject areas believing that each speciality can inform the other and promote new ideas. Indeed, because Mike has a background in both science and art, in 2008 he was a speaker at the conference Colour in Art, Design and Nature, Edinburgh, a gathering of academics from very diverse disciplines. So what is the basis for Mikes art, what are his reasons and methodologies in painting and printmaking? As he says I am excited by colour and feel exhilarated as I squeeze paint from the tube pure plastic colour that I want to eat to make it part of me and sometimes I paint with my fingers just to be in touch with the colour! I am passionate about colour and use it as a means of expressing my excitement about the Creation all around me in all its varied hues, forms and vitality. Mike uses colour to express his emotional response to the world around him, the sensations from nature. The colour is rich and saturated but also shows subtlety in how it is used to convey the sense of place. The aim is to bring the composition and colour into a unity over the whole surface so it has stability. Within this stability there may be some areas of discord but these are balanced over the whole composition. Mikes painting practice comprises landscape, abstract, still life and figurative works. His print2

making consisting of some etching but primarily digital prints as these can be undertaken within his studio. His painting and printmaking are described within each section (pages 3 and 99). As a graphic designer Mike has over 20 years experience running a design company and working with companies ranging from multinationals to sole traders on a great variety of projects. Recent work includes producing a book on racing Thames barges, designing websites, posters and leaflets. Whilst researching for his Ph.D. in biology Mike examined aspects of petal colour including the biochemistry of pigments, the light reflected from the petals and the surface appearance of the petals using a scanning electron microscope. This interest in the technical nature of colour has stayed with him and now includes human vision and perception. He uses these ideas in his paintings to help with composition and the placement of colour. Integrity is fundamentally important to Mikes work. Being a Christian, he works out his beliefs and values in all areas of his life, including his art. He plans his paintings and prints very carefully and uses high quality materials. But more than this, his integrity means that the whole process of making a work of art is done very seriously so that it is not accidental, unfinished or meretricious but seeks to have a stability and validity through time. Mike has a number of current projects he is planning and working on (see insert). He would also be very happy to discuss how he can work with you, so email him at: mike@mikefryer.co.uk and look at his website: www.mikefryer.co.uk

Landscape Painting
How do these sensations from nature, the total input of colour, form, smell and sound come to be transformed into a painting? It is simply an emotional response to the sensations received from a particular motif: something in what is seen must stimulate a reaction. The particular motif in a landscape that attracts such attention can be the shape or colour of a field or a group of trees or a building, etc. The whole painting is then established around that motif. The emotional response does not mean that the paintings are simplistic portrayals of feelings but rather one scene or view is selected over others because the sensations from that scene provoke the response. The emotions triggered vary considerably as the motif is mentally transformed into a painting and the colour interrelationships are contemplated and subsequently developed in practice. Nature is not slavishly copied but the sensations are submitted to the necessity of making a picture. The aim is to bring the compositional and colour elements into a unity over the whole surface to achieve stability. Within the stability there may be local areas of discord that are brought into balance over the whole composition. Thus, the use of colour is a construct, it is a means of expressing the emotional response to a landscape, the sensations from nature.

Meopham acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

Stonewood 4 acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

Farm 2 (Cliffe) acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

Farm 3 (Southfleet) acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

Harvest (Betsham) acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

River (Medway, Strood) acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

Summer Days (Southfleet) acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

London Welcomes the World

Its amazing how one thing can lead to another! At a reception at the British Olympic and Paralympic Associations Mike was part of a group showing some paintings relating to paralympic sport (pages 2223) and while there he got talking to some very helpful people from BT Wholesale. To cut a long story short, they arranged for him to go up the BT Tower one morning in May 2010 and with a Nikon D700 loaned by a good friend, he took a series of photographs that captured London. He then spent a week processing the images, removing perspective and lens distortion and stitching them together to a complete 360 degree panorama, working out how to transform the radial view from the Tower into a flat plane. But that was just the beginning, from these photographs he had to make a painting and work out how to convey the feel and nature of London, to celebrate its diversity, how the world comes to London, including looking forward to the Olympics in 2012. After initial experiments he found a way to draw each panel using curvilinear perspective, simplifying and summarising the buildings and using his hightened colour to express the dynamic nature of the city. Having completed the first panel Mike was invited to show the finished work at a reception at the House of Lords, but that was only six weeks later! There followed a frenetic time of drawing and painting, working 1216 hours a day for six days a week, the last panel being finished on the afternoon of the reception! Mike said that the intensity of painting gave the work an extra dynamism that it would have lacked if painted over a longer period. The painting runs over six canvases (each 800 x 800 mm) making the whole 4.8 metres wide. Soon after the reception at The House of Lords, the painting was exhibited at BT Wholesale who have since purchased it for their Corporate Collection.

Panel One (detail) showing Euston Tower behind which can be seen the many railway tracks going to Euston Station off right.

Panel Five (detail) showing the renovated and extended BBC Broadcasting House and the restored Langham Hotel.

South Darenth acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

Grubb Street acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

North Kent acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

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Perspective Study 1 acrylic on canvas, 500 x 1000 mm. These paintings were produced as a result of a recent AA2A Artists Residency at University of the Creative Arts, Canterbury. The project examined aspects of curvilinear perspective.

Perspective Study 2 acrylic on canvas, 500 x 1000 mm.

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Bridges of London acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

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London Nocturn acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

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Canary Wharf, London acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

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Millennium Bridge acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

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Chimneys 116 acrylic on canvas, each 300 x 300 mm.

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Road to Uman acrylic on canvas, 400 x 400 mm.

Road to Borovytsya 2 acrylic on canvas, 400 x 400 mm.

Road to Borovytsya 1 acrylic on canvas, 400 x 400 mm.

Road to Borovytsya 3 acrylic on canvas, 400 x 400 mm.

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Abstract Painting
The problem with abstract painting is that it uses a language specific to the painter and can, therefore, be difficult to understand. Different landscape painters may have very different ways to paint trees but a tree is still recognisable as a tree even if distorted or rendered in unusual colours. With an abstract painting there may be no elements in common with other paintings so its interpretation, if possible, is unique to that painting or painter. In order to develop a methodology of interpretation, Mike has been experimenting with a system of abstract painting called Abstract Graphism (he says that people like to have names!) This seeks to express the meaning of a text, poem, etc. in a way that makes it possible to read the painting. He says it is very encouraging when people at exhibitions go up to him and tell him what the paintings are about! Mikes method of painting abstracts uses a technique in which the paint is applied as a liquid and allowed to dry differentially and then pulled off using smooth toilet paper. This gives the paintings complex textures and the many layers of paint give a rich depth to the colour. Gold and silver leaf have also been used to give an added dimension. Mike has produced several series of abstracts including The Commandments, a set of ten canvases now in the ICI Permanent Collection and a set of seven boards Days of Creation which were exhibited in Ukraine and remain there. This series is currently being re-worked on medium canvases, the first of which was exhibited by Mascalls Gallery as part of the Brighton Fringe 2010. Anyone interested in exhibiting the complete series please see Mike!
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Day 1 acrylic on board, 600 x 600 mm.

Day 2 acrylic on board, 600 x 600 mm.

Day 3 acrylic on board, 600 x 600 mm.

Day 5 acrylic on board, 600 x 600 mm.

Day 4 acrylic on board, 600 x 600 mm.

Day 6 acrylic on board, 600 x 600 mm.

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Day 7 acrylic on board, 600 x 600 mm.

C5 (EX20:12) acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

C1 (EX20:3) acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

C8 (EX20:14) acrylic on canvas, 500 x 500 mm.

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Other Painting Subjects

Although Mike has majored on landscape and abstract painting he is always open to new challenges and to work outside his comfort zone. The three paintings here are all very different and show his response to the different genre and the need to not slavishly copy, but imbue with meaning. The first painting Homage to Poetry (this page) shows a table with notebook and pens, a newspaper (current affairs?), poetry books, flowers (romance?) and a glass (water or spirit?) The background is based on cloth from Ukraine and the table cloth based on cloth from Uzbekistan recognising the importance of poetry in Eastern Europe. But where is the poet, just coming or just gone? The painting of wheelchair racing Marathon (page 22) shows the end of the race, the winner glides over the line whilst behind there is a battle for second place. The challenge in this painting was to convey the sense of the athletes in motion. The background, including Buckingham Palace, is simplified and abstracted to form a strong contrast with the well delineated athletes. The shape of the athletes are disrupted by shards of background colour and by motion ripples to give a sense of movement. The third painting Superstars (page 23) is of Paralympian Lee Pearson riding Gentleman, winner of nine gold medals in dressage. Here a sense of utter concentration by rider and horse is contrasted with the blurred spectators. The painting also looks to Antiquity by using the primary colours of the ancient Greek philosopher Democritus: white, black, red and green. Democritus was born just 30
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years after the mythical run of Pheidippides from Marathon to Athens announcing the victory of the Greeks over the Persians. Mike is willing to undertake commissions and to consider working in different genre and subject matter. Ask him how he can work with you!

Homage to Poetry acrylic on MDF board, 767 x 510 mm.

Marathon acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

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Superstars acrylic on canvas, 800 x 800 mm.

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Prints
In the past Mike has produced prints using screen print and etching but for the present he is concentrating on digital prints for practical reasons. His digital prints are, however, produced in a particular way since he starts with a blank screen and never imports scanned or digital images that are then manipulated. He may use sketches, photographs or other images as reference material but always as hard copy. Hence, the whole print is hand drawn using a graphics tablet. Mike has a professional grade ink-jet printer using professional grade ink on high quality paper. He resists the urge to use the pretention gicle since it is a route for the unscrupulous to over-charge.

Dockyard Paper digital print, 100 x 100 mm.

Dockyard Water digital print, 100 x 100 mm.

Dockyard Glass digital print, 100 x 100 mm.

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Dockyard Brick digital print, 100 x 100 mm.

Dockyard Wood digital print, 100 x 100 mm.

Dockyard Metal digital print, 100 x 100 mm.

Line and Colour 1 digital print 82 x 82 mm.

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1 7 3 I nt e r p r e t a ti C on I n th i s ( 1 ) h a p t e r a c c e s sibi l it y s h a s g g i v on 1 6 c e an a ) a s to r eq ui r e m e nt th e m e a nin e n i n se c ti si st n s ( c h h n e d li n d

7 ( 5 ) a s g d o m e a a d o g wh i b e e n t r a i g ui d e a b ) s o p e

p e r s on ( b g wh i c h h a t r a in e d t st a d e a f c ) a d o g (
Line and Colour 2 digital print 82 x 82 mm. Deaf-listen digital print, 280 x 280 mm.

a d o b e e n a s si r s on wh i c h

Line and Colour 3 digital print 82 x 82 mm.

Wheelchair-bound digital print, 280 x 280 mm.

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Blind-sight digital print, 280 x 280 mm.

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Rsum
Exhibitions (Various, including): 2000 An invited painter showing three canvases in the Surfacing exhibition at the Mick Jagger Arts Centre, Dartford (MayJune 2000) organised by Dartford Borough Council. 2000 Invited to exhibited three canvases at the Taster Exhibition for the South East Open Studios at the Mick Jagger Arts Centre, Dartford. 2001 short-listed for the Corner Art Prize, London. 2001 joint exhibition By Hand 3 exhibition at the County Gallery, Maidstone. 2002 joint exhibition By Hand 4 exhibition at the County Gallery, Maidstone. 2003 exhibited at the Contemporary Print show at London Print Studio. 2004 short-listed for the Arundell Trust Art Exhibition Prize and exhibited at St Ethelburgas, Bishopsgate, London. 2004 three works (comprising 14 canvases) accepted for the ICI/LDAF exhibition Still Inspired running for one year at ICI Corporate Centre, London. 2005 solo exhibition La Joie de Vivre at Nevill Gallery, Canterbury. 2005 surgery on both shoulders - not much painting for nearly a year! 2006 joint exhibition By Hand 8 at Dartford Public Library during December. 2007 solo exhibition Listening Colour Dashwood Gallery, Hall Place and Gardens, Bexley, Kent. 2007 joint exhibition ko-ax open art competition, Mascalls Gallery, Paddock Wood, Kent. 2007 joint exhibition From Eden to... Eternity Regional Countrystudy Museum of Cherkassy, Ukraine 2008 joint exhibition at BT Wholesale, London 2008 work exhibited at Baltic Exchange, London 2008 joint exhibition at LloydsTSB, London 2008 solo show at Npower Corporate Centre, Swindon 2009 joint exhibition at BT Wholesale, London. 2010 joint exhibition at reception at British Olympic Association and Paralympic Association, London. 2010 joint exhibition at BT Wholesale, London. 2010 joint exhibition From the Darkness at Little St Peters Church, Brighton, part of Brighton Festival Fringe organised by Mascalls Gallery, Paddock Wood. 2010 joint exhibition at Employers Forum on Disability, Gold Reception at the Garden Museum, London. 2010 joint exhibition British Olympic Association and Paralympic Association, London. 2010 solo work exhibited at reception at House of Lords (organised by Employers Forum on Disability).
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2010 2011 2011 2011

solo exhibition at BT Wholesale, London. work included in Art in the Dockyard Exhibition, The Historic Dockyard, Chatham, Kent. joint exhibition at Employers Forum on Disability, Gold Reception at Church House, London. joint exhibition Just The Way We Are joint exhibition with Sevenoaks Visual Art Forum at ArtsSpace, Cranbrook Library, Kent. 2011 joint exhibition Artists Access to Art Schools (AA2A) University of the Creative Arts, Canterbury. Member of South East Open Studios since 2000. Works in collections: 2005 Two works in the ICI Permanent Collection: a single canvas Heaven and Earth and a ten canvas work entitled The Commandments. 2011 The major painting London Welcomes the World purchased by BT Wholesale for their Corporate Collection. Awards/Competitions/Residencies: 2002 awarded a residency at London Print Studio. 2002 awarded a grant from Southern & South East Arts to develop digital artwork. 2007 Artist of the Month National Disability Arts Forum (www.ndaf.org). 2008 Speaker at the conference Colour in art, design and nature, Edinburgh. 2009 Accepted on the Sync SE leadership in the arts development programme, a two-year training course funded by Arts Council England, South East with funds from Accentuate. 2010 Artist in Residence at University of the Creative Arts, Canterbury (until May 2011). 2011 The digital print Wheelchair-bound chosen as the Pic of the week by AA2A and shown on their Twitter page: http://twitpic.com/4k0ial 2011 Macworld Digital Artist: Shortlisted (with digital print Dockyard Water) Publications: 1989 Co-author and joint illustrator The Woodland Ecology Pack, published by Hodder & Stoughton Limited. 2001 Painting in harmony article in South East Arts Disabled People and the Arts Newsletter. 2005 Various paintings featured in Limited Edition magazine and Focus magazine. 2006 Fryer MJ. Complementarity. Optics and Laser Technology; 38: 417430. A discussion and investigation of complementary colour featuring two paintings by the author. 2009 Fryer MJ. Sensations from Nature. International Journal of Design & Nature and Ecodynamics; 4, No. 3 (2009) 219227. 2010 In progress: Living Colour an examination of colour in plants and painting. Botanical Briefings.
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Contact Details

E: mike@mikefryer.co.uk W: www.mikefryer.co.uk M: 07798907981 T: 01474 704961

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